Campaigns were staged throughout the course of the year to raise awareness about public health, responsible ownership, and to tackle situations of abandonment and neglect.
Within that scope the GNR logged 924 crimes in the 12 months, of which 588 involved animal cruelty and 336 were cases of abandonment, as well as issuing close to 5,000 fines for non-compliance with laws for taking pets out in public, namely a lack of compulsory vaccinations and proper registration of dogs classified as being of a dangerous breed.
Last week, Lagos GNR police rescued four dogs from neglect.
The dogs were visibly skeletal and chained up outside a property in the region. Their 24-year-old female owner has been formally identified and reported to the courts. According to the GNR, the dogs were “in a rather debilitated and undernourished” state. They have been placed in the care of the local kennel.
The GNR also said that last year 257 dog attacks were reported.
A special 24-hour helpline has been set up by the GNR for cases of animal cruelty to be reported (Linha SOS Ambiente e Território, tel. 808 200 520), which last year took 3,942
complaints.
The GNR also provides training to owners of dogs considered dangerous or potentially dangerous, as well as issuing certifications to dog trainers and handlers of those breeds. Enrolments are open online via website www.gnr.pt, on the ‘cães perigosos’ page.
Special training for dangerous and potentially-dangerous dogs was made a legal requirement in Portugal in 2009.
Potentially-dangerous dogs are dogs of a particular build and nature that could cause injury or death to humans or animals. There are seven listed breeds considered potentially-dangerous from the offset – the Brazilian Fila, Dogo Argentino, Pitbull terrier, Rottweiler, American Staffordshire terrier, Staffordshire bull terrier and the Japanese Tosa Inu.
Dangerous dogs are those that have attacked a person, killed or injured an animal while out of its owner’s possession, or have been declared so by the owner.