http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/feb/03/sochi-pest-control-stray-dogs-winter-olympics
A pest control company in the Winter Olympics host city of Sochi has been given a contract to exterminate dogs during the Games.
Alexei Sorokin, director general of Basya Services, said his company was involved in the “catching and disposing” of dogs.
Thousands of stray dogs are roaming the streets of Sochi, according to Sorokin, who said some were biting children. He said he attended a rehearsal of the Olympic opening ceremony last week and saw a stray dog walking in on the performers.
“A dog ran into the Fisht Stadium; we took it away,” he said. “God forbid something like this happens at the actual opening ceremony. This will be a disgrace for the whole country.”
Stray dogs are not uncommon in Sochi and the surrounding area, and many tend to gather near construction sites where they are likely to get food and shelter from workers. Some have been able to get inside the Olympic Park.
Sorokin’s company operates in the Krasnodar region, including Sochi. He refused to say how many dogs it killed each year, calling it a commercial secret.
Last year a politician from the Krasnodar region supported the dog culling. Sergei Krivonosov said taking the dogs off the street was Russia‘s “responsibility to the international community and their elimination is the quickest way to solve this problem”.
He conceded, however, that this was not the most humane way of dealing with the problem, and said authorities should encourage dog shelters.
Sochi city hall announced a contract to catch and dispose of stray dogs in Sochi, but animal activists protested against the move. Authorities pledged to give up the practice and build animal shelters for stray dogs instead. Activists say there is no evidence that a shelter has been built.
Petition link –
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/972/019/713/2000-street-dogs-and-cats-will-be-killed-for-the-olympic-games-in-sochi-in-2014/
2000 dogs and cats’ll be killed for the Olympic Games (Sochi 2014)! Please help to stop this.
Petition Overview:
The Russian city of Sochi city has hired a private company to exterminate stray dogs during the 2014 Winter Olympic games. Claiming that it has an “obligation to the international community,” one politician from the regional parliament, Sergei Krivonossov, says that there is “an obvious problem with animals living on the streets” and that “exterminating is the fastest way to solve the problem.”
The city of Sochi stands to make 42,500 euros on the killing of the animals.
Animal activists have been protesting the Sochi government’s decision to cull stray animals and called on other solutions, such as sterilization and the creation of shelters. While the authorities have said they would build shelters, activists contend that there is no evidence that any have been built.
In 2012, reports about the killing of stray dogs in Poland and Ukraine in advance of another major sports event, EK 2012, led to international outrage and even a boycott of the tournament.
We need to take action now and stop the massacre!
Link – http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/winter-olympics/9682976/God-forbid-a-dog-at-the-Sochi-opening-ceremony
‘God forbid a dog at the Sochi opening ceremony’
Reuters
Thousands of stray dogs have been living amid the mud and rubble of Olympic construction sites in Sochi, Russia, roaming the streets and snowy mountainsides, and begging for scraps of food.
But as the games drew near, authorities have turned to a company to catch and kill the animals so they don’t bother Sochi’s new visitors – or even wander into an Olympic event.
Alexei Sorokin, director general of pest control firm Basya Services, told The Associated Press that his company had a contract to exterminate the animals throughout the Olympics, which open on Friday (local time).
Sorokin described his company as being involved in the “catching and disposing” of dogs, although he refused to specify how the dogs would be killed or say where they would take the carcasses.
The dogs have been causing numerous problems, Sorokin said, including “biting children.”
He said he was stunned last week when he attended a rehearsal for the opening ceremony and saw a stray dog walking in on the performers.
“A dog ran into the Fisht Stadium, we took it away,” he said. “God forbid something like this happens at the actual opening ceremony. This will be a disgrace for the whole country.”
The strays tend to gather near construction sites where they have gotten food and shelter from workers. Dogs have even been able to get inside the Olympic Park and accredited hotel complexes and villages, in the coastal cluster of arenas and venues up in the mountains.
A pack of at least a half-dozen healthy-looking dogs roamed around a loading zone of a gondola, 400 metres above the Gorki Plaza in the mountain venues for the Olympics as construction work continued.
Olympic volunteers patted and cooed over strays that trotted into the park on Monday. Another dog dropped to the ground, sunbathing under the Olympic Rings near a public site where medals will be presented to athletes during the games.
