Protest against exclusion of hunting dogs in Spanish legislation
14-04-2026Last Saturday, 11 April, more than 300 organisations protested in Madrid against the exclusion of hunting dogs from new Spanish legislation. The protest is part of the Mismos Perros, Mismos Derechos (Same Dogs, Same Rights) campaign, which advocates equal legal rights for all dogs. CAS International is part of this campaign and, together with Viva la Vida Foundation, co-sponsored the protest.
Protest against exclusion of hunting dogs in Spanish legislation | Picture: Ofelia Alcántara
Hunting dogs in Spain are once again at risk of being excluded from legal protection. The Spanish government is currently working on two new Royal Decrees that will directly affect the keeping and breeding of companion animals in so-called zoological nuclei (animal facilities where multiple animals are kept). The draft texts were published by two ministries: the Ministry of Social Rights and the Ministry of Agriculture.
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Classification based on use
The proposed regulations classify dogs legally according to their use. The rules from the Ministry of Social Rights would apply to companion animals covered by the national animal welfare law. The rules from the Ministry of Agriculture would apply to other animals, including hunting and working dogs. According to the current interpretation, this category would not fall under the same legal protection.
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Exclusion of hunting dogs
This creates a renewed exception for hunting dogs. Under the Ministry of Agriculture’s rules, these animals would largely be limited to mandatory microchipping and registration. As a result, hunting and working dogs could be subject to significantly lower welfare standards or, in some cases, fall almost entirely outside the regulatory framework.
Organisations are particularly concerned about hunting dogs kept in private homes. For these animals, there would be no clear limits or minimum welfare standards. In addition, households keeping fewer than ten dogs would not be required to register as a zoological nucleus, meaning they would fall outside regulatory oversight.
This opens the door to unregulated breeding of hunting dogs.
Mismos Perros, Mismos Derechos
The organisations involved are calling for a single, unified regulatory framework for all companion animals, and for the removal of exceptions that allow unregulated breeding. They advocate that no distinction should be made between hunting dogs and other dogs, and that all dogs should fall under the same protection standards of the Ministry of Social Rights.
Bus campaign
In addition to the protest, a bus travelled through Madrid for four days displaying images of hunting dogs and the responsible ministers: Pablo Bustinduy (Social Rights) and Luis Planas (Agriculture). According to the organisations, they are responsible for creating two separate regulatory frameworks for hunting and working dogs on the one hand, and companion animals on the other.
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Objections
CAS International has submitted formal objections to both ministries regarding the proposed regulations. We have requested that the rules for all animal facilities, both for companion animals and hunting dogs, be merged into a single unified framework under the Ministry of Social Rights.
The objections have also been shared with the Spanish Embassy.
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The ministries are now continuing the process of reviewing the regulations. The organisations will share updates as soon as new developments arise.
