The volunteer group of the Arrecife dog pound has denounced the "urgent and shameful situation" of the facilities and have announced that "in a desperate act and full of impotence" they have decided to intervene in the plenary session of the City Council that will take place this Thursday to request the existence of a veterinarian, who they say has not been there "for almost a year", as well as that mechanisms for the adoption of animals be activated and facilitated and that "volunteer action" be allowed.
"We hope that the political parties, once and for all, support a more than reasonable request and agree to end the internal problems of the dog pound and seek an urgent solution," they say in a statement.
In the same, they affirm that "approaching the municipal dog pound of Arrecife in an attempt to offer voluntary help is a complicated task, if not impossible". "The common thing is to find negative responses from the workers, who do not seem interested in the well-being of the animals." "They manifest insensitivity and lack of training in what should be a dignified treatment of animals," they point out in their writing, in which they state that although "there are three operators for the 16 dogs that are currently there", "on more than one occasion you find the dog pound closed during working hours".
"A prison of innocents condemned to life imprisonment"
"The dogs are getting old inside the cages, they don't go out for a minute in the light; this causes them a lot of stress, some already have nervous tics and in some cases with an unhealthy appearance," say the volunteer group of the Arrecife dog pound, who also denounce that "it seems that the adoption of animals is not currently covered in the functions of the dog pound".
"While other dog pounds on the island are moving forward, giving them an outlet through adoptions and working together with other animal associations, the one in Arrecife is completely stopped, turning what should be a temporary shelter into a prison of innocents condemned to life imprisonment," he assures.
Without a veterinarian "for almost a year"
Likewise, the volunteer group of the Arrecife dog pound affirms that "they do not allow volunteers to walk the dogs". "It is not even possible to brush their hair, which some need it very much," they point out, pointing out that what is argued from it is that "this is not a protector, it is a dog pound".
And, "on occasions, when claims and complaints have been filed, the answers are always the same," he adds, stating that the response is that "a solution will be given shortly" or that "a veterinarian will be incorporated in 15 days." However, "not only are the problems solved, but they increase. For example, the dog pound has been without a veterinarian for almost a year," he says.
Requests "urgently"
Therefore, the volunteer group of the Arrecife dog pound requests "urgently" that there be a veterinarian "to reactivate the functions that correspond to them and cover the basic and emergency needs of the animals that live there" and that "the action of volunteering be allowed: regular walks of the animals, bringing clean blankets for them to lie down and the dogs can sleep more comfortably and not only on the cold and humid concrete".
Likewise, they demand that animal adoption mechanisms be activated and facilitated. "In short, that the municipal dog pound fulfills its functions as stated in the law. We want a real dog pound, which supports animal welfare. Less promises and more actions," they conclude.