Animal activist Dina Filippova is among the opponents of the latest dog-culling plan, saying city authorities are using the Olympics as an excuse to cover an ongoing practice.
“We should understand that it is done not only before the Olympics but constantly,” she told the AP in an interview in downtown Sochi, where she was trying to find homes for seven puppies she recently rescued near the Olympic Park. “Two killers from that company work for the city to kill 300 dogs a month.”
“It is not humane,” she added. “There is a humane way of solving the problem of stray dogs which is used in Europe and the United States and even in some countries of the former Soviet Union – that is a mass sterilisation which eventually leads to no stray dogs on the streets.”
Sorokin’s company operates in the Krasnodar region, which includes Sochi and the neighbouring area. He refused to say how many dogs they kill a year, calling it a “commercial secret.”
Sergei Krivonosov, a lawmaker from the Krasnodar region, last year supported the dog culling.
Krivonosov said taking the dogs off the street was Russia’s “responsibility to the international community and that their elimination is the quickest way to solve this problem.”
He conceded, however, that this is “not the most humane way” of dealing with the problem and that authorities should encourage dog shelters.
Sochi city hall last year announced a contract “to catch and dispose” of strays in Sochi – a move that animal activists vehemently protested. Authorities pledged to give up the practice and build animal shelters for strays instead.
Activists say there is no evidence that a shelter has been built. But city hall said in a statement on its website that it had opened a dog shelter on Monday for 100 dogs.
Shooting stray dogs has been common practice in many Russian regions despite activists’ efforts to push for more humane ways to deal with the issue.
Nadine Kincaid, an Olympic volunteer from Portland, Oregon, was surprised by how many dogs were roaming around Sochi.
“There’s a lot of dogs everywhere. Right behind where we’re staying, there’s a whole legion of dogs,” she said. “I come from a town where there’s leash laws and everyone has to pick up after their dogs, so that’s unusual to me to see that.”
Kincaid said she would be upset if the dogs were being poisoned.
“As an animal lover, for me that’s sad. But if they’re like stray cats, they can keep breeding and cause more problems. So I can see, maybe, why,” she added. “It’s sad, but what do you do if you can’t control them?”
– AP
http://www.torontosun.com/2014/02/03/stray-dogs-being-killed-to-clean-up-sochi-for-olympics
SOCHI 2014
Stray dogs being killed to clean up Sochi for Olympics
SOCHI – The first day I arrived in Sochi, I was immediately struck by the number of stray dogs hanging around the media complex.
Sadly, today I can report there are very few.
Though you are still likely to encounter some of the stray animals almost everywhere you go in Sochi or in the mountain village of Krasnaya Polyana, the numbers are quickly dwindling as a pest control company has been hired to exterminate them.
The situation is very disturbing, with reports that the hungry dogs are being poisoned.
Sochi, like most places in Russia, is home to thousands of stray dogs and with the Olympic Winter Games just days away, the local authorities thought it best to order a cull.
It has sparked outrage with animal rights groups, who have been up in arms since Sochi announced almost a year ago that such action would be necessary and the city would spend 1.7 million rubles to get the job done.
The city backed off for a while, but attempts to come up with a more humane solution clearly failed and now a Russian newspaper has described the situation as “The Olympic slaughterhouse plan.”
Personally, I’m a dog lover and, in our North American culture, that means controlling the population by spaying and neutering our pets.
Such practice is seemingly not a consideration in Russia. One local man I spoke to said neutering a dog would ruin the animal, would prevent him from doing the job he was born to do, protecting his master.
It was his opinion that the stray dog problem exists because of that prevailing attitude and the unwillingness of dog owners to keep any puppies that might be born as a result. Russia is known for having irresponsible dog owners, and this is what you get.
So the strays wander the streets, all different shapes, sizes and mixed breeds. They sometimes travel in packs, and occasionally approach passersby with their tales wagging. Few of them seem to bother people, but certainly wouldn’t turn away from food or attention if offered.
One stray I encountered in Krasnaya Polyana started walking beside me as I set out on a 25-minute hike to the train station. He stayed with me the whole way, sometimes falling behind and occasionally running ahead and looking back at me as if to make sure it was OK for him to hang with me.
A black lab sleeps on the steps in the building across from mine most of the time as well, near the entrance to a restaurant kitchen. She was still there yesterday, but who knows how long that will last.
