We sell automatic dog feeders, so the obvious thing would be to say that with one fitted you can go away for the weekend with an easy mind. That's not true, and we'd rather say so.
How long can you leave a dog alone in Spain?
In Spain, Ley 7/2023 on the protection of animal rights and welfare prohibits, in Article 27, leaving a dog without supervision for more than 24 hours in a row. For other pets the limit is three days in a row; for dogs, one day.
If it causes the animal no harm, breaking that limit is a minor offence, punishable by a warning or a fine of 500 to 10,000 euros. If it causes harm or suffering, it becomes a serious offence, with fines starting at 10,001 euros.
So a whole weekend away, with no one checking on the dog, isn't a legal option no matter how full the feeder is.
The Spanish law, in its Article 1, excludes from its scope hunting dogs, hunting packs (rehalas), herding dogs and livestock guardian dogs. The fact that this law doesn't cover them doesn't change what a dog needs: food, water and someone to check on it every day.
And in Italy, France or Germany?
Each country has its own rules, and some also have regional rules. These are the main references, in brief:
- Italy. Article 727 of the Italian Criminal Code punishes abandoning a domestic animal and also keeping it in conditions incompatible with its nature that cause it serious suffering. The penalty is detention of up to one year or a fine of 5,000 to 10,000 euros.
- France. The ministerial order (arrêté) of 25 October 1982 on the breeding, keeping and holding of animals requires dogs and cats to be given balanced and sufficient food, and fresh water changed often. For dogs that are tied up or kept in an enclosure, it also requires a kennel or shelter to protect them from the weather.
- Germany. The Tierschutz-Hundeverordnung, Germany's dog welfare regulation, requires the dog to have water at all times, the person looking after it to check its housing at least twice a day, and the dog to have contact with that person several times a day.
This summary isn't legal advice. If you're going to leave a dog alone, check the rules in your country and your region, or ask your vet.
What the feeder does solve
- The time. The dog eats at the same time every day, whether you're there or whoever's checking on it is.
- The serving. Not more because «poor thing», not less because someone forgot.
- That it doesn't run out. With 15 kilos inside there's no need to keep refilling every day.
- That it doesn't spoil. The dry food stays enclosed and dry, not in a bowl outdoors.
- Taking turns. In a kennel with several hoppers, each with its own schedule, hand-feeding twice a day is over.
What it doesn't solve
The water, which needs checking and topping up. Whether the dog is OK: an animal can fall ill, get tangled up or escape, and only someone there in person will see that. And company, which for a dog isn't a luxury.
Our advice, and what we do ourselves: the feeder takes care of the food, and someone checks on the dog every day. Both things.
If the place where you're going to put it has no socket nearby — a smallholding, an enclosure, a shed off on its own — the P3 model with battery lasts around three months with four feeds a day.