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ARCHIVED - Pets in Spain become legal members of the family
Courts will be able to decide on the custody and maintenance of companion animals following a divorce
It has been months in the making and the government in Spain has fallen under some harsh criticism for not pushing through the legislation sooner, but as of this Wednesday January 5, pets will officially be considered sentient beings under the law and will no longer be classed as ‘objects’. The legal reform means that from now on, animals will be legitimate members of the family and will have a different status from that of material goods.
Parliamentary sources have indicated that the law will take effect 20 days after its publication in the Official State Gazette on January 5. While undoubtedly a positive move for the protection of the rights of animals, Spain has come a bit late to the game compared with much of Europe in the proposed ‘de-objectification’ of animals; Portugal introduced the legislation in 2017, Germany in 1990 and France in 2015.
Main changes to the law
- When a couple divorces, joint custody of the pet will be awarded wherever possible, always taking into account “the new needs of the companion animal”.
- The judge will also have the right to dictate maintenance costs for the care of the animal and rule on which spouse the pet gets to live with if the couple can’t come to an agreement.
- A parent may be denied joint custody of their child if they have previously been convicted of an animal abuse or neglect crime. The justification for this radical reform is that animal mistreatment can be used as a control tool or a form of direct or indirect psychological abuse within a family that could threaten the wellbeing of a minor.
- The law states that anyone who finds a lost animal must hand it over to its owner unless there are clear indicators of neglect or abandonment, in which case the pet should be brought to the authorities. If the animal is returned to its owners, the person who found it is legally entitled to compensation for its care.
- The modification of the law does not include animals from livestock, industrial or recreational farms as they are not considered companion pets.
Image: Guardia Civil
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