Eight months since we marched:

Spain goes to the polls: what it means for hunting dogs

October 2026 | An update for our community

The hunting season has begun. Spain is heading to a snap election. Here is where things stand for the dogs.

WHAT'S HAPPENING IN MADRID

What was won, and what could be lost

A quick reminder: hunting dogs were left out of Spain’s 2023 Animal Welfare Law. Since then, two ministries have been drafting new rules, known as Royal Decrees.

The Ministry of Agriculture wants to regulate hunting kennels under rules designed for farming operations, focused on animal health rather than welfare. In practice, this means treating hunting dogs as livestock.

The Ministry of Social Rights is drafting a separate decree for companion-animal facilities, with much higher welfare standards. In February, it promised to include hunting dogs. But as first written, its rules would have been very difficult for shelters, rescues, sanctuaries and foster homes to meet.

Before the election was called, our friends at Mismos Perros, Mismos Derechos (MPMD) felt the pressure was working, and that some progress had been made.

ROYAL DECREES: WHAT HAS IMPROVED

The revised drafts are better than the originals:

• Hunting dogs are now included in the Ministry of Social Rights’ draft Royal Decree on companion-animal establishments.

• Some of the sanitary requirements affecting animal sanctuaries have been eased.

• Foster homes will no longer have to register as zoological establishments. This matters for rescue organisations and their foster networks.

WHAT HAS NOT

Hunting dogs have not been removed from the Ministry of Agriculture’s draft Royal Decree. They now appear in both. That is a clear contradiction, and it still needs to be resolved.

WHAT IS STILL OPEN

None of this is settled. Both texts are still drafts. They were expected to reach the Council of Ministers towards the end of the year, but with a general election on 29 November, that timetable is now in serious doubt. Until they are approved, nothing achieved so far is guaranteed.

WHAT IS HAPPENING AT EU LEVEL

Regulation (EU) 2026/1818, the first EU-wide regulation on the welfare, identification and traceability of dogs and cats, was published in the Official Journal on 10 August 2026. Hunting dogs are not excluded as a category.

But most of its requirements will be introduced gradually, some not for years. That means the decisions being made in Spain now still matter enormously.

A NEW CAMPAIGN - Ningún Animal Atrás (No Animal Left Behind)

MPMD is building on the momentum of that campaign. It has expanded into Ningún Animal Atrás (No Animal Left Behind). The same coalition of Spanish animal welfare organisations is behind it, and we are supporting it. Equal protection for hunting dogs remains at its heart. It also stands up for the foster homes, rescues and sanctuaries that these dogs depend on.

Find out more here

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT

Spain goes to the polls

Tens of thousands of people have been protesting in the streets of Spain over the housing crisis. On 5 October, after Congress rejected his government's housing decrees, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez dissolved parliament and called a general election for 29 November. A demonstration MPMD had organised in Madrid for 4 October was cancelled.

What does this mean for the Royal Decrees? Until the election, the government can still approve them, but that now looks unlikely. After 29 November, the outgoing government can only handle day-to-day business until a new one is formed. A new government could pick up the drafts, change them, start again or drop them altogether.

OUR HONEST ASSESSMENT

Progress on hold

The improvements in the drafts were real. They showed that campaigning makes a difference. But none of them became law, and with an election coming, they may now stall or be lost.

Whatever the result, it could be months until a new government is formed. Whoever forms it, we will need to make sure hunting dogs are on its agenda.

Meanwhile, the hunting season has started, and the dogs are paying the price.

TAKE ACTION

We Are Their Voice. Here's How You Can Help.

Keep talking about this.  Share this update. Many people still don’t know that hunting dogs are treated differently under Spanish law.

Help the dogs who need it now.  While the politics plays out, dogs in Spanish hunting kennels need help today, through adoption, fostering, fundraising and support for rescue organisations.

Watch this space. In the next few weeks we will announce the dates for 2027 UK marches.

We will keep watching. We will keep pushing.

Free Spanish Hounds