38/2026, published on August 3, changes the country’s Civil Protection Framework Law and came into force on August 8. The legislation establishes that civil protection is responsible for protecting and rescuing animals as well as people and property in danger. The change is particularly significant because it moves animal rescue beyond being an issue dealt with primarily by individual owners or animal charities. The difference is that Portugal has now gone further in defining animal rescue as part of the civil protection response itself. Spain’s civil protection framework continues to evolve as authorities prepare for increasingly serious risks, including wildfires, floods and extreme weather.