What to do about Gladno Polje Shelter in Sarajevo?

Posted on January 27, 2015 by Sandra Jensen

How to make a difference, from Dalida Kozlic, lawyer and activist in BiH:

“All our politicians are involved in stealing of money from illegal shelters and the hygienic services. Since money laundering through shelters is one of the most popular criminal activities for our politicians, there is no one who can help from politics.

If the Prosecutor’s office reacts, which it is obliged to do, our politicians will stop their illegal practice, but our prosecutors and police officers are amongst the most corrupt in the world.

The only way to force our political establishment to stop this illegal practice is pressure from international organisations and especially embassies. Activities of foreign activists and organisations should be focused on writing letters to embassies of UK, USA, Germany, Italy and France etc. Foreign politicians are able to make a difference, not our own.”

Below is a draft letter you can modify to use. Please be sure to address it to a specific person and to sign it, including your contact details. You can also send it to your MP and MEP.

To find your Embassy in Bosnia-Herzegovina go here:
http://embassy.goabroad.com/embassies-in/bosnia-and-herzegovina

Finding any MEP in Europe – a ‘Euromap’
http://www.europarl.europa.eu/meps/en/map.html
Finding any MEP by the alphabetical name list can be done via the following link: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/members/expert/alphaOrder.do?language=EN

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Dear XXX

Millions of EU citizens care deeply about animal welfare and are sickened to see constant reports of horrific animal cruelty, and look to the EU to help improve animal welfare across Europe. Countries seeking to acquire EU membership need to demonstrate certain standards of animal care, and so I want to bring to your attention Bosnia and Herzegovina, who are seeking admission, and yet who constantly contravene their own animal welfare laws.

There are countless dog shelters in the country that are documented by animal rescue organisations and activists to be inhumane and ‘death camps’ for dogs, and are in fact used for money laundering purposes: money destined for the dogs and the shelters is pocketed.

I am writing to ask your assistance in ensuring that dog shelter at Gladno Polje in Sarajevo and other public shelters in the country be monitored to ensure that conditions are improved and that the dogs there are safe, that animal activists be allowed to document and ensure that the laws are applied. We are asking that any dog catching service is monitored and works according to the laws of the country.

We have been advised by BiH lawyers and activists that as the BiH politicians themselves are involved in stealing of money from illegal shelters and hygienic services, and that since the prosecutors and police officers are also corrupt, the only way to force the BiH political establishment to stop their illegal practises is pressure from international organisations and especially embassies.

The existing Animal Welfare and Protection Act of Bosnia-Herzegovina is in fact a good and enforceable law. The only reason the law is not being enforced is because certain political and professional circles do not want to do it.

The law states that every city and town has to build shelters for stray animals. All shelters for stray animals have to provide a NO KILL policy and adequate care, including veterinary care for the animals housed there. Again, the truth is that the conditions in most public shelters are horrific, with dogs being left for days without water, food or care of any kind. There is documented evidence of this.

As you will be aware, the European Union provides the government of Bosnia and Herzegovina and with many millions of euros worth of financial aid each year. I believe the allocation for 2012 was around €107.8m. My understanding of the provisos attached to these aid packages is that there is a requirement for the recipient country to abide by EU laws which would include the laws related to animal welfare. The Commission has stated that aligning national animal welfare legislation with EU law is a prerequisite for EU membership.

I would urge you please to raise the above issues with the European Commission and the European Parliament’s Intergroup on the Welfare and Conservation of animals (http://www.animalwelfareintergroup.eu/) and, critically, with your representatives in Bosnia-Herzegovina.

The issue of the failure of the BiH authorities to apply even the barest minimum of the law to ensure the safety of the animals must be addressed. It is imperative that the European Commission and the Parliament discusses this matter with their Bosnia and Herzegovina counterparts.

The European Parliament states that “The EU has among the world’s highest standards of animal welfare”. The Eurogroup for Animal Welfare (http://eurogroupforanimals.org/ )is strongly urging the European Commission to adopt adequate measures to ensure that all pet animals are properly treated to protect their health and welfare. If it is Bosnia and Herzegovina’s wish to join the EU it would seem that until their government takes crimes against defenceless, sentient animals seriously they will not be a fit country to be accepted into the EU.

We urge you to help ensure that the Bosnia Herzegovina authorities implement internationally agreed-upon guiding principles on humane stray dog population control and management, and that resources be allocated to ensure such principles are followed.

