29/3/14:
The Mayor of Subotica City has plan to close AZIL ALEX shelter by carrying the dogs from the shelter into what is wrongly called the city ‘shelter’. Providing haven and shelter it does not do !
The city shelter only has places for 234 dogs. There are currently approximately 180 dogs already at the city shelter which have been caught and taken there by the Shinters.
There are also 600 dogs at shelter Azil Alex.
180 ‘shelter’ dogs + 600 from Alex shelter = 780 dogs total.
780 dogs total – 180 already at city ‘shelter’ = Additional 600 dogs.
600 extra dogs from Azil Alex does not fit into 234 places at the shelter, especially when there are already 180 dogs there !!!
We are working along with many others who have informed us that the Mayor is doing this with the hope that many of the dogs when placed into the city shelter will simply kill each other – such is the city ‘shelter’ – not exactly providing much in the way of ‘shelter’ for anything.
If dogs kill each other, then more spaces become available; these are filled with more dogs, which fight and kill each other; the death cycle continues !
We suggest to the Mayor maybe he should change the name of the facility to ‘Subotica City Animal Death Camp’, which we consider is a much more descriptive statement for what actually happens there.
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Update 2/4/14:
Please find below a short sample letter which you can copy and send to the authorities at Subotica; including others.
E mail addresses to copy and send your sample letter to are:
mayor@subotica.rs; gunacelnik@subotica.rs, gukomunalno@subotica.rs, vetinsp@eunet.rs, vetuprava@minpolj.gov.rs
SAMPLE LETTER
Dear Sir and authorities of Subotica city;
I have recently heard that you have intentions to remove all the dogs from shelter Azil Alex and to put them into the Subotica city shelter. I also feel that calling the facility in Subotica city a ‘shelter’ is actually the direct opposite of its existence – the facility provides no shelter for animals, who are instead provided with little acre, attention and food, very much unlike the situation at Azil Alex.
I also understand that the city facility only has places for 234 dogs; and that at present there are approximately 180 kept there. If all the 600 dogs from shelter Azil Alex are also located there, then the establishment cannot cope. I also am informed that your policy, which is against the existing Serbian animal welfare laws, is that dogs can be located into the city shelter where they can battle against each other to survive. You are working on the policy that many dogs will fight and that many will kill each other. This is not acceptable to a nation such as yours which is seeking EU membership.
Putting animals into a facility to fight with and kill each other is not a quick fix or a long term solution to the issue of stray dogs in Serbia. Proper public education, combined with sterilisation of owned and stray animals is the only way forward to reducing animal populations.
I understand from friends in Subotica that every year some 800+ dogs are put onto the streets by irresponsible owners. Owners who do not have their animals sterilised, but which then mate with un-sterilised strays to yet further increase the stray animal population. This is the area which you need to address, both in terms of public education for owned dogs and also the undertaking of sterilisation of stray animals. You are wasting fnds and taxes by not undertaking sensible approaches to future management of strays.
Irresponsible pet owners must be educated to have their animals sterilised, with cty subsidies to help them if necessary.
Subotica city must undertake a lawful programme of owned pet control; as well as a strategy / programme of control to sterilise stray animals also, just as the law demands. The national law also states that you have a duty to take care of all the animals which are collected from the streets and taken to such facilities as the Subotica city ‘shelter’. Your duties include adhering to the national laws on animal management and control, policies which do NOT allow the killing of animals.
You need to change your management attitude and policy towards reducing stray animal numbers long term; rather than just allowing animals to kill each other in the city pound. The most important here is public education – ensuring that owned pets are sterilised by their owners instead of remaining un- sterilised and being thrown out onto the streets each day.
This approach is not rocket science !!
As you are currently being non compliant with Serbian national laws on animal welfare, protection and care, I feel it is now necessary, and my responsibility; to inform the EU enlargement Commission of your negative attitude towards animal welfare and protection. This will not help Serbian accession into the EU. I will also be informing the EU animal welfare Intergroup of my concerns with regard your attitude.
Keep the dogs at shelter Azil Alex and work towards adopting a stray animal control programme which the city of Subotica can be proud of. Until you do, you will forever have numbers of stray animals which are beyond our control.
Please move into the 21st Century and work on a good, decent stray animal management plan whish is required under existing Serbian laws.
Thank you
Name:
Nationality:
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In Serbian:
Tipicno , specificno za Suboticu je da neodgovorni gradjani izbacuju svake godine novih 800 neobelezenih pasa/macaka godisnje, svake godine i na taj nacin:
– znajuci da postoji neodgovorno vlasnistvo pasa/macaka, i da Vi niste nista ucinili na eliminaciji neodgovornog vlasnistva;
-znajuci piramidu reprodukcije pasa i macaka,
Vi nikada necete moci resiti problem na zakonit nacin dok najpre ne ucinite sledece:
1.Vi, Grad , morate napraviti zakonit Program kontrole neodgovornih vlasnika koji se zove:Program kontrole i smanjenja populacije napustenih pasa i macaka i tako zaustaviti dotok novih pasa/macaka;
2.Vi , Grad , morate zbrinuti sve suboticke pse i macke koji su zateceni na ulicama , oni su vlasnistvo neodgovornih gradjana Subotice, nisu nicije privatno vlasnistvo, i na njih i vas se odnosi zakonska regulativa.
Filed under: CAMPAIGNS - Global Animal Welfare Issues, GENERAL NEWS - International / National / Regional, SERBIA (Central Serbia: Capital - Belgrade) and (Serbia, SHELTER - Information | Leave a comment »
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