Certifications & Accreditations

These certifications were created with the objective of identifying, recognizing, and promoting those professionals and institutions that carry out their work under ethical, welfare-oriented, and scientifically advanced standards compatible with a modern vision of animal care and animal welfare.

Our organization believes that professional excellence should not be measured exclusively through technical, medical, or operational performance, but also through the ability to actively protect and improve the physical, emotional, behavioral, and environmental welfare of animals throughout every stage of their care, handling, hospitalization, reproduction, training, housing, transport, or daily management.

For this reason, all certifications granted by the European Council for Animal Welfare & Excellence are based on a comprehensive and multidimensional evaluation process that assesses not only clinical or operational quality, but also environmental adaptation, stress reduction, emotional welfare, respectful handling, staff training, welfare-oriented protocols, ethical decision-making, and overall quality of life for the animals under the responsibility of the applying institution.

The certifications issued by our organization recognize professionals and institutions that actively implement protocols developed by the European Council for Animal Welfare & Excellence or equivalent protocols that integrate advanced animal welfare principles, low-stress handling systems, environmental enrichment, behavioral stability, and ethical standards into their routine professional activity.

The specific criteria required for each certification are individualized according to the category involved and are developed, reviewed, and periodically updated by the scientific and ethical committees that form part of our institution. These evaluation criteria include objective parameters related to infrastructure, clinical management, environmental conditions, hospitalization systems, pain management, breeding practices, neonatal care, behavioral management, socialization programs, staff training, welfare monitoring systems, and other elements directly linked to animal welfare and professional excellence.

In addition to documentary evaluation, the European Council for Animal Welfare & Excellence conducts independent review and validation procedures designed to objectively verify the practical implementation of these standards. As part of this process, all applying institutions undergo mandatory on-site inspections carried out by representatives and evaluators designated by our organization in order to confirm the effective application of the welfare protocols and standards established by the Council.

The European Council for Animal Welfare & Excellence currently develops certification programs for multiple sectors related to animal care and welfare, including veterinary hospitals and clinics, breeding centers, canine residences and boarding facilities, education and behavioral centers, exotic animal institutions, and other specialized sectors detailed below. Each certification category includes specific welfare-oriented criteria adapted to the professional reality and operational characteristics of the corresponding field.

Professionals, institutions, and centers interested in obtaining an official certification from the European Council for Animal Welfare & Excellence must complete the application process through our online platform by submitting the corresponding forms and the required documentation for each category. Once the application has been received, a technical and ethical review process begins, with an estimated evaluation period of approximately one month.

Following this preliminary assessment, our organization will contact the applicant to communicate the results of the initial evaluation, indicating, when necessary, the aspects that should be improved, adapted, or implemented in order to achieve the required standards. When the preliminary evaluation is considered fully satisfactory, the process will continue with the mandatory on-site validation phase prior to the final granting of the certification.

Each certification must be requested and evaluated individually according to the specific criteria established for its category. Although a significant part of the procedure is conducted online and through documentary review, all certifications granted by the European Council for Animal Welfare & Excellence require mandatory in-person evaluation prior to approval in order to guarantee the real and practical implementation of the assessed standards.

All certifications issued by our organization are valid for one year and must be renewed periodically through new review and evaluation procedures aimed at guaranteeing the continuous maintenance of the welfare and professional standards required by the European Council for Animal Welfare & Excellence.