Please see the petition regarding Gladno Polje shelter, which has already garnered over 6000 signatures since the 11th of January, 2015: “Ensure the safety and health of dogs at Gladno Polje “shelter”, refuse change of ownership to Novi Grad Veterinary station; allow access to the shelter by independent rescuers and activists” http://tinyurl.com/o5yd4ym.

Many thanks for your time, I look forward to hearing from you.

Kind regards,

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Please keep sharing the petition: Ensure the safety and health of dogs at Gladno Polje “shelter”, refuse change of ownership to Novi Grad Veterinary station; allow access to the shelter by independent rescuers and activists

And if you wish to assist the rescuers in their efforts to save the dogs you can donate via YouCaring: Help the Gladno Polje dogs survive winter.

Dalida has outlined for us the Animal Protection and Welfare Act and Ordinance on establishing and conditions that shelters in Bosnia Herzegovina must fulfill. These are are legal acts, which provide conditions for establishing, financing and working of shelters:

Lost and abandoned animals must be provided with adequate shelter and veterinary-medial assistance.

(1) Animal shelter owner is obliged to: a) provide sufficient quantities of food and water for animals; b) provide veterinary-medical care for animals; c) provide sufficient living area surface for each animal and enable sufficient exercise/movement; d) keep records on each rescued animal; e) keep records on each adopted animal; f) perform obligatory sterilization (spaying and neutering) of all rescued animals upon termination of the deadline as given in paragraph (2) of this Article; g) receive statements on lost or abandoned animals; h) engage in adopting animals and finding animal owners; i) microchip all arriving animals if not previously microchip. (2) Animal owner has the right to request the return of his/her animal eight days upon the animal being rescued and taken into the shelter, or otherwise the animal can be given to another interested party. (3) Persons who adopt rescued animals are obliged to sign the animal adoption statement. (4) Animal shelters can be formed by any physical of private, or legal entity, local community unit, municipality, city, canton or entity. (5) Competent cantonal, municipal or city body issues a permit for establishing an animal shelter, based on the instruction prescribed by the competent ministry, at the proposal by the Veterinary Office, and keeps the animal shelter registry.

Lost and abandoned animals shall be collected by the Health/Hygienic and rescue service employees by causing minimum pain and suffering and turn the animals into the animal shelter.

Shelters and hygienic/health services are funded from: a) entity-level, cantonal, city or municipal budget; b) other sources of funding (donations, grant, etc.).

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DONATIONS
Funds are needed not only to help individual rescues and to help us keep safe the rescued dogs we are sponsoring but also to continue our advocacy work in Bosnia, uncovering the truth about what is happening there.

On our sister site, Animal Welfare Advocates for Bosnia, you can set up a monthly donation via PayPal, or if you want to make a one-off donation, please go to your PayPal account (or set one up, it’s very easy) and send the money to: donations@awabosnia.org as a ‘gift’. Click on the image below to be taken to PayPal’s home page.

Or if you want to use the customised PayPal form, click the link below. However, a transaction fee and a percentage (2- 5.4%) will be deducted by PayPal for any contribution made.

If you want your contribution to go to a specific dog or cause, please make a note in the PayPal comment box. If you wish to contribute via bank transfer or have other difficulties or questions, please go here.

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This site is dedicated to Vučko. Read his story and don’t let him have suffered and died in vain. Please help the stray dogs and cats in Bosnia-Herzegovina. The situation there is utterly dire, Vučko is but one amongst many horrifically abused animals. Go here to find out how to help them. Money is needed for food, medicine and foster housing. Even just one dollar or one euro will help.

Uncertain future for Dogs at Gladno Polje Shelter in Sarajevo

Posted on January 11, 2015 by Sandra Jensen

Please sign the petition: Ensure the safety and health of dogs at Gladno Polje “shelter”, refuse change of ownership to Novi Grad Veterinary station; allow access to the shelter by independent rescuers and activists

The agricultural cooperative responsible for management of Gladno Polje shelter in Sarajevo did not sign a new contract for the shelter yesterday. We are informed this means the shelter will close, or will be transferred to another company. Either way, the prognosis for the 200+ dogs at Gladno Polje is dire.

The veterinary station “Novi Grad Sarajevo”, owned by the public company Lokom, has offered to take over the shelter. PC Lokom is owned by the municipality of Novi Grad Sarajevo. This company has established a notorious group of dog-catchers known as the “hygiene service”. This is considered by activists and rescuers to be a criminal organisation that kills stray dogs as part of money laundering activities (stealing funds that are meant to take dogs off the streets and into dog shelters for care. However, there are in fact no shelters able to take in more dogs, so what happens to the dogs, to the money?)

