Fresno de Torote delegates the collection of abandoned animals to the Community

The Community of Madrid will assume the collection and housing of lost, abandoned, and stray companion animals within the municipal district of Fresno de Torote. This is established by the agreement signed on September 9, 2026, between the Regional Ministry of Environment, Agriculture, and Interior and the City Council of Fresno de Torote, published in the Official Gazette of the Community of Madrid (B.O.C.M.) number 236, dated October 3, 2026, with official reference BOCM-20261003-4.

The text is supported by Article 22 of Law 7/2023, of March 28, on the protection of the rights and welfare of animals, which assigns to city councils the collection of lost and abandoned animals and their housing in an animal protection center, with an emergency service available twenty-four hours a day. Law 4/2016, of July 22, on the Protection of Companion Animals of the Community of Madrid, allows in its Article 16.3 that municipalities with fewer than five thousand inhabitants without their own means may sign collaboration agreements with the regional Administration.

A municipality without its own means

The agreement recognizes that Fresno de Torote does not have trained personnel or adequate facilities for the capture and permanent housing of these animals, therefore entrusting the Community of Madrid with the management and execution of the current regulations on the matter within its territorial scope.

Since the launch of the Comprehensive Animal Shelter Center of Colmenar Viejo, the regional Administration has had its own center for lost, abandoned, and stray animals, primarily dogs and cats.

The agreement is signed, on behalf of the Community, by Manuel Miguel Beceiro Garat, technical general secretary of the Ministry, appointed by Decree 55/2025, of July 9, and acting by delegation of Order 984/2024, of March 15; and, on behalf of the City Council, by the mayor-president Ana Isabel Arias López, in office since the Plenary agreement of June 17, 2023.

Deadlines, emergencies, and commitments

The City Council of Fresno de Torote commits to locating lost animals, verifying their identification and managing the location of their owner, requesting collection from the Colmenar Viejo center, and taking charge of the animals until their transfer, providing food, housing, and veterinary assistance if applicable. Its obligations include:

• Maintain a temporary municipal facility that meets space, safety, and welfare requirements, registered in the Registry of Companion Animal Zoological Centers of the Community of Madrid.
• Collaborate with the collection service in the loading and housing of animals in the transport vehicle.
• Carry out at least one annual information campaign on responsible ownership, promotion of adoption, and birth control.
• Carry out at least one annual campaign for the identification control of companion animals.
• Establish measures against animal abuse and abandonment and advise owners who can no longer care for their animals.
• Communicate to the General Directorate of Agriculture, Livestock, and Food, within the first 31 calendar days of the year, the municipal actions and a report on the requests and collections carried out.

For its part, the Community of Madrid will receive the requests at the Colmenar Viejo center, collect the animals housed in the municipal facilities within a maximum period of 7 calendar days after notification, provide an emergency service for injured animals, process the location of owners, and promote adoption.

Validity, monitoring, and financing

The agreement enters into force on the day of its signing and will have a validity of 4 years, extendable by unanimous agreement for up to 4 additional years. It will be terminated, among other causes, due to non-compliance—with prior notice and a period of fifteen days—or if the municipality exceeds 5,000 inhabitants, as it would lose the protection of article 16.3 of Law 4/2016.

Monitoring will be the responsibility of a Monitoring Commission composed, for the Community, of the Director General of Agriculture, Livestock, and Food, who presides over it, an area head, and a veterinary technician from the Animal Protection Area as secretary; and, for the City Council, of the mayor and the councilor competent in the matter.

The signing does not imply an increase in expenditure for the Community of Madrid, as its economic content is included in the service contract “Management of the Comprehensive Animal Shelter Center, located in Colmenar Viejo”, formalized on March 31, 2025, with the Federation of Protective and Animal Defense Associations of the Community of Madrid for 1,240,782.34 euros, VAT included, and an execution period of 24 months.

The agreement guarantees the residents of Fresno de Torote a collection and emergency veterinary care service that the municipality could not provide on its own, and reinforces regional coordination regarding animal welfare in the small municipalities of the region.

Source: Official Gazette of the Community of Madrid, no. 236, of October 3, 2026, section I.D Announcements, pp. 42-47 (official reference: BOCM-20261003-4).