Alexei Sorokin, the owner of the Basia Services extermination company told ABC News that the cull is necessary for safety reasons. He pointed out that a dog wandered into a dress rehearsal for the Opening Ceremony recently, and wondered what other kind of trouble an animal could cause
“Imagine, if during an Olympic Games, a ski jumper landed at 130 kilometres (an hour) and a dog runs into him when he lands,” Sorokin told ABC News. “It would be deadly for both a jumper and for the stray dog. Dogs must be taken off the streets, even if that means putting them to sleep.
“Russia, in general, has irresponsible dog owners who, when they get bored of their home pet experiment, kick them out on the street. So parks are dumping grounds for unwanted dogs. We end up with many stray dogs who pose a threat to the population.”
Whatever the reason, it’s just not right.
The dogs only exist because of human negligence. It’s our responsibility to clean up the problem in a humane fashion.
http://www.pawnation.com/2014/02/03/stray-dogs-in-sochi-targeted-during-winter-olympics/
Stray Dogs in Sochi Targeted During Winter Olympics
By Nancy Barber Feb 3rd 2014
A pest control company in Sochi, Russia, told the Associated Press that it has a contract to kill stray dogs throughout the Winter Olympics. The city, apparently overrun with strays, has had this deal in place for years, as reported by ABC News.
Credit: Getty Editorial
Stray dogs are a common sight in Sochi and the surrounding areas. Many are seen near building sites where they receive food and shelter from construction crews. The strays have also been able to get inside the Olympic Park.
“A dog ran into the [Olympic] Fisht Stadium, we took it away. God forbid something like this happens at the actual opening ceremony. This will be a disgrace for the whole country,” said Alexei Sorokin, director general of pest control company Basya Services.
Sorokin’s company is involved in what he describes as the “catching and disposing” of dogs. Sorokin refused to say what methods were used and how many dogs were disposed of in a year.
Sergi Krivonosov, a lawmaker from the Krasnodar region of Russia, vocally supported removing dogs from the streets. Krivonosov believed that it was Russia’s “responsibility to the international community and that [the stray dogs’] elimination is the quickest way to solve this problem.”
Animal activists heatedly protested the contract last year when it was first revealed to the public. Authorities did pledge to give up the inhumane procedures and build animal shelters instead, but activists say that there has been no evidence of theses shelters being built.
Sochi City Hall, which first announced the contract with Basya Services, has remained silent on the issue.
http://www.couriermail.com.au/sport/more-sports/company-has-contract-to-kill-stray-dogs-in-sochi-during-winter-olympics/story-fnii0hmo-1226817123515
A PEST control company which has been killing stray dogs in Sochi for years says it has a contract to exterminate more of the animals throughout the Olympics.
Alexei Sorokin, director general of pest control firm Basya Services, said his company is involved in what he described as the “catching and disposing” of dogs. Mr Sorokin refused to specify whether they shoot or poison dogs or say where they take the carcasses.
Thousands of stray dogs are roaming the streets of Sochi, Mr Sorokin said, and some of them are “biting children”.
Mr Sorokin said he attended a rehearsal of the Olympic opening ceremony last week and saw a stray dog walking in on the performers.
“A dog ran into the Fisht Stadium, we took it away,” he said. “God forbid something like this happens at the actual opening ceremony. This will be a disgrace for the whole country.”
Stray dogs are not uncommon in Sochi and the surrounding area, and many tend to gather near construction sites where they are likely to get food and shelter from workers. They have even been able to get inside the Olympic Park.
Mr Sorokin’s company operates in the Krasnodar region, which encompasses Sochi and the neighbouring area. Mr Sorokin refused to say how many dogs they kill a year, calling it “a commercial secret”.
Sergei Krivonosov, a lawmaker from the Krasnodar region, last year supported the dog culling.
Mr Krivonosov said taking the dogs off the street was Russia’s “responsibility to the international community and that their elimination is the quickest way to solve this problem.” He conceded, however, that this is “not the most humane way” of dealing with the problem and said that authorities should encourage dog shelters.
Sochi city hall last year announced a contract “to catch and dispose” of stray dogs in Sochi but animal activists vehemently protested the move. Authorities pledged to give up the practice and build animal shelters for stray dogs instead.
Activists say there is no evidence that a shelter has been built. The city hall would not immediately respond to calls and emails seeking comment.
