More than a year after the entry into force of the animal slaughter law, and in a written reply to a request for clarification from the Lusa agency, the Alto Minho Intermunicipal Community (CIM), which manages the kennel, stated that "the number of animals housed remains the same on average annual terms as kennels have generally operated at the carrying capacity threshold, i.e. between 90 and 100 dogs".

"Naturally, due to the application of the current law, the capacity of accommodation of stray animals has decreased considerably, and the current waiting list for reception is three times larger than the installed capacity," said the association that aggregates the ten municipalities of the district of Viana do Castelo and which is headquartered in Ponte de Lima.

The Alto Minho kennel, also installed in Ponte de Lima, has been operating since December 2008, in an investment of over 370 thousand Euros.

In addition to the 10 municipalities of Alto Minho (Arcos de Valdevez, Caminha, Melgaço, Monsoon, Paredes de Coura, Ponte da Barca, Ponte de Lima, Valença, Viana do Castelo and Vila Nova de Cerveira), the structure also serves the municipality of Esposende, in the district of Braga.

To minimize the impact of the animal slaughter ban, the Alto Minho CIM said it had "strengthened the means for fostering adoption through a digital platform" and said it had "modernized and equipped the operating room and recovery room for sterilization at the facilities of the intermunicipal kennel."

According to CIM do Alto Minho, "the costs associated with maintaining and improving the conditions of some technical kennel spaces, such as the operating room, reception and visiting room, amount to about 10,000 Euros."

"Conducting sterilization campaigns and applying for support for sterilization of the Directorate-General for Food and Veterinary (DGAV), both Kennel and individual municipalities and the promotion of awareness raising, with a preferential target audience of schools of the basic education (kennel school, kennel visits to schools)" are other measures.

According to the Alto Minho CIM, the costs of running the kennel remain "identical" to those recorded before the entry into force of the law that prevents the slaughter of animals, around "80 thousand Euros per year".

Contacted by Lusa agency, the association Villa Animal, founded nine years ago in Viana do Castelo, said "there are no dogs left in the city of Viana do Castelo thanks to the direct and immediate action of the association."

"It is the association and its volunteers who collect and welcome the animals, further promoting their adoption. As soon as we are informed of the existence of an animal roaming the street, we act. In many cases, it is the municipalities themselves and the relief and security forces to activate our means ", they stressed.

Maria José Barreiros contested the law that prevents kennel slaughter by "clogging" those old and sick animal structures, leaving younger ones who, after being treated, would have another opportunity with adoption.

She defended the creation of alternatives, "such as building more kennels, or, as a last resort, the selective slaughter of old and sick animals, without the possibility of cure, as a way to relieve the shelter in the kennels".

Maria Jose Barreiros also pointed out a "significant increase in the number of animals abandoned in the villages furthest from the county seat, the number of animals run over on the roads and highways serving the district," but admitted she could not quantify.