We have a lot to learn from our Portuguese neighbors. May 1, 2017, will go down in the history of that country as the day when animals ceased to be things and became legal persons. This news dominated all headlines and news reports, even overshadowing the official holiday celebrated on that date: Labor Day. And it's because that day marked a before and after. As of May 1st, an owner could face serious consequences for spanking their pet. An ARISTOCAT could be entitled to alimony. And a judge would decide on custody in the event of a divorce between the ARISTOPET's parents. All this and much more is what May 1, 2017, in Portugal means for animals. A historic date.
The legislative change approved a few months ago by the Assembly of the Republic alters the legal status of animals, which are now considered "living beings" instead of "things". This change opens up a wide range of legal and judicial considerations that Portuguese judges will soon face, mainly when ruling on divorce cases where the couple cannot reach an agreement.
In such cases, a judge will have to rule on who gets the animal or animals. This is an aspect that, as we told you in this post, is still not covered in Spain. But not only that: judges will also have to decide what to do with the pet if neither party wants it, something that unfortunately often happens. From sending it to the pound, to leaving it with a shelter, to forcing owners to share custody... Family courts will be responsible for resolving these matters and will have to base their decisions on aspects such as: which is the best home for the animal to live happily and which of the two owners has more time to properly care for the pet (note that here we do not use the term ARISTOPARENT, since if someone neglects their pet, they are logically not worthy of that term).
Also, once the future residence of the pet is determined, more issues arise, as they say. Such as whether, for example, the party that takes charge of the pet can demand maintenance payments from the other party. For food, microchip, vaccinations, veterinary expenses... If this is done with children, it makes sense to replicate the model in the case of ARISTOPETS, considering that they are part of the family and that there are very few children in Portugal, only 1.5 million, compared to nearly seven million pets.
The reform in the Portuguese Civil Code also delves into the abuse, abandonment or death of any animal, pet or not, with "unjustified suffering," which could lead to a flood of complaints with greater legal backing. In 2016, in Portugal there were only three convictions out of 1,300 complaints. This contrasts with data from Spain, since according to the Nature Protection Service (Seprona) of the Civil Guard last year it carried out more than 12,400 actions against animal abuse as a result of 783 criminal offenses that led to the arrest or investigation of 490 people, in addition to 11,729 administrative offenses.
Lawyers and legislators themselves are divided on the practical consequences of the law and expect judges to set precedents in a hitherto unknown area. But with or without uncertainty, this moment had to come. Especially in a country like Portugal, where there are almost seven million pets. Therefore, it was essential for this aspect to begin to be legislated and to set a precedent for other countries that, hopefully, following Portugal's example, will move to modify the legal status of our best friends.