Shooting stray dogs has been common practice in many Russian regions despite activists’ efforts to push authorities for more humane ways of dealing with the issue.
http://www.bostonglobe.com/sports/2014/02/05/sochi-dog-lover-tries-save-strays/wfYJbeD1nf0Fuh0VbJlc0O/story.html
Rescuers mobilize as Sochi tries to kill off stray dogs
SOCHI, Russia — At the bottom of a steep muddy path to a fetid swamp, a rudimentary plywood-and-posterboard kennel looked like the last place anyone who cares about dogs would want to keep one.
But for the 14 formerly stray dogs bouncing and barking in the kennel Tuesday, these makeshift quarters represent salvation. The city of Sochi has hired a pest-control company to kill homeless animals by the hundreds, all in an effort to clean up the streets in advance of the Winter Games.
So Vlada Provotorova, a local dentist and a diehard dog person, recruited some friends and went on the ultimate rescue mission. “I felt like I had to do something,’’ said Provotorova as she fended off a playful leap from Katya, a German shepherd mix she picked up a few weeks ago.
She and her friends have been collecting all the strays they can and placing them in any shelter they can find, like the one in the swamp, in a space lent to them by a dog-friendly couple who breed mosquito fish in marshy pools.
It’s a losing battle, and Provotorova and her friends know it.
She estimates that between 5,000 and 7,000 dogs have been killed in the current cull, a figure no one in City Hall was available to confirm or deny. She and her friends have rescued “no more than 100.”
“It makes me sad,” she said.
DAVID FILIPOV/GLOBE STAFF
Vlada Provotorova and friends place strays wherever they can.
Mass killings of strays may seem inhumane for Americans, who live in a world where a celebrity like NFL quarterback Michael Vick served prison time for his involvement in the killing of dogs. But the practice is not uncommon in Russia, despite pleas by activists that authorities find more humane ways of handling strays. Sochi city officials had planned to kill 2,000 dogs last summer, but an international outcry caused the city to drop the plan.
But with the Olympics coming up fast, the city hired Basya Service to engage in the “catching and disposal” of city dogs, according to a copy of the contract acquired by the Globe.
Alexei Sorokin, the director of the company, told the Associated Press that thousands of strays roam the streets of Sochi, “biting children,” and that one stray walked in on a rehearsal of Friday’s Olympic opening ceremony.
“God forbid something like this happens at the actual opening ceremony,” Sorokin told the agency. “This will be a disgrace for the whole country.”
Translation: It would be a disgrace for President Vladimir Putin, who has staked his prestige on these Games improving Russia’s image as a modern economic power. So Sorokin got the go-ahead to act.
But one international animal protection group said the killing of dogs would backfire.
LUCAS JACKSON/REUTERS
A Winter Games worker led a dog off a snowboarding course during a training session Tuesday in Sochi.
“Killing street dogs, whether through poisoning, shooting or other means, is not only inhumane, but ineffective,” said Andrew Rowan, chief executive officer of Humane Society International, which advocates mass sterilization, vaccination, and community education to solve the problem of strays. “While Russia has the world’s attention with the Olympics around the corner, the current dog-killing program will only rouse an international outcry and taint the image of the country.”
Sorokin did not tell the Associated Press how the dogs are killed.
But Provotorova said she received pictures of dogs that had been shot with poisoned darts and taken away in trucks. One of the macabre images depicted a yellow, green, and magenta dart that she said had been used. It was impossible to confirm the authenticity of the photos, which she said had come from a Sochi resident who had witnessed the killings.
The 14 dogs she showed on Tuesday were all rescued from the train station in Sochi.
“We carry the ones we can — some of them are so big they won’t budge,’’ said Provotorova, who has received help from about 30 volunteers. “We sterilize them, we vaccinate them, we rid them of fleas, and we try to find a place to put them.”
Provotorova has adopted a labrador mix, Charlie, to join her two German spitzes.
Eventually she wants to take the other dogs north to Moscow, where she has yet to find permanent shelter. So she waits, with the animals she has saved. Provotorova said she and a few friends plan to go out in the coming days to try to collect more strays.
Authorities last summer pledged to give up the practice of killing dogs and build animal shelters for strays instead. But Provotorova said there was no evidence that any shelters were built. She is wary of any promises Sochi’s leaders might make now.
“After the Olympics,” she said, “They won’t do anything about it.”
Material from Associated Press was used in this report.
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