In Makhachkala, participants of public hearing voice recommendations to address problem of stray dogs

On March 2, the Public Chamber of Dagestan held a public hearing dedicated to solving problems of homeless animals in the urban environment. The event was attended by members of Makhachkala animal rights organizations "Zoolife" and "Ecolife", officials of the Makhachkala administration, and members of the Moscow Bar Association and animal rights experts of the organization "Zoopravo".

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on February 19 in Makhachkala the body of a nine-year girl was found; by the preliminary investigators’ version, she died as a result of stray dogs’ attacks. After the incident, residents of Dagestan began reporting mass shooting of stray dogs in the republic.

At the beginning of the public hearing, Gamzat Gamzatov, the head of the Public Chamber of Dagestan, has noted that it is held "not with the purpose to argue or to blame someone, but to find ways to solve the problem of stray animals in the urban environment."

Anastasia Fedyunina, the leader of the Moscow animal rights organization "Zoopravo", has noted that they came to the republic in order to make recommendations and to share experience in addressing the problem of stray animals. According to the activist, the shooting and poisoning of dogs will not solve the problem of stray animals.

Aida Padidar, a member of the animal rights organization "Ecolife", has emphasized that the city authorities should allocate to public activists the land plots and funds for construction of kennels and animal shelters.

It was decided to pass recommendations of the public hearing to the National Assembly for the development of the law on stray animals.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.