As Torrevieja town hall issued notice that dogs are now officially permitted on one of the beaches in the town, pet owners rejoiced that their furry friends could finally go with them to enjoy some fun in the sun.
Torrevieja is one of the towns on the Costa Blanca which is trying to set the tone of inclusivity, whatever sector of society you represent, and dog owners have longed for an official beach, seeing their dreams realised this summer.
However, although the celebrations may have been quiet, the protests are now starting to become more vocal, with the residents of Cala del Moro starting a petition to reverse the decision, thus having dogs once again banned from the beach.
The neighbourhood group fronting the petition say that they are representing the owners of the 150 properties in the area, and have arranged protests to make their complaints visible, the first held at noon on Wednesday, the second expected at 7 p.m.
The complaint is based around the dogs being allowed to move freely, without being tied or muzzled, and as children, babies and people of all ages use the beach, they consider it inappropriate, and also complain that the owners will not be able to stop the dogs from defecating where they choose, “where we put our towels, or where children make sand castles.”
One representative claims that they have, “met many who do not collect faeces and who scold and insult us when we call them to attention,” whilst the community says that it has, “nothing against animals, but there are many kilometres of beaches where there are no homes,” and so they ask the town hall to choose one of those beaches instead.
Meanwhile, across Spain, and in fact the world, images of the mess left behind on beaches by humans are being shared through social media, many of which are used to highlight the discrimination dog owners face, as them and their animals do not make anywhere near as much mess as many of the humans who have no respect for the surroundings, the environment, or the beaches, and leave litter, food, cigarette and smoking paraphernalia, and a whole range of items cluttering up the natural areas which touch the sea already tremendously polluted by mankind’s ignorance of environmental responsibility.
