The Jalisco Congress has approved revisions to the state’s Animal Protection Law (Ley de Protección y Cuidado a los Animales) that will make it compulsory for animal shelters to maintain a register of all its animals, as well as those given for adoption and put down.
Under the new law, all shelters, regardless of their size, will need to apply for a municipal license to operate.
Once the regulations of the law are drawn up, upper limits will be set on the number of animal shelters can house at one time, depending on the size and infrastructure of each facility.
Legislator Verónica Magdalena Jiménez Vázquez acknowledged the altruistic motives of many shelters, but pointed out that some exist “just for profit,” or operate in unhygienic conditions.
Licenses will be issued as of 2019 and will be free of charge.