05/29/08 Benkovac Dogs in Disfavor of Local Bosses
The situation in the shelter in Benkovac turns into an international incident
The example of abandoned dogs "taken care of" behind the steel wire of the Benkovac shelter showed all weakness, unfitness, ignorance, and indifference of Croatian authorities who passed the Animal Protection Act to implement it in practice.
The number of dogs in the Benkovac municipal shelter has decreased considerably after several weeks of agony. From around one hundred dogs, today there are only around fifty alive. Dogs are dying from malnutrition, lack of care, parasites, bad hygienic conditions, there are cases of cannibalism, and dogs eat and tear other dogs into pieces... Benkovac authorities take no steps to stop this agony.
The news about Benkovac and Croatian shame spread through the world. Groups from Great Britain, Belgium, Austria, Serbia, Germany, the United States rush to aid volunteers of Croatian animal protection organizations to save the dogs who are still alive, since all appeals and cries for help are faced with lack of understanding. Mirko Erstic, mayor of Benkovac, and Ivica Erlic, director of the Veterinary station Benkovac, and Stanko Beslic from Benkovic d.o.o. who caused this disastrous situation shamelessly blame others for the responsibility of the condition of dogs.
It is also sad that after the visit of representatives of the Liburnia society for the animal welfare "Lunjo and Maza" and a chairman of the Department for animal welfare at the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Rural Development Mrs. Branka Bukovic-Sosic. Mrs. Bukovic-Sosic is more concerned about the media commotion of about this case than the well-being of the animals in the shelter. In spite of the conversation with the mayor Erstic and the veterinary inspector Ivica Goricanac the situation is not changing.
That is why the Animal Friends representatives, the Croatian-German actress Dunja Rajter and German TV station ARD will next week visit Benkovac in order to present the Benkovac shelter affair to the world public. Their arrival also announced Volker Fritzemeier from Tierschutzprojekt and Wolfgang Apel from Deutscher Tierschutz.
The Croatian media who are interested in this case are invited to join us in order to get the newest information and record the current state of the shelter.
![Bitch and her puppies [ 75.43 Kb ]](/data/image_3_3948.jpg "Bitch and her puppies [ 75.43 Kb ]")
![Dead dog and puppies [ 56.53 Kb ]](/data/image_3_3949.jpg "Dead dog and puppies [ 56.53 Kb ]")
![Dead puppy [ 69.33 Kb ]](/data/image_3_3950.jpg "Dead puppy [ 69.33 Kb ]")
![Filthi watter [ 79.08 Kb ]](/data/image_3_3951.jpg "Filthi watter [ 79.08 Kb ]")
![Wounded dog [ 82.16 Kb ]](/data/image_3_3952.jpg "Wounded dog [ 82.16 Kb ]")
![Mutilated dog [ 116.95 Kb ]](/data/image_3_3953.jpg "Mutilated dog [ 116.95 Kb ]")
![Benkovac shellter [ 90.66 Kb ]](/data/image_3_3954.jpg "Benkovac shellter [ 90.66 Kb ]")
