The mayor of Querétaro, Felipe Fernando Macías, announced the implementation of a free and optional registry for dogs and cats in the city. This program aims to reduce abuse, abandonment, and overpopulation of companion animals, considered a public health issue in the capital.
The municipal government allocated 7 million pesos for the creation of a Unique Certificate of Companion Animals. This certificate will include the registration and installation of subcutaneous identification chips in 10,000 dogs and cats, with the aim of combating abandonment and animal abuse in Querétaro. The Secretary of Animal Welfare, Lennyz Meléndez, indicated that this document will function as a "birth certificate" that will provide identity to pets in the city.
Starting in April, the certificates will be issued at various animal control units, where pets will receive free sterilization, the rabies vaccine, and a subcutaneous chip for identification in case of loss. This chip will allow, when scanned, the department staff to locate the owner of the animal reported lost or found on public roads.
Secretary Meléndez emphasized that the chip will not come with geolocation and highlighted that this registration strategy is unique in the country. In Mayor Macías’s words, the registry is a first effort to census companion animals, aimed at establishing statistical metrics that strengthen public policies regarding animal welfare in Querétaro.
According to the Secretary of Animal Welfare, since the beginning of the municipal administration, more than 2,000 reports have been received regarding neglect of care towards animals, of which 25% correspond to cases of abuse. Additionally, 7 cases have been referred to the State Attorney General's Office, dealing with animal cruelty crimes.
