Leading animal rights campaigners reported that the Mayoress of Craiova, Mrs Lia Olguta Vasilescu has authorised the killing of hundreds of stray dogs in Craiova, Romania. Most social networking outlets have been inundated with pictures of shelter staff cleaning bloodstained floors. Speranta pentru Animale wrote:-
"In the last few days taking advantage of the snow that has invaded the kennels ( and that is still not completely cleaned ) Breasta shelter managers made " disappear " dozens of dogs , especially in paddocks 3 and 4. Normally we were present almost daily at feeding program and we participated along with the caretakers ,being able in this way to watch the dogs coming out to eat .But deep snow gave carers the opportunity to motivate the needed to enter and distribute food inside ( they always insisted on not letting us in the kennels ). This began on Saturday ( after the first wave of snow ) on Sunday I left before the food program as a protest against the fact that caregivers sat in the dining room but not a hint of snow had been removed from the kennels (they have a dining room and it seems that they also hired a cook, but they claim they have no money for medicines ).
On Monday I could not get at the feeding program. The method of giving the food inside the paddock continued on Tuesday and Wednesday it was only on Thursday that I started notice the missing dogs, as they removed the snow and the dogs began to emerge .Friday I did check in kennels where last week were 5-6 dogs now are only two while in kennels where there were three only one is left and so on. On paddocks three and four are missing dozens of dogs."
Few media outlets have reported this tragic event. One brief local article reported that . [English translation here ] animal campaigners have threatened to make a criminal complaint about this.
The shelter has been plagued with numerous scandals. This has led to public uproar. Twenty-three thousand people signed a detailed petition . The petition outlines the clash between animal rights campaigners and the Mayoress of Craiova. NGOs (including Speranta) were forced to apply to the courts to obtain the right to feed the dogs at public shelter at NGO expense. They won this application in 2013.
It is clear that the Mayoress does have an unhealthy vendetta against the dogs in her area, and her protestations to the contrary were not convincing anyone . Given her reign has been plagued with some serious scandals, each of us should question her decision-making skills in relation to the helpless and vulnerable. Of course, since the rest of Europe turns a blind eye to her cruel decisions, other faulty areas of governance may not be detected.
This excellent article Sleepless in Craiova outlines the disgraceful, if not evil acts of the local officials in assassinating dogs in the cruellest manner possible. This website demonstrates the acts of neglect performed upon vulnerable animals. It shows botched operations and bleeding dogs. Shocking images of emaciated/skeletal animals demonstrates the extent of neglect. Blood smeared post- operatively is the handy-work of a man who refers to himself as a "vet". Despite all this being in the public domain, no one has acted to effect accountability. The Romanian authorities governing local vets appear to have turned a blind eye to the shocking evidence.
Horrified by the atrocities, Occupy for Animals wrote to the Mayoress:-
"These scenes were viewed in Craiova where the weakest are consigned to a painfully grotesque death or allowed simply to fade away through starvation in YOUR shelter. Yet Craiova dreams of becoming a European Capital of Culture in 2021... A EUROPEAN Capital of Culture!"
The Canine bloodshed and cruelty in Craiova is now at an unacceptable level. The inhumane nature has been publicised through most social networking websites, yet the Animal Welfare Intergroup appears slow to act on cruelty meted out at individual shelters. Indeed, every single authority appears to be turning a blind eye to the issue hoping that in time, these blood stains will disappear into the dim and distant memories of the past.
It is clear that lethargy is endemic within Romania while litres of canine blood is spilt everywhere in Craiova. The fact that it is washed away by cleaners does nothing to preserve its reputation. The Mayoress of Craiova has continued to ignore pleas from animal rights campaigners. The tax payer expects empathy, fairness and justice. If she cannot deliver these three qualities to all creatures great and small, it is time for her to leave office.
The bitter winter of 2014 is passing and dogs have mysteriously disappeared leaving a river of blood and the evidence destroyed. Any tourist visiting should remember the haunting screams, the cries for help and the eventual cruel demise of these defenseless creatures. This is the dark secret of Craiova - The European Capital of Canine Cruelty.