Portugal Changes the Law: Animals Will No Longer Be Left Behind in a Fire or a Flood For years, animals simply did not exist in most emergency protocols. When the fire or the water arrived, their rescue depended on the goodwill of neighbors and crews acting without training or adequate resources. That has just changed in Portugal. Law No. 38/2026, published on August 3, 2026, amends Portugal's Civil Protection Framework Law to include animals as victims who must be evacuated and cared for during an emergency. The measure requires rescue operations to be coordinated with specialized veterinary teams and designates the Directorate-General for Food and Veterinary Affairs (DGAV) as the central body in the system. The law also creates the role of animal health and welfare representative within civil protection plans. This person, appointed by the DGAV, will act as the link between emergency teams and veterinary services. Representatives from municipal health authorities and from organizations specialized in animal search and rescue are also incorporated into the plans. The law takes effect on August 8, 2026. After the fires that swept through thousands of hectares in southern Europe this past July, the absence of a unified animal rescue plan became evident once again. Portugal is responding with a concrete decision: plan the rescue before the disaster begins, not during it. #AnimalWelfare #AnimalRescue #AnimalProtection #Portugal #Wildlife