Activist Cites Irregularities, Untrained Staff at Cancún Animal Welfare Center

Cancún, Quintana Roo — Administrative irregularities and a shortage of qualified staff at the Benito Juárez municipal Animal Welfare Center are putting both animals and public health at risk in Cancún, according to animal activist Sara Rincón Gallardo, president of the Luum Balicheo Animal Protection Society.

“The problem is that the center is being run by the seat of its pants, without a qualified veterinarian, an animal scientist or a businessperson watching over the center’s money,” Rincón Gallardo said. “Instead, they have brought in people from anywhere, without training, and there is a conflict of interest because the woman in charge is the owner of a shelter.”

She said the center routinely rejects residents who ask for help. People who find injured or stray animals are repeatedly turned away and told the facility does not function as a shelter, generating a steady stream of complaints.

Rincón Gallardo described the situation inside the center as institutional negligence that could have serious public health effects, especially because no large-scale rabies vaccination campaigns have been held in the areas that need them most. Previous administrations carried out health clinics twice a year, but the current municipal government has suspended those efforts, she said.

She estimated that as many as 10 animal abuse cases are reported each day in the municipality, including poisonings, hit-and-runs and extreme cruelty in public spaces. She also warned about the theft of purebred dogs for illegal sale in other states of the Yucatán Peninsula.

“The center’s failure to operate has even forced the prosecutor’s office to intervene in animal abuse complaints to fill the gap left by municipal authorities,” Rincón Gallardo said. “Any animal that is on a public street and is sick, has been run over or poisoned — the animal center is obligated to respond immediately.”

She reiterated that the lack of medical specialists in charge of a public health institution is the main cause of the center’s deteriorating service and the delay in responding to emergencies.

She urged animal advocates to reject the continued neglect, saying that protecting animal species is essential to the future of Quintana Roo and to preserving the planet’s ecological balance.