Authorities of the municipality of Ilidza will shortly decide whether they will allow the veterinary station “Novi Grad Sarajevo” to take over the shelter, but the fact that the agricultural cooperative has not signed a new contract to continue management means it’s likely the authorities of Ilidza will accept the offer. Gladno Polje will then be under the control of the vet Mustafa Mrkulic who is widely known – as well as PC Lokum – as “the worst illegal dog killers in Sarajevo.”

Gladno Polje is a shelter established by local authorities which only works because of the hard work of a tiny group of independent rescuers and activists headed by Sanela Kotorić Etterle, who fundraise for proper food, who go in and clean the pens and do whatever they can to improve what are horrific conditions, putting straw down on the cold concrete, and even giving water which is often not available (or frozen in winter).

The shelter’s requirements should be funded by the government, but no one knows where the funds go. Nevertheless, the activists have managed to maintain the dogs and even find homes for some of them.

If the shelter changes ownership to the Novi Grad Veterinary station, there is a very real possibility that rescuers and activists who are taking care of the dogs will be forbidden to enter Gladno Polje and that the dogs will be illegally killed to make room for more, who will then also be killed and so on. Please note that the Animal Welfare Law of the country does not allow killing in shelters unless the dogs are suffering beyond help or are a danger to themselves or people.

It is extremely important influence the authorities of the municipality Ilidza to reject the offer of veterinary station Novi Grad Sarajevo and to insist upon the safety of the dogs currently living in the shelter and on improved conditions, and to allow access to the shelter by independent rescuers and activists.

Please write emails to Prof. Senaid Memic, head of the Municipality in charge of Gladno Polje:
kabinet.nacelnika@opcinailidza.ba
opcinski.nacelnik@opcinailidza.ba

And you can also write to the members of the council listed on these page: http://www.opcinailidza.ba/vijecnici.html
http://www.opcinailidza.ba/rukovodstvo.html

You can also write emails to your embassy in BiH:
Find your Embassy in Bosnia-Herzegovina:
http://embassy.goabroad.com/embassies-in/bosnia-and-herzegovina

Other ways to help:

Given the above photographs you might think the best thing is for the shelter to close; however what then happens to the dogs there? There is nowhere for them to go. Rescuers would need extraordinary funding and support to buy land and build and maintain a shelter for this number of dogs.

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2014: What is happening to the strays of Bosnia Herzegovina?

Posted on December 30, 2014 by Sandra Jensen

Author: Dalida Kozlic, L.L.B, lawyer and activist

“The proposed amendments to the Act on Protection and Welfare of Animals have not been enacted. Due to the complicated political and legal system in Bosnia, new members of House of Peoples have not been chosen. House of Peoples of the Parliamentary Assembly will form in early 2015. As soon as delegates are chosen for House of Peoples, legislation processes will be continued. This means that delegates will decide on the destiny of thousands of stray animals in Bosnia. These amendments are intended to mask the killing of stray animals that are already occurring.

There are many illegal shelters for stray animals that are formed and led by persons who have close ties and association with Bosnian authorities. Animals are effectively being tortured and killed in these shelters. Animals are beaten, cut, clubbed, raped or tortured in many other horrific ways. Animals do not have water, food, accommodation, they are freezing or they are exposed to extremely high temperatures. Also, animals are killed with wires, clubs, glass shreds, poison and also fire arms. While these atrocities happen, local authorities finance the people who own the shelters. It is money laundering. In addition, stray animals regularly killed on the streets. There are numerous cases of abuse of animals in Bosnia. Authorities do not do anything to find and punish animal abusers.

Most Bosnian shelters for stray animals are concentration camps. Recent photos from a shelter in Trebinje show that dogs are starved to death. The situation is the same in Foca, Jajce, Bratunac, Doboj, Praca, Hresa and other illegal shelters in Bosnia Herzegovina. It seems that no one other than activists and rescuers sees the suffering of the stray animals that are placed in these shelters.

Due to media coverage, a lot of people have been interested in adopting dogs from Prnjavor shelter, and thanks to the hard work of Bojan Veselica, who volunteers his time, the dogs are fed. There is also a fundraiser by AWABosnia to sterilise the female dogs there, as it is not possible to separate males from females. To help please go to: Sterilise the Dogs of Prnjavor Shelter in Bosnia!

