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Date Published: 17/08/2022
ARCHIVED - Free rein: Dogs in Murcia to be allowed to walk off leash
Owners in Murcia City will soon be allowed to let their pets run free at night
Some good news for our more free spirited canines this week as the Department of Health in Murcia has confirmed that dogs will soon be allowed off the leash in certain city parks and gardens at night. The authorities are currently working hard to kit out the designated spots for canine recreation within the City Council’s Animal Welfare Plan.
The new project will mean that owners can let their dogs off the lead between 8pm and 7am in winter and between 10pm and 7am the rest of the year. This will only be permitted in clearly marked parks with the obvious exception of children’s play areas.
Animals on the potentially dangerous breeds list, which is still in place in Spain despite calls to scrap the classification, will continue to require a leash at all times when out in public.
The Councillor for Health and Digital Transformation, Esther Nevado, explained that with this initiative "we intend to recover public spaces that are little travelled at certain times, enabling spaces so that the most active dogs, who need to run and exercise, can do so without disturbing other users, since the times and places will be limited”.
For now, the Health and Parks and Gardens technicians are working on outlining which areas are going to be used for these initiatives, with the park at the Ronda Sur lake, and the garden next to the La Chimenea park-and-ride in Barriomar (formerly La Molinera factory), current contenders, among many other urban green spaces.
While the move for more freedom when exercising will be welcomed by many, novel schemes such as this naturally cause some controversy. The battle rages on in Cartagena where several popular beaches are soon to allow dogs day and night, with several residents concerned about animals fouling the coastline and causing further damage to the Mar Menor.
You might also like: 5 key changes to the Animal Protection Law in Spain
Image: Pixabay
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