Op-Ed: Action needed against dog killers in Moscow

Moscow - The hideous practice of killing dogs in Moscow via poisoning by unidentified people needs serious attention and effective action by the Moscow authorities.

Homeless people suffer from abuse and victimization but homeless dogs suffer indescribably at the hands of human abusers. Lately, there are reports of stray dogs poisoned in streets of Moscow, Russia. CBS News posted a photo of a dog in park where, as the caption reads, mass poisoning killed dozens of dogs last month. This hideous practice of poisoning dogs is also taking toll on pet dogs who are taken out for a walk and happen to eat food remains, usually poisoned meat pieces left by the perpetrators of the killing campaign. CBS News wrote about a 5-year-old pet dog called Yasha dying after having a snack of “something” in a Moscow park. The news also tells that police in Moscow have launched an investigation into these killings of dogs by using poisoned food as trap. Vera Lesovets, Yasha’s owner, reportedly suspects a group of “dog hunters” is causing this mess. She told that the killers even post pictures of their victims on websites. The story on CBS News notes that Moscow alone has a stray dog population of about 25000 and with the increase in population of homeless dogs, their “hunting” has also been on rise. While animal cruelty is illegal in Russia, poor law enforcement has failed to protect many dogs from abuse or killing in such ways as dog hunting. Yet, there are caring citizens who are adopting stray dogs and saving them from untimely, unnatural deaths. Dog lovers and animal rights activists are also coming together online to raise a voice for the homeless canines in Moscow. A petition on Care2 targets Moscow officials with the demand to take such dog poisoning seriously and make sure the killers are brought to justice.