Alhaurín de la Torre has almost 2,500 cats and 80% of them are sterilised

Animal welfare

The cat colonies managed by the council consume 17,592 kilos of food per year

José Rodríguez Cámara

Alhaurín de la Torre

Alhaurín de la Torre has 2,416 cats in registered urban colonies. Of these, 1,888 have been sterilised, which represents a rate of 78. ... 15 per cent.

This is data from the CER (capture, sterilisation and return) programme that is being developed in the municipality, in accordance with the report of El Gato Garduño, which collaborates with the local administration in the management of these animals.

Cats living in colonies are not all the registered cats in Alhaurín, as the total recorded in the municipality stands at 2,708. Of these 1,260 males are males, 1,259 females and 189 animals whose sex has not been defined, while1,518 have identification microchips:

221

Control points

To implement the CER programme in Alhaurín de la Torre, 221 control points have been set up throughout the municipality, with the involvement of 191 personnel, 147 of whom are women and 44 men

To implement the CER programme in Alhaurín de la Torre, 221 control points have been set up throughout the municipality, with the involvement of 191 personnel, 147 of whom are women and 44 men.

As for the resources allocated to the maintenance of the colonies, the estimated annual consumption of feed, calculated on the basis of the data accumulated over the previous two and a half years, totals 17,592 kilos.

Adoptions

Some1,270 cats have found homes through the association over the past five years, improving animal welfare and reducing pressure on urban colonies. There have also been 292 de-registrations, of which 169 were of animals that had already been sterilised.

The project is the result of collaboration between the municipal health department, the association El Gato Garduño and the company IVC Paraíso Residencia Canina S. L. In 2023, the three entities signed an agreement for the development of these measures, in compliance with the current regulations on animal protection and welfare.

Health and environment councillor Abel Perea said the involvement of the volunteers who collaborate daily in the monitoring and care of the colonies, as well as the technical and sanitary work, allows us to advance "towards a model of responsible, sustainable and respectful management of the animals".