Cataluña is set to become the first region in Spain to ban circus acts with live animals, although 99 municipalities in the region do already have bans in place.
In total, 133 municiplaities in Spain currently ban circus acts with live animals. Five of the seven political groups in the regional assembly proposed to extend existing animal protection laws to circus acts with animals. Apparently, only one circus in the entire region still has animal acts, and it has not put on a show for over a year and a half.
Despite the ‘look what we’re doing for animal welfare’ tone of the proposal, several representatives noted that there was still a long way to go before animal welfare becomes truly universal in the region, highlighting the exceptions granted to the running of the bulls and bulls with flammable material attached to their horns, two traditional practices still seen at local fiestas in Catalan towns.