I saved Lola and Honey from Prnjavor shelter

Some other shelters have the opposite situation. Dogs placed in Trebinje shelter are starved to death. The situation is also bad in the private shelter in Praca, near Sarajevo. Authorities of Canton Sarajevo subsidise the owner of Praca shelter to keep dogs, but all dogs live in awful conditions.

The situation is especially difficult because of corrupt prosecutors, police officers and veterinary inspectors who do not want fulfil their legal obligations and prove illegal activities in illegal shelters.

Sarajevo has become a new Bucharest. A notorious and illegal group of dog catchers was established in the municipality Novi Grad Sarajevo on 30^th May of 2013. Since then, thousands of stray dogs have been killed in Sarajevo. These dog catchers have the support of the Inspectorate of veterinary Inspection of Canton Sarajevo and the Administration of Police of Canton Sarajevo. The paradox is that the veterinary inspection and the police, who are obliged to stop and punish illegal dog catchers, support them and protect their illegal activities. Activists are facing the hardest challenge ever; we are fighting against a corrupt system. Police officers and veterinary inspectors have charged activists with numerous minor offence warrants. Since their accusations are false and the warrants are not filled in accordance with Bosnian law, activists will prove that the police officers and veterinary inspectors are involved in criminal activities before the court in Sarajevo.

Stray dog caught by dog catchers are placed in a former military complex “Safet Zajko” in Sarajevo. Mustafa Mrkulic, a veterinarian, destroys the dogs in the veterinary station that is established and owned by the municipality of Novi Grad Sarajevo.

Dog catcher was photographed during illegal activities this month. He was pictured using a special weapon for stunning of wild animals.

Car of illegal dog catchers was photographed on 9^th December. Eight puppies were inside. Police officers allowed dog catchers to leave the police station and destroy the puppies. Activists are still searching for answers about this case.

Rescuers are in an awful situation. There is a mass media campaign against rescuers and activists in Bosnia. Some activists have been brutally attacked by dog catchers. Also, police officers and veterinary inspection are trying to stop them in their efforts to save as many animals as they can. Media is spreading a mass hysteria against dogs in Bosnia. Due to a mass media campaign and false information about the situation, citizens tolerate illegal dog catchers and their illegal activities.

The best description of the situation is that there is a complete anarchy in the country, while activists are trying to persuade authorities to stop killing and to find solutions that are in accordance with Bosnian law.

Also, there are many cases of animal abuse and murders that are committed by “ordinary” persons. Killing and abuse of animals is a criminal offence in Bosnia, but authorities are not interested in investigating the cases in order to punish offenders. It is not unusual to see the blood of innocent animals every day on the streets. The public is not interested and does not understand consequences of such brutal attacks on animals. Therefore a new approach is needed in Bosnia in order to stop the mass killing of animals.

The Bosnian Act on Protection and Welfare of Animals is in fact one of the best in Europe but no one is interested in applying the law. Corrupt authorities want to kill all stray dogs. A quantity of evidence has been presented to Bosnian police officers and prosecutors about illegal activities, but they do nothing. It is one of the worst violations of the criminal code in Bosnian history. I believe International focus and help is the only solution for animals in Bosnia. It is very important that international animal welfare organisations, embassies as well as individuals press Bosnian authorities to stop killing of animals.

This dog had been living in Breza for years, before he was poisoned on 29^th November. Many of my friends and I fed him. Criminal report was filled against unknown offender.”

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Dalida needs our support to ensure she can continue her investigative work in documenting what is happening to the strays of Bosnia Herzegovina and in bringing legal charges against those who contravene the laws. To help please make a donation via Paypal to: eldar.kozlic1@gmail.com.

Dalida is also a rescuer and just a few days ago told us: “It is very difficult period for me at the moment. The worst thing is that I am still unemployed. The situation is very critical and awful for animals in Bosnia. There is a complete anarchy in Bosnia. Activists are trying to persuade authorities to stop killing and find solutions that are in accordance with Bosnian law. Since I am focused on legal activities in order to stop torturing and killing of animals, my parents spend most of their time with animals. Most of my time I spend in Sarajevo trying to solve this awful situation with illegal dog catchers and killers. I have problems with my car and it is difficult for me to travel all the time, but I must. I will be updating photographs of animals during the beginning of January. The most important thing for me is to find safe forever homes for saved animals. I really need your help to find adopters for them. Also, I have enormous legal costs due to many legal activities. I take care of 74 saved dogs and 8 cats. 39 of saved dogs and 8 cats are on my property. 35 dogs are placed in pension. It would be impossible to take care of them without your help.”

