By Catherine McGeer • Published: 09 Aug 2024 • 15:15 • 1 minute read
Nerja's Cats: Legal Protection Enforced Image: Shutterstock/ Alan David Taylor
COSTA Animal Society urges Nerja residents to be aware of recent changes in animal protection laws that impact local cat colonies. Under the new legislation, all cats in Nerja are legally protected. This includes prohibitions against harming, displacing, or tampering with their feeding stations.
Recently, there have been incidents where people have removed food and water containers from a feeding station near the Municipal Burriana car park. This act is not only theft from a charity but also cruel to the cats, who rely on these stations for nourishment. Feeding stations are crucial for monitoring the health of street cats and preventing the spread of disease. They also help keep the streets clean by reducing garbage scavenging.
The issue has been reported to Nerja Police, and the town’s Chief of Police and Public Health Councillor have visited the site. Tampering with feeding stations is now punishable by a substantial fine. Residents are reminded that both the cats and their feeding stations are protected by law.
Well-maintained feeding stations play a crucial role not only in supporting local cat colonies but also in benefiting the broader ecosystem. By providing a consistent source of nourishment, these stations help to minimize the scavenging behavior of street cats, which in turn reduces the likelihood of garbage being spread around the community.
This helps keep the environment cleaner and less attractive to pests and vermin, which can carry diseases that affect both animals and humans. Additionally, regular feeding at designated stations allows for better monitoring of the cats’ health, helping to prevent the spread of illnesses that could potentially impact local wildlife. In this way, proper management of feeding stations contributes to a healthier, more balanced ecosystem by controlling waste and disease transmission.
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I am an Irish writer who has been living in Spain for the past twenty years. My writing centers around the Costa Cálida. As a mother I also write about family life on the coast of Spain and every now and then I try to break down the world of Spanish politics!
Hi Catherine, Thank you for the wonderful article. My wife, Carol Netting is the President of Costa Animal Society and has had firsthand experience of the issues mentioned. Hopefully, the article will help spread the word and help people understand the new laws as only this week, the food has been removed, along with the trays we put down, three times!
Well done for your report on feeding the cats and explaining the reasons behind it. Cats keep the rats down and have as much right to live as other animals. We’ll done!
It doesn’t take colonies of cats to keep the rat populations down. They also keep the BIRD populations down. Who is taking care of cleaning up their poop which usually ends up in someone’s garden? There are sensible ways to deal with stray cat population problems but protecting them like they are an endangered species and feeding them does more harm than good. BTW well fed cats still attack and kill birds and other critters. An overpopulation does nothing but upset the entire local ecosystem.
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