02/06/2026
OFFICIAL STATEMENT / PRESS RELEASE
Regarding the Positive List of Companion Animals (LPAC) and the draft Royal Decree under public consultation proposed by the Directorate-General for Animal Rights (DGDA)
To all members, collaborators and professionals in the companion animal sector:
In recent weeks, messages have circulated in the media, on social networks and in WhatsApp groups claiming that the new Positive List of Companion Animals (LPAC) will lead to a ban on the sale of most of the animals you currently trade: budgerigars, lovebirds, geckos, tortoises, aquarium fish, rodents and many other species that have been present for decades in your shops and in your customers’ homes.
We understand your concern and consider it legitimate. However, we want to send you a clear message based on the current legal situation:
as of today, no positive list has been approved and no new bans are in force. The messages circulating exaggerate the situation and create alarm that does not reflect reality.
Below, we explain why:
What is the Positive List and what is its current status?
- The Positive List of Companion Animals (LPAC) is an instrument provided for in Law 7/2023 that will establish which species may be kept as companion animals. The Ministry of Social Rights has submitted for public consultation the Draft Royal Decree that will regulate how this list will be drawn up.
- The legal situation does not change for the time being. Business activity may continue as normal.
- The content of the list has not yet been defined. What currently exists is a draft of the rules of the game for preparing it.
- In other words: today, no species is prohibited that was not already prohibited before. The draft Royal Decree does not directly prohibit anything. It establishes the procedure by which, in the future, it will be decided which species are included and which are not.
What has AEDPAC done?
AEDPAC has submitted a formal statement of objections with
21 legal objections to the draft Royal Decree, identifying its weaknesses and proposing specific alternative wording for each of them.
Our work has not been to oppose the system. It has been to ensure that it is properly constructed. And there are solid legal arguments for this. The most important of all is the following:
Law 7/2023 itself expressly excludes falconry birds and aquarium animals from any positive list, referring them to their specific regulations. This shows that the legislator did not intend the positive list to become an automatic prohibition of everything that does not appear on it. There are species that have their own regulatory framework and do not need to be included on any list in order to be legally traded.
In addition, we have argued that canaries, budgerigars, lovebirds, leopard geckos, guinea pigs and many other long-established bred species are domestic animals under Law 8/2003 on Animal Health, which is the regulation to which Law 7/2023 itself refers in order to define what is domestic. If they are domestic under that law, they must be included in the List of Domestic Companion Species by mandate of the enabling law itself. The regulation cannot exclude them.
What will happen to the animals I currently have in my shop?
Nothing immediately. Until the list is published, the current legal situation does not change. You may continue buying, selling and keeping the animals you currently have.
When the list is published, AEDPAC has formally requested that a
specific transitional regime for commercial establishments be established for those that have legally acquired animals intended for sale. This regime must include a sufficient period for the orderly liquidation of stock, including animals that you have contractually committed to purchasing but have not yet received.
This request is supported by the constitutional principle of legal certainty and by the European principle of legitimate expectation: an operator who invested in animals under the legality in force cannot be left without an outlet from one day to the next.
Is there a risk that many species will become prohibited?
The risk exists if the draft is approved without the corrections that AEDPAC has submitted. That is why we have filed objections. That is why we have worked for months on a rigorous legal analysis. And for this reason, we will remain present at every stage of the procedure, with full willingness to engage in dialogue, as we have been doing with the DGDA for years, so as to facilitate the implementation of the Positive List in a coherent, rigorous manner that respects the legal system and the rights of all stakeholders in the sector and of citizens.
For our part, we have argued and will continue to demand, in all procedures, stages and instances, the application of the principle of proportionality imposed by the Court of Justice of the European Union when establishing a Positive List.
What can you do as specialist retailers?
- Stay calm. Do not create or spread alarmist messages without verifying them, and do not give credibility or visibility to news or forum messages that lack rigor. Unfortunately, many media outlets are rushing to publish false, inaccurate or poorly considered content. Uncertainty is already affecting sales and customer behavior. Panic helps neither the sector nor the animals.
- Reassure customers. If they come to you concerned, explain that the list does not yet exist, that nothing changes until it is published, and that when it is published we do not believe that practically any of the animals currently being traded will be prohibited.
- Report any incident to us. It is important to inform us of any specific situation observed in establishments — suppliers cancelling orders, customers returning animals, banks refusing financing due to regulatory uncertainty — because AEDPAC can help counteract it. All this information is valuable for our objections and for our dialogue with the Ministry.
In summary
The Positive List is a reality with which we will have to coexist. However, its specific content has not been decided, the current procedure has legal flaws that AEDPAC has formally pointed out, and there are solid arguments for the species currently traded on an established basis to continue to have their place in the system.
AEDPAC will continue working to ensure this is the case.
Specialist retailers are not alone in this.
The strength of the sector also lies in its ability to act in a coordinated manner. Broad and cohesive representation strengthens dialogue with the Administration and enables the common interests of the sector to be better defended.
For this reason, we encourage operators who are not yet part of AEDPAC to consider joining, as a way to actively contribute to this process and strengthen the sector’s collective voice.
Thank you all.
Adolfo Santa-Olalla
President of AEDPAC’s CAAVV
For any questions or enquiries regarding specific cases, please contact:
Technical Committee for Companion Animals (CAAVV): caavv@aedpac.com
General Secretariat: hola@aedpac.com /
(93) 317 10 40