This is one of Dalida’s rescues, Medi. This beautiful dog is 8 years old. While he was a puppy, he had rachitic rosary. Since his owner didn’t want to provide veterinary care for him, his front legs are deformed. Due to deformation of his front legs, it is difficult for Medi to walk normally. Medi is in Dalida’s vet’s pension (kennels). He is half blind and half deaf…. if you want to help please contact Dalida.

Related articles:

Animal Advocates Assaulted in Sarajevo
Bosnia: Let’s Respect Animals and their Right to Life
Veterinary Office of Bosnia: is it possible to solve the problem of stray dogs?
The “Aggressive” Dogs of Sarajevo
The Campaign Begins With a Slaughter: You will kill the dogs, but what will you do with the beasts?
Stray Dogs of Sarajevo to be Killed in Election Ploy
Stop the Killing of Strays in Sarajevo
Bosnia: Sarajevo set to become the next Bucharest
BOSNIA: kill and slaughter until the dog is no more…
Bosnia Killing Dogs – No Different to Romania!
ANTI KILL-LAW FIGHT – NOW WHAT?

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DONATIONS

Funds are needed to help individual rescues, for spay-neuter projects, for education also to continue advocacy work in Bosnia, uncovering the truth about what is happening there.

Donations are managed by AWABosnia, an independent group of animal advocates. On their website, Animal Welfare Advocates for Bosnia, you can set up a monthly donation via PayPal, or if you want to make a one-off donation, please go to your PayPal account (or set one up, it’s very easy) and send the money to: donations@awabosnia.org. Click on the image below to be taken to PayPal’s home page.

Or if you want to use the customised PayPal form, click the link below. However, a transaction fee and a percentage (2- 5.4%) will be deducted by PayPal for any contribution made.

If you want your contribution to go to a specific cause, please make a note in the PayPal comment box. If you wish to contribute via bank transfer or have other difficulties or questions, please go here.

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This site is dedicated to Vučko. Read his story and don’t let him have suffered and died in vain. Please help the stray dogs and cats in Bosnia-Herzegovina. The situation there is utterly dire, Vučko is but one amongst many horrifically abused animals. Even just one dollar or one euro will help make a difference.

Saving the Dogs of Gladno Polje, Bosnia

Posted on October 19, 2014 by Sandra Jensen

Gladno Polje is a public “shelter” on the outskirts of Sarajevo that has existed for 3 years. 150-200 dogs live in this shelter in horrific conditions, and more dogs and puppies are constantly being dumped, some in dire need of veterinary care.

If it were not for dog-catchers taking dogs off the streets to who-knows-where, dogs would probably be better off on the streets than in this awful place.

When Andrea and Sandra visited Gladno a few weeks ago, it was late afternoon. But because there is no electricity in the shelter, the inside part where there are many dog pens was in pitch darkness. The sensation of walking into this space is impossible to truly describe. All we could make out were some of the dogs’ eyes as they looked desperately at us through the bars of their pens. The smell was completely overpowering – there had been no running water that day, so the volunteers hadn’t been able to clean the pens, and the sound, the sound of barking, of screaming really… in this pitch darkness, and the air so thick with the smell of excrement and fear. Our eyes stung, it was hard not to stop ourselves from retching. And yet the volunteers were in there, in the darkness, doing everything they could, without complaint…

Video footage taken during Andrea Kalman and Sandra Jensen’s visit in September, 2014:

Sanela Kotorić Etterle, one of the main volunteers

The animal welfare law in Bosnia Herzegovina, which was created in 2009, stipulates that public shelters should provide adequate care for strays. Unfortunately this is not the case.

“..for five years no one has been fined for animal abuse; for five years there has not been a systematic approach to sterilization across BiH, for five years the inspection authorities across BiH have failed to conduct inspections and oversight of shelters, which are in fact torture camps for animals that exist under dubious and even criminal conditions and hygienic services operating outside of the law…” states Snezana Vidovic, President of the association for animal rescue and protection, Sapa Zenica. “… Shelters are not waiting rooms for death or a gathering places for animals waiting in line to be euthanized. Shelters should not be like the modern Alcatraz, but should be places that have an open door policy, transparency, are responsible and have a work ethic, and are places that you want to visit to adopt a dog.” Please read the full interview here.

