Mario Cabrera Pushes for 24-Hour Veterinary Care

The regional deputy highlighted the regulatory gaps in the Animal Welfare Law and defended its amendment to incorporate a mandatory emergency service.

The Parliament of the Canary Islands has approved a new Proposition No. of Law (PNL), proposed by the Independent Herreña Association, to regulate veterinary emergencies in the non‑capital islands. Mario Cabrera González, deputy of the Canarian Nationalist Group (CCa), intervened in the debate and stressed the need to guarantee 24‑hour emergency veterinary care in territories with limited specialized services.

The initiative calls for a study to assess the impact on each island and to define the most suitable way to implement a 24‑hour veterinary emergency service, “complementing the PNL presented by the Canarian Nationalist Group in 2025,” Cabrera added.

“We believe this initiative enriches a claim we have already presented to this Chamber: to ensure that our animals, legally considered part of the family units and sentient beings, have a guaranteed 24‑hour veterinary emergency service when needed.”

During his speech, the deputy emphasized that animals in urgent situations must receive “adequate care” and pointed out the need to fill the regulatory void of Law 7/2023 of 28 March on the protection of animal rights and welfare, which does not address emergency veterinary services.

He also noted that the problem directly affects the primary sector:

“Farmers must have a veterinary service that allows them to prevent the spread of diseases among animals, thus avoiding greater health risks and possible livestock losses. All this can also translate into a negative impact on livestock production.”

Cabrera described Law 7/2023 as having a significant regulatory gap, with a clear absence of rules guaranteeing emergency veterinary services, regardless of territory. He warned that this gap creates “territorial inequality.”

“On islands like Fuerteventura, with large areas, it is necessary to have a regular 24‑hour emergency service, similar to on‑call pharmacies.”

He recalled the commitment of the Canarian Nationalist Group to animal health and referenced an initiative, also approved by the Chamber during this legislature, to include a provision that makes it mandatory for autonomous communities to develop regulations guaranteeing the existence of on‑call emergency veterinary services in their territories.

Cabrera also highlighted the rising costs of veterinary emergencies, calling for institutional collaboration and public‑private mechanisms, akin to the operation of on‑call pharmacies, to avoid “disproportionate economic overloads, both for the animal owner and the veterinary clinic, simply because it is an emergency service.”

In this context, he urged the development of measures between the Government of the Canary Islands and the Spanish State to “modify a law and adapt it to the reality of all the Canary Islands.”