Frequently
Asked
Questions

In theory, any warm blooded vertebrate, in practice, dogs, cats and also equine, though primary focus is upon sterilisation of feral dogs/cats and supporting similar for low-income residents, to help alleviate unwanted population increase.

We are most glad you are considering donating to help animals within Portugal, some of whom live in very distressing circumstances, despite slow and gradual application of EU-wide animal welfare laws.

There are numerous, well intentioned and motivated local associations and individuals actively helping address and improve animal welfare. Within our Local Support Info & Contacts page you will find external links to entities we have either donated Grants to or otherwise have knowledge of, and felt comfortable dealing with. All these entities will be most willing to accept donations directly, which will shorten timescales for such donations being applied. These are only our recommendations, therefore please consider carefully and feel personally comfortable with those you wish to support.

If you wish to consider a large donation or legacy for which you want the safeguard of due-diligence, then please consider discussing with us. We are UK registered and compliant with UK Charity Commission law. We always include applying due-diligence to Grant requests and undertake external statutory annual audit (examination).

A considerable number of Associations and private Sanctuaries would welcome your direct contact & active support, particularity if you wish to physically or financially adopt one or more of their animals. We are UK based and therefore cannot make these arrangements for you.

Like many countries, most of Portugal was historically rural, as such animals were deemed a 'possession', without any resultant rights or obligations, this 'mind-set' perpetuated until well after Portugal's 1986 transition into the EU, with belated application of EU directives regarding animal welfare.

Many large, medium and smaller animal welfare Associations & shelters exist within Portugal, the vast majority are well-run by focussed and animal-centric individuals.

Only in a few instances have we come across (via due-diligence and/or previous engagement) Associations or individuals NOT working for the animal’s best welfare, BUT, they certainly do exist, sometimes they will re-shuffle management teams and/or change names to re-invent themselves.

The Portuguese Penal Code criminalises defamation under Articles 180 to 183, therefore always be careful when discussing “undeserving” welfare groups, the potential Court time (in years) & wasted cost isn’t worth the impact of discussing such entities.

In Theory, all dogs & most cats in Portugal are ‘owned’, with a chip implanted/checked for all dogs when they are treated at a Vets. Feral cats are recognised as being ‘non-owned’, they can be welfare treated as such by the Municipal Vet, which can be a very varied experience for the animal depending upon each Municipality council.     

Municipal Canil’s - By very recent law, Portuguese Municipalities are obligated to budget for and provide basic animal welfare, though this certainly ranges from adequately reasonable to the less than basic.  Some Municipalities provide Municipal Canils (kennels) and Municipal Vets where animals can be taken for treatment, other Municipalities provide more basic Clinic’s and contracted Vet's, then subsequently regularly ship their overspill of unclaimed or long-term unwanted animals to out of area Mega-Canil’s, paying a monthly upkeep pittance per animal, thus fulfilling legal ‘Obligation’.  

Registered Associations - can claim certain taxation (IVA) advantages, normally having 2 or more publicly registered individuals, who are deemed responsible and accountable for Management & Financial decisions. Often, larger Associations have up to 9 board members, with responsibilities split between multiple complementary disciplines (eg: Finance Strategy, PR, Website, Fund-Raising, etc), assisted/funded by their own charity shops and fund-raising activities of substantial numbers of active supporters.   

Private Welfare Shelters/Sanctuaries - Sometimes registered but do not (normally) gain saving of IVA taxation etc, equally they do not need to file onerous Annual reports, etc. Often they may be smaller communities of volunteers, from 2-3 volunteers upwards, modelling similar or more streamlined Management Board responsibilities.

Individuals & Communal Colonies - can and do of course care for multiple colonies of feral cats, there are many examples of kind-hearted local communities undertaking this sometimes onerous but essential task, often utilising Municipal Canil’s when the animals are sick or require injury treatment.

DPDSAA undertake their UK statutory responsibilities seriously, therefore have a number of partner Associations that they have worked extensively with as follows:

"Validated" - Normally via several Due-Diligence processes, a period of working together and frequently a Memorandum of Understanding or similar.

"Supported" - Normally via a period of working together, monitoring of the Association's local activities and frequently via concluding limited Due-Diligence via competed & approved Grant application requests.

"Recognised" - Normally via previous monitoring of the Association's local activities and limited previous Due-Diligence via competed & approved Grant application requests.

Currently, there is no simple answer, as of late 2025, 'ownership' is now in law, but not yet fully implemented as it incurs legal liability for the animal. In theory, under recent Portuguese Law, all dogs should be owned & chipped, either by a private owner or via public body such as local Municipal Canil. Cats may be privately owned & microchipped, or by a Municipal/registered Association. Feral cats are currently not microchipped or 'owned' by anyone, though often cared for by kind local people or collectives.