In Alicante, the Public Ministry has requested a punishment of fourteen months in prison for a Rabasa neighborhood resident in connection with the death of a cat caused by a wire trap placed at home to protect a bird kept in a cage. The prosecutor describes the facts as a crime of ill-treatment of a pet and has asked for an oral trial along with a sentence of one year and two months in prison. There is also a three-year ban on practicing any animal-related profession, trade, or activity, as well as the possession of animals.
Additionally, the prosecutor seeks the confiscation of all pets owned by the defendant and requests compensation to the Alicante Animal and Plant Protector for the costs and damages incurred in the care and burial of the animal, to be quantified later. These are part of the charges to be examined at the Alicante Criminal Court of First Instance.
The events took place on the morning of June 16, 2021, at a detached house in Adana Mahallesi, Rabasa. The Alicante Local Police received a report of possible animal abuse at the residence, and upon arrival they found a cat in a dire condition. The indictment states that the cat was trapped by a metal ring fixed to the wall, hanging upside down. The ring was connected to a window grill beneath an aviary on the property grounds.
At the time, the municipality could not identify the resident or owner of the house. The local police climbed over the fence and entered the outer terrace due to the cat’s severe distress and the animal’s struggle against the enclosing ring within its abdomen. On entering, they confirmed that the cat was confined by a wire ring without a secure knot, causing tension to increase as the animal moved in an attempt to free itself.
The prosecution asserts that the unbraked loop trap was deliberately placed by the accused near a birdcage hanging on the wall of the home, with the aim of ensnaring any cat that approached. The cat had no escape route and died amid growing agony proportional to the force used in trying to break free. The animal was anesthetized to remove the restraint and was later taken by the Alicante Animal and Plant Protector; it died days after adoption. A veterinarian reported that the cat was bonded by a wire ring around the abdomen, affecting the internal viscera and causing a moderate intestinal obstruction, along with an abrasion on a hind leg likely from the cat’s efforts to escape the trap.
The accused told local police that the cat had entered the house to hunt the caged bird and stated that the cat was to blame. He later denied placing the unbraked wire loop and claimed he did not know there was a cat present. Sources from the Alicante Animal and Plant Protectorate indicate that there are numerous cases of abuse against cats, including poisoning, and that the use of trap ties has become less common. The Penal Code currently punishes animal abuse with imprisonment from three months to one year, and when the animal dies, from six to eighteen months. The case is expected to test how these penalties are applied in similar situations and what measures follow in protecting companion animals.