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ARCHIVED - Potentially dangerous dog breeds cause overcrowding at the animal pound in Murcia
The implementation of the “zero sacrifice” policy leaves the Zoonosis Centre struggling to cope
Many people welcome the “zero sacrifice” policies adopted by the regional government and local authorities in the Region of Murcia regarding stray and abandoned pet animals which are rescued from the streets, but at the Zoonosis Centre just outside the regional capital the resulting overcrowding continues to stretch resources to the limit.
An article published by regional newspaper La Opinión this week reports that the number of dogs belonging to breeds classified as “potentially dangerous” is one of the aspects causing most headaches, as efforts are made to increase capacity at the centre to cope with the higher numbers of animals housed there. Eduardo González, the president of the Animal Welfare Committee in the municipality of Murcia, is quoted as saying that the campaign to avoid putting animals down has led to a near collapse of the facility.
Sr González explains that the municipal service has not put any animal down since December 2017 except in cases where this course of action has been amply justified on veterinary grounds. At the same time, more and more animals have been taken in but the facilities have not been enlarged at the same rate.
In theory it is possible to put four or five dogs in the same pen or enclosure, but in the case of potentially dangerous animals they must be isolated and occupy a cage on their own. This limits space severely, to the extent that whereas a few years ago the Zoonosis Centre was home to around 200 dogs, now there are only 80 or so – with potentially dangerous breeds occupying 70 per cent of the space available, there is simply less room for others.
In order to cope with the overflow, the service collaborates with various animal protection and refuge associations, who help to take care of dogs, cats and a rising number of horses and donkeys which are being abandoned by their owners, but meetings are on-going to secure funding for a significant enlargement of the facilities.
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