Just received from Danielle, who translated my book into French.
‘I just saw this on The Animal Rescue Site, in response to a petition that was sent to Mariano Rajoy. After receiving over 30,000 signatures protesting the abuse of Spain’s greyhounds, Jorge Moragas, Director of the Office of the Prime Minister, responded with the following letter, translated into English:
Mayhew International is shocked at the news from Andalucia, Spain. The regional govt there have recently passed legislation to authorise the training of Galgos (greyhounds) tied to motorised vehicles! If you lodge a protest against this barbarism please go to the regional govt’s website: www.juntadeandalucia.es/informacion/contacto.html
Danielle Hart, who has kindly translated my book into French – has organised this petition for the galgos and podencos. Please sign here. We need to reach 10,000 signatories.
Together with several organisations, notably Galgos Ethique Europe and l”Arche de Levriers, Greyhounds Rescue Holland has worked on the foundation of the Collectif Europeen pour la protection des Levriers, in English known as the European Collective for the Protection of Hounds. Read on here.
Vivienne Wharton works hard with the dog rescue associations in Murcia, to try and improve the situation for abandoned and maltreated animals there. This is her website, just launched. Please join the group and support her in her efforts. Here’s a link to her previous article.
Earlier in the year I was contact by a someone who had made contact with the League Against Cruel Sports in the UK, to ask if I could write to them about the plight of the galgos. As you will all know, it has been a terrible year for the Spanish hunting dogs, worse than ever, so time has been very short for me.
Natalie Osborne very kindly offered to compose a letter to send, and so I am asking you all to please print off the letter below – copy and paste it into a Word document, and then print and post – to see if the League will help to try and make a change for the galgos.
Those of you who have read my book will know that I mention how difficult it can be for animal rescue volunteers to work – when local people against them and their work – and especially if they make conplaints against acts of animal cruelty – take retaliatory action against, the volunteers, their families, their homes, cars…and in this case their dogs.
Pepis Refuge, near Seville, has become the latest victim of just such an horrendous and sickening act. Read about it here.
It’s not just galgos that the bastard galgueros hang – here’s the story of 3 podencos founding hanged and murdered at the beginning of August.
The Animal Health Trust, Newmarket, England, is doing a genetic study on Osteosarcoma in 8 breeds of dogs, including Greyhounds. Dr Mike Starkey is heading the research. I asked him if he had met Dr Couto of Ohio State University, who also studies greyhounds/galgos. He said ‘I met Dr. Couto at a meeting in the United States earlier this year. He is part of a consortium of researchers working on osteosarcoma (in several breeds) in the US, and we are actively collaborating with another member of the US consortium. The study to identify genetic risk factors for US Greyhounds has been ongoing for some time – our initial objective is to evaluate if UK (in particular), but also non-US, Greyhounds are likely to share the same genetic risk factors for osteosarcoma as US Greyhounds
Dr Starkey describes his study.
This photo is of greyhounds in South Africa. The same thing is going on in Spain with galgos. I’ve received this report and it absolutely sickens me. The Spanish – probably mainly men – in authority turn a blind eye – their hunter ‘brethren’ can get away with torture and murder – BUT let an animal rescue association try to help the dogs. And then there is Hell to Pay from the authorities! Corrupt bastards! Haven’t we had enough of cronyism?!. The majority of them are men, but a few are women. And that sickens me more – they are probably mothers – they give life to a human – they should treasure the birth of life….but life in an animal means nothing to them. They at times are worse than the men!
Cartagena is apparently one of the worst area in Murcia for cruelty against animals.
A volunteer says
