Biure definitively approves the animal protection and welfare ordinance

The Plenary of the Biure City Council has definitively approved the municipal ordinance regulating the protection of animal rights and welfare, after the public information period of thirty business days closed without any claims or suggestions. The full text, consisting of 29 pages, is published in the Official Gazette of the Province of Girona no. 207, dated October 27, 2026, with the official reference BOP-2026_0_207_9053. The ordinance comes into force the day after its publication in the gazette, without prejudice to the review in the Official Gazette of the Generalitat de Catalunya.

The initial agreement was reached in an ordinary session of the Plenary on May 7, 2026, and was submitted for public exhibition in the BOP of Girona no. 112, dated June 12, 2026 (edict 5042), under file X2023000411. As there were no objections, the initial approval has become definitive and exhausts the administrative route; a contentious-administrative appeal may be filed against the agreement before the Contentious-Administrative Chamber of the High Court of Justice of Catalonia within a period of two months. The signed text bears the signature of the mayor, Albert Camps Coromines.

Five animals per household and mandatory insurance

The regulation sets a maximum of five pets per household, of which at most three may be dogs, and prohibits keeping more than three dogs, three cats, or three ferrets per family unit. The Biure City Council may reduce or increase this number based on a prior report from the technical services.

Dog owners must contract and maintain in force a civil liability insurance policy for third-party damages, and will have twelve months to complete the responsible ownership training course once its content is regulatorily determined.

Other highlighted obligations:

• Notify the city council of the loss or theft of the animal within a maximum of 48 hours.
• Notify the municipal census of births, acquisitions, changes of residence, or death within 30 days (3 months in the case of births).
• Identify dogs, cats, and ferrets with a microchip and sterilize cats before six months of age.
• Collect droppings and clean the public road; the council reserves the right to analyze excrement to identify the owner.
• Prohibition of electric, impulse, punishment, or choke collars, and of leaving a dog unsupervised for more than 24 consecutive hours.

Dangerous dogs, access, and feline colonies

The ownership of potentially dangerous dogs will require a five-year municipal license, along with a certificate of psychological aptitude and insurance; registration in the specific registry must be completed within 15 days after obtaining it. Animals in this category must be sterilized within 30 days following acquisition, and owners who already have them at the time the regulation comes into force have three months to do so.

Pets will not be allowed to enter municipal buildings or children’s playgrounds —except for guide dogs—, while catering and accommodation establishments may admit them if indicated by a visible sign. Bites or injuries must be reported to the Local Police or the town hall within 24 hours, and the animal’s health documentation must be presented within 48 hours.

The annex regulates the local management program for feline colonies, based on the trap-neuter-return method. Caregivers must register with the Biure Town Hall and attend mandatory training; the collection of abandoned animals is channeled through the shelter of the Alt Empordà County Council.

Sanctions of up to 200,000 euros

The sanctioning regime distinguishes between minor, serious, and very serious infractions. For the behaviors provided for in articles 13, 15, 17, and 19, fines range up to 750 euros (minor), from 751 to 1,500 euros (serious), and from 1,501 to 3,000 euros (very serious). For potentially dangerous dogs, Law 10/1999 applies, with amounts from 300 to 45,000 euros, and for the remaining cases, Law 7/2023 governs, with fines from 500 to 200,000 euros. The statute of limitations for infractions is three years for very serious, two for serious, and six months for minor ones. Sanctions are imposed by the mayor in the case of minor infractions and by the Plenary in serious or very serious ones.

With this ordinance, Biure has for the first time a complete local framework on animal ownership, affecting private owners as well as care centers, breeders, and feline colony volunteers in the municipality.

Fuente: Official Gazette of the Province of Girona, no. 207, October 27, 2026, section I, pp. 1-29 (official reference: BOP-2026_0_207_9053).