Cynologist supported the call of deputies to euthanize stray dogs

Neutering and chipping do not make a stray dog ​​kinder to humans and even increase the risk of aggressive behavior in the pack. Konstantin Karapetyants, the president of the regional public organization “Cynology 21st Century”, told about this to MK. The expert supported the initiative of the deputies, who proposed giving the regions the right to independently decide what to do with homeless animals: sterilize, chip and release or euthanize if they attack people.

The dog handler opposed the shooting of stray quadrupeds and offered a more humane solution to the problem.

– You can learn from the experience of countries that are considered to be civilized. For example, in France, the following procedure applies: the animal is caught, placed in a shelter or for overexposure, sterilized and kept in this institution for seven days. If during this time the dog fails to find a new owner or find the old one for the loss, the animal is euthanized.

In Germany, the same procedure applies, but there the term of detention in the shelter is much longer, 35 days, – said the cynologist Konstantin Karapetyants.

A heated discussion about the fate of stray animals unfolded against the backdrop of amendments developed by the deputies of the United Russia and New People factions. The bill proposes to give governors in the regions the right to independently develop measures against stray dogs. The initiative of the Duma members has already received a positive response from the Cabinet and can be considered in the first reading by the lower house as early as May 16.

Animal rights activists say the amendments violate provisions of the current Responsible Treatment of Animals Act. The document, popularly known as “Burmatov’s law”, dictates a certain scheme for handling an ownerless quadruped: capture, sterilization, release into the natural habitat.

But because of such rules, for example, it will be necessary to release dogs that killed an eight-year-old child in Orenburg. The mayor of the city, Sergei Salmin, told reporters that there is no other way to deal with dogs: “Catching, marking and releasing dogs into their former habitat are the requirements of federal law,” the official stated.

The current rules do not solve the problem of aggression of homeless animals towards humans, says Konstantin Karapetyants. The version that after sterilization the animal becomes kinder and calmer, the cynologist called a common myth.

– Sterilization only affects the animal’s ability to produce offspring. As for behavioral changes, for females, such cases are extremely rare: one in a thousand. In most cases, a girl-dog after sterilization, on the contrary, becomes more masculine and begins to show leadership qualities. She doesn’t calm down. In terms of behavior, sterilization does not affect males at all, the expert said.

In addition, no one has repealed the laws of the pack, the dog handler continues. In the conditions of the city, two or three dogs are already a pack. And they behave accordingly: they protect their square of territory, food base and approaches to it. If such a dog considers, for example, a dumpster, any person who passes by the garbage can become a victim of an attack.

True, the statistics of Rospotrebnadzor suggests that there have been fewer bitten people lately. In 2018, 385,171 people sought medical attention after being bitten by a doctor. In 2022, there were 331,616 such patients.

Dynamics, of course, is, but weak. Especially when you consider how much money from the budget regions and municipalities spend on trapping, sterilizing and chipping stray dogs. For example, according to the public procurement portal, in the city of Goryachiy Klyuch (population 40 thousand people), they are ready to spend 2 million rubles on this. In the Lysvensky urban district of the Perm Territory (62 thousand) – 1 million rubles. In Rubtsovsk, Altai Territory (126 thousand people) – almost 1 million 200 thousand.

– Even if there is one bitten or scratched in the statistics, this is already enough. We are talking about the fact that stray dogs not only bite, slobber and scratch. They kill people. A chip in an ear is not a guarantee that a hungry dog ​​will not go in search of food near a school or kindergarten. Decide what is more important to you, dogs or people, says Karapetyants.

The expert also drew attention to the fact that orphan animals are not vaccinated and can become carriers of dangerous infections, putting domestic dogs and cats at risk.

The cynologist called the idea of ​​​​deputies about giving governors the right to independently decide what to do with dogs as correct. The situation is different in different regions, so measures can be developed individually. In addition, the expert criticized the current methods of attracting potential hosts to shelters:

– All of Moscow is hung with billboards with appeals: “Take a friend from a shelter.” But it doesn’t work. In the same Germany, the queues for shelters are scheduled for years, people want to take home homeless animals. It would be much more efficient to provide a person who took a dog from a shelter with some kind of preferences. For example, discounts on feed or veterinary services.