A video of malnourished stray dogs being euthanised at the San Fernando pound through lethal injections, has prompted San Fernando Mayor Kazim Hosein to close the pound temporally.
Although the facility remained locked yesterday, three whimpering stray dogs were seen lying inside the steel cages.
Hosein’s decision to postpone all killings at the pound took place after footage of the dogs being euthanised were circulated on Facebook.
In the video the stray dog handlers were seen hurling a bucket filled with puppies into a net.
It also showed a fully grown dog was then placed stretched out on a table where they were administered the lethal injection.
As one of the dogs crawled on the ground dying, three pups were seen licking her face. The dying dogs were then tossed on a pile one on top the other in a heap.
Contacted yesterday president of the T&T Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (TTSPCA), Sita Kuruvilla, said she supported the permanent closure and relocation of the dog pound. Under past mayor Dr Navi Muradali, Kuruvilla said her group had a joint venture approach to manage the stray dog population with the city corporation.
“We worked with the city engineer and our plans were to rebuild a new shelter in another location. A MOU was drawn up to cover the management of that facility,” Kuruvilla said.
Saying too many animals were being abandoned, she said there was a need to have proper animal welfare legislation.
“We have a very old Dogs Act and it focuses on picking up stray dogs. We have a Dog Control Act which gives little consideration to animal welfare. The time has come to look at legislation, embark on public awareness programmes which support low cost spaying and neutering for the animals,” Kuruvilla said.
Meanwhile, vice-president of Animals Alive. Jowelle de Souza, said she was appalled by the video.
“For years I have been begging the corporation to work with us to rescue these animals. They are often left there with no food or water. I used to go every weekend to feed them but they threatened to lock me up if they see me anywhere near the pound,” De Souza said.
She said instead of euthanising the dogs, it should become a criminal offence for pet owners to abandon the animals.
De Souza also said owners should be mandated by law to spay and neuter their pets.
She also revealed that the Animals Alive shelter at Ralph Narine Trace, South Oropouche, had over 600 dogs and each week new pets were being adopted.
Find a more humane way—Hosein
In an interview Mayor Kazim Hosein said yesterday he did not know that the animals were being starved and euthanised. Agreeing that it was better to have the dogs placed in a shelter, Hosein said he planned to embark on a proper upgrade of the pound.
“I really did not know what was going on in there. One of the first things I did when I became mayor was to hold meetings for the relocation of the pound but they said we have no money for that. This year the Ministry of Local Government allocated some money to upgrade the pound,” Hosein said.
He said he was also liaising with veterinary surgeon, Dr Kriyaan Singh, a former Independent Senator, who has offered his services free of charge. Hosein also said he planned to hold a meeting tomorrow at the corporation to discuss the issue.
Singh in an interview said he was willing to go to the corporation once weekly to euthanise the dogs humanely.
“Although I do not support the inhumane slaughter of animals I do support humane euthanasia as a form of animal control and humane cessation of pain and suffering,” Singh said.
Admitting that not enough is being done to rehome the strays, Singh said every dog that was picked up by the corporation could be published on social media so its owner or a new owner could be found. Euthanasia, he said, should be the last resort.
He said the management of the pound should be adjusted so citizens could easily go and adopt an animal at the pound without any hassle.