NAPA (Nucleus for Attention to Small Animals) is promoting the Green December campaign, which aims to educate the public about responsible ownership and the fight against animal abandonment. The action takes place in Chapeco, in the west of Santa Catarina, for a month.

NAPA helps homeless animals and vulnerable families. — Photo: City Hall/Disclosure/ND

According to the organization, the period of the year is critical, due to the end of the year and summer holidays, cases of complaints about the abandonment of animals, as well as domestic animals that go without water and food for a day, have become more frequent.

The goal of the campaign “is to warn owners that they are responsible for the well-being of their pets and that abandoning them is also a criminal offence,” said NAPA coordinator Ana Batista Triantafillou.

Chapeco has Supplementary Law 638/2018, which provides for a municipal policy to prevent abuse. The law prohibits the aggression or infliction of suffering on animals, keeping them in unhealthy, dirty, without water, food and light, or with extreme temperatures. It also prohibits leaving in a public place.

The law also provides for a fine in the amount of 80 to 6 thousand UFRM (municipal accounting tax units). The cost of UFRM for 2023 is fixed at R$5.3596. NAPA is responsible for handling reports of abuse that may be initiated by the Chapecó Digital app.

Last year, the House of Councilors of Chapeco approved Law 7568/2021, authored by councilor Wilson Sidrao, which establishes the December Verde campaign in the municipality. It provides for actions to raise awareness against abandonment such as lectures, educational events, brochures in schools, media campaigns, and green lighting of public buildings.