Stray animals, carcasses on the road and public-health risks

Packs of dogs, sick cats in a colony, a dead animal on the road or a bite: each case has its own body.

What to do, step by step

1. 1Dead animal on a public road: contact the municipality (urban services or municipal vet) for removal; on a motorway, call the operator or the GNR.
2. 2Stray animals or a pack: call the municipal veterinary service / shelter with the place and the time they usually appear; for an ongoing attack, 112.
3. 3Cat colony with sick animals: inform the municipality and the local associations that run TNR (trap, neuter, return).
4. 4Bitten or scratched: wash well with soap and water, call SNS 24 and identify the animal and its owner; the animal must have an up-to-date rabies vaccine.
5. 5Suspected contagious disease (rabies, mass leishmaniasis, birds dying in groups): report to DGAV through the municipal vet.

Useful contacts

• Câmara Municipal / Centro de Recolha Oficial (CRO)

  Municipal veterinary service of your municipality: stray animals, removal of dead animals from public roads.
• SNS 24

  Bites and health risks for people (zoonoses).

  808 24 24 24
  Call Open
• DGAV — Direção-Geral de Alimentação e Veterinária

  National veterinary authority: animal welfare, registration, travel.
  Open
• 112 — Número Europeu de Emergência

  Only when there is immediate danger to people (accident, fire).

  112
  Call

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General information, with no legal or veterinary value. In an emergency call 112 or a vet right away; always confirm procedures with the official bodies.