Living on the costa

The Triple A association has requested this Tuesday “adjustments” to create more outdoor spaces in the project of the new shelter for abandoned animals of Marbella, which is close to 80% of its execution, as highlighted by Susi Berman, member of the board of directors.

This has been highlighted by the representative of the group together with the mayoress, Ángeles Muñoz, and the Councilor for Works, Diego López, in a visit they have made to the new facilities -located on the Ojén Highway-, to check the state of the jobs.

The councilor has indicated that the work includes “3,500 square meters of building infrastructure and 1,500 square meters of parking area”, in addition to the replacement of the luminaires with LED technology. The performance has a budget item of “1.5 million euros” and it is expected to be completed “before the summer”, between the months of “May and June”, he specified.

“The objective of the City Council is clear, invest in improving the health and maintenance of our animals, and from there, do it with the greatest consensus, understanding that there is a technical group and a team of architects”, remarked the first mayor, who also recalled the 300,000 euros allocated to implement a “sanitation and supply network” of drinking water.

The comprehensive reform works of the facilities began in April of last year, framed in a project approved by the previous board of directors of the animal protector, in which now the new components request to carry out “adjustments” when assessing that the previous executive “has not thought enough and we are rectifying now”Berman has indicated for his part when asked if there has been a lack of planning.

In this way, he has pointed out that “the plans for the building began a few years ago” and “once the building progresses, things begin to appear that are missing and some practical adjustments must be applied.” some changes that as he has assessed “They will make a big difference to animal welfare.”

Berman has indicated that “we are seeing if it is possible to have more outdoor space”, pointing out that “in the old cat flap there were 3 patios” in which the animals “could be inside or outside with nets”, remarking that “a cat is not like a dog, you cannot call it back when its cage is clean” .

On the other hand, he has alluded to the difficulty he foresees in the two-story building that is being built the dogs to go down from the second by a ramp with the animals, the gap between the floor and the mesh of the cage areas set up for the dogs given the possibility of injuring their legs or muzzle or “some shelves that were quite high for carriers” in the cat area.

The member of the board of directors has remarked that “the most important thing is to have more freedom for the animals since they cannot be in cages all day their whole lives, because there are many who take years to find a family”, he indicated.

The construction management ensures that there are outdoor areas

For his part, the architect in charge of directing the work, Alberto Gallego, has pointed out that “the work is at the ideal moment to make those cage partitions” and “divide according to the needs of each specific animal and each area.”

Gallego has detailed that the main construction building, which will be used to shelter dogs, “is conditioned with two operating rooms, an administration area, and another for recovery for hygienic and sanitary issues.” In addition, the facilities will have an area set up for covered or roofed cages “outdoors” and a patio on its right bank. It is also planned, as indicated, to expand the space for dogs outdoors given the possibility of distributing new spaces where a water tank is now located, as well as in a part outside the building.

In the cat area, two prefabricated modules have been installed that “they have direct communication with covered patios in the open air but covered with a pergola” on a concrete slab and also “there are exterior patios” and an internal one in each room “perfectly acclimatized and closed”, he added.

The new building will house 263 dogs and 310 cats

On the other hand, he explained that in the old Triple A facilities in Marbella “there was a 475-square-meter dog area housing 205”, which with the new construction will have “607 square meters, plus 520 square meters of patio to house 263 dogs”. Likewise, he has alluded to the space in the cages, noting that if there are “5 or 6” dogs for each one, there will only be 2.

Regarding the cat area, he pointed out that “before there were 135 square meters housing 168 cats”, so with the new project it will have “257 square meters housing 310 cats”.

About him refrigeration system, He has qualified that there will be “individual air conditioners” in “the operating room areas and the most delicate ones”, while “the rest of the areas have natural ventilation and lighting, with a continuous flow of ventilation”.