Colima regulates the ownership and care of dogs and cats

The Autonomous Decentralized Municipal Government of the Colimes Canton, in the province of Guayas, approved the Ordinance regulating the protection, ownership, control, and care of companion animals (dogs, cats), a mandatory regulation throughout the cantonal territory. The text was published in the Official Registry Special Edition No. 1638, from Quito, Monday, September 14, 2026, on page 2.

The ordinance was discussed and approved by the Municipal Council in ordinary sessions held on August 20 and 27, 2026, in first and second debates, and sanctioned and promulgated on August 28, 2026, by the mayor Mvz. Alex Isidro Quinto Castro, with the certification of the Council secretary, Ab. Rosa Burgos Zambrano. It comes into effect upon its promulgation in the Official Registry, in accordance with article 324 of the COOTAD.

Purpose and obligations of owners

The regulation seeks to foster animal welfare, prevent abuse and abandonment, and promote adoption and responsible ownership. Owners or keepers of dogs, cats, or other domestic animals are required to:

Register their animal with the Directorate of Environmental Management and Public Services within 60 days of its birth, acquisition, or adoption.
Comply with the vaccination and deworming schedule and subject the animal to preventive and curative veterinary treatments.
Keep the animal within the property with proper security measures, pick up its waste in public spaces, and avoid noises that disturb neighbors.
Use a leash and collar for dogs when traveling on public roads; for breeds considered dangerous—Pit bull terrier, Rottweiler, Dogo argentino, Doberman, Boxer, among others—a muzzle must be used.
Be liable for damages and losses that the animal causes to third parties.

Registration, license, and census

Registration is performed once in the municipal database, with a sequential number, and requires the owner to be of legal age, present a valid ID and voting certificate, and fill out the application with data on the pet and the responsible party. The Companion Animal Ownership License will be valid for two years, renewable for equal periods, at a cost of five dollars (USD 5.00). The animal must wear a collar with an identification tag containing the registration number, the pet’s name, and the owner’s details.

The municipality will also promote censuses of dogs, cats, and other companion animals every two years, in order to determine the population size, plan sterilizations, and control vaccinations, the results of which will be reported to the Ministry of Public Health.

Prohibitions and sanctions

It is prohibited to sell companion animals on the streets, cause them injury or suffering, chain or tie them as a habitual method, practice zoophilia, and sacrifice them by poisoning, asphyxiation, weapons, blows, or acids, as well as using them in rituals or santería. Failure to comply with obligations entails a written warning and, in case of recidivism, a fine of 10% of the Unified Basic Salary; the violation of prohibitions is sanctioned with a fine of 15% of the Unified Basic Salary, substitutable by 16 hours of community service when insufficiency of resources is proven. The sanctioning authority rests with the Directorate of Environmental Management and Public Services and the Head of Municipal Control.

Owners will have a transitional period of three months from the effective date of the regulation to obtain the license and register their animals. The ordinance is framed within the Constitution of the Republic, the Organic Environmental Code, the COOTAD, and the Comprehensive Organic Criminal Code, which typifies the abuse and death of pets, and makes Colimes one of the cantons that comprehensively regulate coexistence with companion animals.

Source: Official Registry of Ecuador, Special Edition No. 1638, Quito, Monday, September 14, 2026, p. 2 (Ordinance regulating the protection, ownership, control, and care of companion animals of the Colimes canton).