Outrage as abandoned animals ‘to be killed after 10 days’ in Marbella

A COUNCIL decision to allow a private company to slaughter abandoned animals has sparked public outcry.

It comes after Marbella City Hall invited bidders for a contract to manage abandoned animals, which includes the option to put down those that are not claimed or adopted after 10 days if they are unable to be identified.

And the move sent social media into meltdown after animal lovers shared the document in their hundreds.

Local animal shelter Triple A – which takes in dogs, cats, ferrets, and Vietnamese pot-bellied pigs – was quick to condemn the proposal, publishing a statement on its Facebook page which demanded the council to ‘reconsider whether to maintain the tender offer under the stated conditions if certain aspects cannot be improved.’

Opposition political groups also slammed the scheme, leading conservative Popular Party mayor Angeles Muñoz to decide that the document would be withdrawn after she appeared alongside Triple A chief Jan Weima for a photoshoot.

But two days later it remained online with companies encouraged to submit their offers.

An official from left-wing coalition Izquierda Unida claimed that the public appearance with Triple A was nothing more than ‘a smokescreen,’ with which the council ‘tried to clean up its image,’ as the social media backlash continued.