Legality and ethics do not always go hand in hand. Since the buying and selling platforms burst onto the Internet, the sale of pets and animals, in general, has skyrocketed to unsuspected levels. In 2017 alone, the pet care sector had a turnover of more than 36.5 billion euros, according to Fediaf. Also, in that year, the population of cats and dogs in the European Union exceeded 74.7 and 66.3 million. Behind these figures moves an entire industry that markets pets and companion animals. For example, selling pedigree animals in Spain is popular among second-hand pages, such as Vibbo. But is it legal to sell dogs – and animals in general – over the Internet? Let’s see what the current legislation says.
CAN DOGS AND ANIMALS BE SOLD ONLINE?
According to Legálitas, the current regulations delegate the powers to regulate the sale of animals to Autonomous Communities. Curiously, the current legislation of the majority of the Autonomous Communities considers the sale of animals as a completely lawful and legal economic activity. It does contemplate a series of requirements that individuals must meet to avoid being penalized by the respective agencies.
The first consideration is based on the very nature of the sale. Although the sale between individuals is allowed, current law considers the chronic and continuous sale of animals a business. In this case, the seller must register his economic activity within the corresponding section of the RETA (in the case of self-employed workers) and declare the benefits before the treasury. The PACMA website also emphasizes that some municipalities require vendors to have an identification number and to meet a series of requirements (census declaration, animal registry…).
Another of the considerations introduced by the current law is the animals’ breeding. In cities like Barcelona, ​​for example, the sale of cats and dogs less than eight weeks old is prohibited since it is considered that they cannot be separated from their mothers. In Barcelona, ​​animals are also obliged to sterilize or be delivered with a sterilization prescription, in addition to the fact that they must be delivered with adequate hygiene and safety conditions, according to Legálitas.
The last consideration is related to the exoticism of animals and invasive species. In this case, only authorized centers can market this type of species. The unauthorized sale of invasive animal and plant species can be punished with fines of 3,000 euros.
MY NEIGHBOR SELLS ANIMALS ONLINE. CAN I DO SOMETHING?
As we have just seen, the sale of animals between individuals must meet a series of requirements to be legal. Given the suspicion that the sale of animals is carried out continuously and/or habitually, the official PACMA website suggests reporting the case to the Tax Agency as it is an undeclared economic activity.
From a legal point of view, the animalist party also recommends reviewing local legislation to see if there is any type of regulation on the sale of animals between individuals, information that we can consult in the City Hall of our town or the database of the match at this link.
What if the animals live in poor conditions or are victims of abuse by their keepers? From PACMA, it is recommended to review the local legislation again. Suppose it is shown that the animals are deprived of food and live in overcrowded and poor hygiene conditions. In that case, the party suggests filing a complaint with photographs and videos demonstrating the facts denounced so that the security forces act accordingly.
WHAT VIBBO, WALLAPOP AND MILANUNCIOS SAY
Beyond each territory’s local and autonomous legislation, second-hand buying and selling platforms deal with the issue from different points of view. Wallapop, for example, prohibits the sale of any animal on its platform. This is specified on the page. What content is not allowed on Wallapop? We can access it from the following link.
As for Vibbo, the page does allow the publication of ads for pets and different companion animals. The company’s current policy reads as follows:
Milanuncios is another platform that allows the sale of pets and animals, although it includes some exceptions in its use policy. It also reminds users to comply with some of the regulations contemplated by current law :
All these points qualify some of the considerations we mentioned at the beginning of the article.
I am a writer with eight years of experience writing in business and technology. I always carry a passion for learning and discovering new knowledge.