Man arrested in Granadilla de Abona after 49 malnourished, overcrowded hunting dogs found on Tenerife property

A resident of Granadilla de Abona, in southern Tenerife, has been arrested by the Civil Guard as the suspected perpetrator of an animal cruelty offence after 49 hunting dogs were found living in conditions of neglect on a rural property in the municipality. The Civil Guard disclosed the details of the case on 1 July 2026.

According to information released by the Civil Guard, the operation was carried out by officers from the Nature Protection Service (SEPRONA) patrol attached to the Playa de Las Américas Company, with the collaboration of Rural Wardens from the Gestión Cinegética Isla de Tenerife.

How the investigation began

The investigation was triggered by information provided by the Rural Wardens, who raised the alarm about a large number of dogs potentially being kept in inadequate conditions on a rural plot in the municipality. Following that report, officers attended the property to carry out an inspection.

What officers found on the property

During the inspection, officers located 49 hunting dogs spread across three areas of the property. According to the Civil Guard's statement, the site had serious sanitary deficiencies, an accumulation of excrement and a lack of adequate shelter. The shelters that did exist were built from wood and other poorly insulating materials that offered insufficient protection against wind or rain, and the animals were living in overcrowded conditions.

Officers confirmed that only 19 of the 49 dogs had vaccination records and were identified by microchip.

The inspection was assisted by a veterinarian, who found that several of the animals had a clearly diminished body condition, with cases consistent with severe malnutrition. According to the technical report, that condition was attributable to a sustained lack of adequate food intake or unequal access to food among the animals.

Calcined bone remains

During a search of the rest of the plot, officers found an old water tank used for hunting-dog training, several mounds of volcanic rock debris, and a cavity containing a significant quantity of calcined animal bone remains.

The owner of the animals was arrested as the suspected perpetrator of an animal cruelty offence and placed at the disposal of the competent judicial authority. According to Diario de Avisos, he was remanded before the courts of the judicial district of Granadilla de Abona.

Legal framework

According to the Civil Guard, the acts under investigation could constitute an animal cruelty offence under Article 340 bis of the Penal Code, which provides for a custodial sentence or fine, as well as a special disqualification from keeping animals and from engaging in any activities related to them.

Sources consulted are consistent on the key figures and facts of the case. One additional detail reported by some outlets — Diario de Avisos and Libertad Digital — is that the water tank was allegedly used for "forced training" of the dogs, whereas the statement reproduced by other media describes it simply as a tank "used for hunting-dog training". None of the available sources identifies the person arrested or provides further details about the number of animals that may correspond to the bone remains discovered.