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Mexico City, October 7 – A new legislative initiative presented by Morena deputy Luis Alberto Chávez García in the Mexico City Congress seeks to criminalize the deliberate abandonment of companion animals, proposing penalties ranging from six months to two years in prison.
Proposed Amendments to the Penal Code
The proposal aims to modify Article 350 Bis of the Penal Code for the Federal District. If approved, it would sanction individuals who intentionally fail to provide water, food, shelter, supervision, or essential care for the survival of an animal under their responsibility or custody.
In addition to imprisonment, the project establishes fines of 100 to 300 times the Unit of Measurement and Update (UMA) when the conditions of abandonment endanger the animal’s life or health. The proposal clearly distinguishes between the cessation of cohabitation and malicious abandonment that leaves a pet unprotected.
Urban Impact and Stray Animals
During the presentation of the project, Deputy Chávez García highlighted that 61.4% of households in the capital live with companion animals. He also cited projections from the Environmental and Territorial Planning Prosecutor’s Office (PAOT), which estimate that 1.2 million dogs are living on the streets within the city.
Chávez García warned that this issue directly impacts the public environment by leading to the formation of packs in areas such as Cerro de la Estrella, Ajusco, and Bosque de Aragón. This, in turn, contributes to diseases, uncontrolled reproduction, and traffic accidents.
Legislative Process and Implementation
The initiative is currently under review by the Commission for Administration and Justice Procurement of the Mexico City Congress, which is responsible for drafting the opinion for its subsequent vote in the Plenary. The proposal does not foresee the creation of new dependencies but rather the utilization of existing justice and animal protection institutions. These efforts would be combined with continuous campaigns for sterilization, registration, adoption, and veterinary medical care.
The Mexico City Congress announced the proposal via social media, stating: “The deputy @Luis_Chavez_Gar (MORENA) requested to criminalize and penalize the malicious abandonment of domestic animals under guardianship, custody, or possession in #CDMX.”
This initiative comes amidst other recent legislative discussions in the Mexico City Congress, including protests by app-based delivery drivers against a proposal to prohibit motorcycle passenger transport and the declaration of September 11 as ‘Mexican Rock and Roll Day’.
