The Spanish justice has granted Tuco, a five and a half year old dog living in the city of Oviedo (Asturias), the right to remain in foster care with the person who has taken care of him since his declared owner moved to the abroad, in 2018. This is the first known case in the Iberian country of application of a reform of the Civil Code which recognizes pets as "living beings" with sensitivity and not as things.
To temporarily resolve the legal dispute concerning Tuco, now claimed by its first owner, a judge has in fact determined that this dog and Oumaima Laamar, the 29-year-old girl who took care of him, have in the meantime developed "important emotional bonds".
And that "a change of environment and family unit could cause him avoidable suffering".
Oumaima and Tuco will therefore be able to continue living together until there is a definitive sentence on the case, as established in a resolution made known by the Association for the Defense of Victims of Injustice, which has looked after the legal interests of the woman.
The story of Tuco is picked up today by the newspaper El Mundo, which spoke with Oumaima.
"He would die of depression without me," he said, "because in nearly four years we only separated for five days, and he stayed with my family."