Through Amigos de Los Galgos we want to launch this call for help from our friend Rosa of Badajoz, who is an intermediary of ours in the rescue and rehoming of galgos. Maria Luisa, the president of Las Nieves, one of the largest refuges in Spain has also spoken to us on this subject.
Rosa works tirelessly for the dogs in the dogpound at Olivenza, which is the only one serving the rural area around Badajoz. She works non-stop to save as many dogs as possible, with little financial help, and often the animals are found injured and in pour condition.
The horrors about which she talks are infinite and it is for this reason that her call for help is made.
In the Badajoz area there exists a huge hunting fraternity, especially hunting with the galgo. There are also other breeds used and abandoned too, like podencos, pointers, etc. It is normal to see terrible images of ill treatment and horror stories from this area of Spain, Extramadura. Rosa’s report give all kinds of figures, contributing a very eloquent image of the situation to us.
NB The Olivenza dogpound collects dogs from the whole of the Badajoz province, whereas the municipal dogpound in Badajoz town collects only the dogs of the city.
Who Am I?
My name is Rosa Maria Fernandez Salgado and for over 20 years I have worked for the defence and protection of animals. 7 years ago I returned to my roots in Extramadura and I now live in a village in the province of Badajoz, with 20 dogs. The province of Badajoz is the largest province in Spain with a surface area of 22,475 sq km, consequently there is a great number of hunters.
What is the Situation in Badajoz?
First, I should say that there are different Associations for the Defense of Animals in the whole region; there are no refuges or SPA’s, only dogpounds to collect abandoned dogs. In Badajoz there are the following dogpounds
1. Badajoz dogpound, run by the Town Hall, in collaboration with the Association Acam;
2. Almendralejo dogpound, run by the Recal association.
3. The dogpound covering the three towns of Merida, Villanueva de la Serena and Don Benito, run by the Association Anima.
4. The provincial dogpound of Badajoz at Olivenza, which opened in March 2006 and is run by a private company with a subsidy from the provincial government. There is no Badajoz ‘protection association’ which collaborates or works with this dogpound, and which covers the whole province – 22,475 sq km – except where there are the above 3 dogpounds.
The animals in the Olivenza dogpound are caugbht and taken in by the employees of the private company running it, and they are civil servants of the provincial government (‘laceros’, hunters with lassoes).
The scale of the figures of the dogs in this provincial dogpound is terrifying and representative of the huge numbers of dogs abandoned in this area. The figures speak for themselves.
Year 2007
Total of dogs taken in: 2,493
Adoptions: 179 (little more than 6%)
Dogs euthanased: 2,314 (94% of the dogs)
Of this total (2,493 dogs) more than 27% is galgos.
847 galgos were taken into the Olivenza dogpound in Badajoz.
Year 2008 (up to 31/5/08)
Total dogs taken in: 1,327 including 329 galgos
The administrative cost of each dog is 200 euros.
A very high percentage (I would dare to say 75%) of the dogs are brought to the
pound by their ‘masters’ and the rest are found wandering in the street. Those brought in by their ‘master’ are kept for 10 days, those found on the street are kept for 20 days, and after this time, if no one adopts them, euthanasia is their fate.
However, these figures, although painful and shaming, do not represent the number of abandoned dogs in Badajoz province, because one must add to it the great number of those in the dog pounds run by the town halls, as listed above.
Let us look at how this dramatic situation has arisen.
First – The great number of hunters have many dogs from which they breed without control, to find the best one for hunting. Sometimes the dogs are crossed with podencos, and even foxes! If a young dog is no good for hunting, it will be rejected and ‘disposed of’. Big game hunting is also practised in Badajoz area , for which a her of dogs is used – known as ‘rehala’, among which podencos and the Argentinian Mastiff is important), whilst the galgo is used to hunt small game and hares.
The figures for hunting in the whole province are also significant –
Number of licences issued in 2006: 75,345
Number of private hunting grounds: 3,441
Hunting activities in 2006/2007: 5,500
Contribution to the Extramadura economy: 1,800,000 euros.
Hunting is therefore considered an important contributor to the economy of the region, which has an annual budget of 300 million euros, in sectors such as building, accommodation, weapons and ammunition, insurance contracts, sales of animal food and meat for the hunters. With these figures, it is obvious that it would be a utopian dream to ban hunting to solve the problem of abandoned hunting dogs.
Second – lack of control of breeding and abandonment and the lax attitude of the authorities, both regional and local, to deal with the problem, and who see their contribution as collecting and disposing of the dogs in the dogpounds, thus establishing the cycle of disposable dogs – as the Spanish saying goes’ dead dog, rabies is finished’. To illustrate this attitude, one needs to remember there exists a Law of Protection of Animals dated 2002 (Loi 5/2002) and even 6 years after its creation, the authorities have not taken any steps to apply it.
It would be necessary to develop the following methods to impose this Law:
1. Registration of each dogs in each municipality
2. Registration to impose microchipping/tattooing to identify each animal
3. Control of animals used in experimentation
4. Control/regulation of other areas not covered by the above law
Third – the theft of hunting dogs is a terrible but frequent practice, which also causes huge amounts of abandonment when, after the stolen dogs have been tested for hunting and been deemed to be useless, they are disposed of.
Fourth – many of the protection associations are relatively recent and, in the face of such an overwhelming problem of abandoned hunting dogs, have not the spare time to think about dealing with the magnitude of the problem, as their main concerns are helping the dogs.
Fifth – control of adoptions. The majority of hunting dogs are ‘disposed of’ at the end of the hunting season, whilst they keep the females for breeding. Because of this indiscriminate breeding, there is a continue resupplying of dogs through neighbours, advertisements etc. and most of these dogs will finish their days in the dogpound.
It is ironic that sterilization is a taboo subject, considered to be ‘against nature’ but one’s eyes are closed if one ignores the cruel methods used to get rid of the hunting dogs – drowning, beaten with stones, thrown alive in plastic bags in the dustbin, etc….- Underlying all this behaviour is a conscious attitude that the dogs are only tools, and feel no pain. This particularly applies in the mainly rural areas and hunting communities.
My Project
My project is to give a route of hope for some of the condemned dogs which end up in the Olivenza dogpound, to offer them another chance.
How? By creating a small Protective Association which would serve as a bridge between the dogs in the Olivenza dogpound and potential adoptants.
It is for this that I appeal for help and support of all Protective Associations, both national and foreign, and all private individuals who would be ready to collaborate with me. It is a cruel joke to say that it costs no more to adopt a dog than to euthanase it. 200 euros, more or less. With this money one can pay for vaccination, sterilization, identification and blood tests.
I would like to thank with all my heart all those who read my message, hopefully someone will help. I would also like to express my gratitude to the Association Protectrice de La Nieves, who take dogs from the Olivenza dogpound when they can, and give them a second chance.
Rosa Maria Fernandes Salgado
To help – contact Rosa in Spanish 0034 627 039170
Amigos de los Galgos in French 0034 917 661258
Email levriers@levriers.net
Bank account for Rosa – IBAN es 910182 2883 38 0201517861