Full Statute Name:  Criminal Code, Article 291 BIS and 291 TER

Article 291 BIS establishes the penalties for cruelty or mistreatment against animals.

Article 291 reads:

Anyone who commits acts of mistreatment or cruelty to animals will be punished with the penalty of minor prison in its minimum to medium grades and a fine of two to thirty monthly tax units, or only with the latter.

If, as a result of an action or omission, the animal is injured, the penalty shall be imprisonment of at least a minimum to medium grade and a fine of ten to thirty monthly tax units, in addition to the accessory of perpetual absolute disability for the possession of any type of animals.

If, as a result of the aforementioned action or omission, injuries are caused that seriously harm the physical integrity or cause the death of the animal, the penalty of minor imprisonment in its medium degree and a fine of twenty to thirty monthly tax units shall be imposed, in addition to the accessory perpetual absolute disability for animal ownership.

Article 291 TER defines animal cruelty and mistreatment “as any act or omission, occasional or repeated, that unjustifiably causes harm, pain or suffering to the animal."