In Conegliano, in the province of Treviso, an important project is getting under way that will help less well-off residents care for and manage their own pets.
It is happening in Conegliano, in Veneto, which is thus aligning itself with the municipalities and regions that are beginning to propose initiatives for people who live with an animal at home: less well-off residents will be able to count on free healthcare for their four-legged friends, from dogs and cats to hamsters, rabbits and tortoises.
This means that medical consultations, annual vaccinations, and even surgical procedures — sterilisation included — will be guaranteed for a period of three years to owners who cannot afford this kind of expense; people who do not give up on helping an animal by welcoming it into their household, or who simply do not wish to go without the company of a pet.
Veneto has always been a pet-friendly region. It is worth recalling, in fact, that it is precisely there that the concession allowing people to bury their animals in their own garden is in force. Likewise, animals are permitted to enter hospitals and care homes to visit their hospitalised human companions. With the Conegliano initiative, a further step forward is being taken.
People who find themselves in difficult financial circumstances and cannot afford care for their animals (the ordinance also covers the microchips to be fitted to adopted dogs, one of the most important measures for discouraging abandonment) will need to certify their hardship to the municipal administration. They will then be able to make free use of the services of local vets at the Città di Conegliano hospital, who will be available for three years to meet the needs of their four-legged friends.
Regarding the Conegliano experience, governor Luca Zaia has announced that this is only the beginning of projects of this kind: the initiative will be extended to the whole of Veneto in a short time.
