– Bestiality – with one word, shelter employees sum up what happened to a three-year-old dog. On Saturday, a scooter driver abandoned an animal in a bag near two busy streets in Kalisz. The perpetrator escaped and the dog was taken to a shelter. – Abandoning animals is not uncommon, the situation may be changed by mandatory microchipping – said the manager of the Shelter for Homeless Animals in Kalisz, Jacek Kołata.
On Saturday, at the intersection of busy city streets – Łódzka and Nędzerzewska in Kalisz, a married couple noticed a scooter driver with registration numbers from Pleszew, who abandoned a bag and drove away. It turned out that there was an approximately three-year-old dog inside.
The man fled on a two-wheeler along dirt roads towards Rożdżałe near Kalisz. A call was made to the scene Municipal Policewho also notified the police about the matter – said the officer on duty of the Kalisz City Guard, senior inspector. Paweł Napierała.
The dog is now under the care of shelter workers in KaliszFB – Shelter for Homeless Animals in Kalisz
“It's a traumatic experience for the animal.”
The dog was taken into the care of an animal shelter and a veterinarian who was to examine and assess its health condition. As one of the shelter employees says, the animal is in quite good condition and has already been vaccinated. However, it is clear that the dog is withdrawn and distrustful, especially towards men.
– This is a very traumatic experience for the animal. Throwing away a dog (…) may result not only in the death of the animal but also in a car accident – said Jacek Kołata, the manager of the Shelter for Homeless Animals in Kalisz.
He added that although animal abuse is punishable by up to three years in prison, and in special cases – up to five years, abandoning animals is not uncommon. For example, two days ago the Kalisz City Guard received a report about a dog tied to a barrier in the Zagorzynek housing estate. The patrol arriving at the scene determined that the dog had been there for several hours. When the owner of the animal was found, the woman explained that she had forgotten about the dog in her rush to get home. She was fined for her behavior.
Changes are needed
According to the shelter manager, animals will be abandoned on the street and taken to shelters until the Act on the National Register of Marked Dogs and Cats proposed by the Ministry of Agriculture is implemented. – Thanks to this, municipalities and private owners of animals will be obliged to chip and sterilize them – he said. Changes to the Animal Protection Act – as he explained – will mean that the owner of a stray dog will be quickly identified and held responsible, while the sterilization obligation will reduce the population. Currently, there are 180 homeless animals in the shelter in Kalisz, which is an increase of 60 dogs and cats compared to the data from the beginning of 2024.
How to combat the phenomenon of animal homelessness?
In the fall of 2024, a draft Act on the National Register of Marked Dogs and Cats was published on the website of the Government Legislation Center. The idea is to introduce mandatory electronic identification (chipping) and registration of animals. According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the new regulations and related obligations will be the most effective tool in the fight against animal homelessness. MP Barbra Oliwiecka (Poland 2050) informed that an Extraordinary Committee for Animal Protection had been established in the Sejm, which received over 10 parliamentary and citizen bills regarding changes in animal protection provisions. – From all these projects it will be necessary to choose the best solution, which will ultimately be adopted by the Sejm. “The first reading in the Sejm of the bill authored by the Legislative Initiative Committee 'STOP chains' is scheduled for January 30,” she said. Data from the Ministry of Agriculture show that in 2022, over 120,000 people stayed in 226 shelters. homeless animals. Municipalities' expenditure on the implementation of programs for the care of homeless animals is systematically increasing. In 2013, the cost of keeping animals in shelters amounted to PLN 157 million, 10 years later – approximately PLN 347 million. It is estimated that there may be 12 million dog and cat owners in Poland.
Main photo source: FB – Shelter for Homeless Animals in Kalisz