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this dog was recently dumped at the shelter… she has a growth on her teats…

Inga Dujmovic, Senior Associate of the State Veterinary Inspector for animal welfare in Bosnia Herzegovina says: “It is not enough to just build shelters. You must build an entire infrastructure of people to work in shelters in order for them to function. Especially because you are dealing with a large number of animals and there is an enormous amount of work. Hence, whoever goes into the business of running shelters must be ready for the fact that it entails a lot of work and that everything depends on the prescribed regulations. Conditions are definitely unhygienic and it appears that the shelters are over capacity.”

Inga Dujmovic was recently interviewed and she was asked if the Veterinary Inspector Department of BiH has jurisdiction over shelters. Her answer was: “Veterinary Inspector Department does have jurisdiction, however, we have not conducted shelter inspections.” When asked Why? she said: “The answer to that question must be sought from the Director of the Veterinary Office of Bosnia and Herzegovina.”

one of the dogs in the inside pens…

Gladno Polje shelter, unlike many public ‘shelters’ in Bosnia, does have a tiny group of three volunteers trying to help them. These volunteers fundraise for food, hay and also to try and do some work on the building itself and to build some better pens for the dogs.

There are in fact employees who are paid to work in the shelter (or as we heard recently, haven’t been paid for the past couple of months). But very little is done at all… and as you can see from the photographs the place is in terrible condition, virtually falling down. The dogs are fed trash from restaurants, and very likely are abused by some of the workers – there is no proof, but the volunteers say it is possible to see the evidence on the dogs and in the dogs’ behaviour.

The shelter does not pay for sterilisations, so any unsterilised dogs have to be kept apart from the others.. if it’s possible. The only medical treatment received is if the volunteers are able to raise funds.
The dogs are in constant need of vaccines, flea protection and deworming pills. The volunteers also feed about 50 abandoned and street dogs in the municipality of Gladno Polje, who roam outside of the shelter. There is no room to bring them inside.

There is no heating in the shelter, only water, and often not even that – the volunteers have to bring water in, by hand. Volunteers try to supplement the dogs’ food as much as possible with donations (about 60 euros is needed per day).

conditions inside the main building are horrific

The roof of the building is damaged so it is leaking every time it rains. A lot of the dogs don`t have dog houses and many have nowhere to hide from the elements. Many dog boxes are either damaged or completely collapsed. Hygiene is very bad. There is no quarantine, so dogs brought in from the street are right away mixed with the dogs who are already at the shelter. The yard of the shelter is not properly fenced, so hungry dogs are constantly getting into fights with one another.

Video footage taken during Andrea Kalman and Sandra Jensen’s visit in September, 2014:

This little dog was adopted and then returned to Gladno Polje for not using the toilet outside… no one thought to teach him……

The fundraising event of AWABosnia is to try and assist the volunteers on the ground first and foremost with much needed funds for materials for urgent repairs of the shelter, for dog houses, for hay balls. Without this, many of the dogs, puppies in particular, will not survive the winter. And those who do survive, will be suffering immensely with no heating, damaged boxes, missing or damaged dog houses, no blankets or straw….wet, cold, scared dogs everywhere.

Below is video footage taken by Sanela Kotorić Etterle, the main volunteer who does everything she can to ensure the well-being of the dogs. But one person can only do so much… and there are so many dogs…

Just in the last week there have been some unforeseen difficulties with Gladno Polje shelter. The shelter director has stated he is not sure how long the shelter will be in existence and he suggested to her that she take as many dogs to safety as possible. None of this has been confirmed yet, but there’s a possibility that another organisation will be taking over, possibly Lokom, the hygiene service who the Sarajevo government employed to catch and remove strays (see Stray Dogs of Sarajevo to be Killed in Election Ploy and Animal rights activists claim: stray dogs are being killed two days after being caught).

No one is offering any official information, but the news does not bode well for the dogs at the shelter. Lokum does not have a good reputation to say the least, and so far no public shelter has had public funds put into it to make it a liveable place for dogs.

It will be no small thing to re-house 150 – 200 dogs. In the meantime the volunteers will do what they can to make sure the dogs are fed and that any construction work done is removable.

Please join the AWABosnia FB Event: Help the dogs in Gladno Polje survive the winter!

And please share this blog with your friends. If these 200 dogs have to be moved, an extraordinary amount of assistance will be needed. Pensions normally cost around 120 euros per dog, fosters are virtually impossible to find and the difficulties involved in building a private shelter are almost insurmountable (please see Dog Shelters in Bosnia: A Complex Situation).

January 11 2015 CRITICAL UPDATE: Please see
Uncertain future for Dogs at Gladno Polje Shelter in Sarajevo

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Stray Dogs of Sarajevo to be Killed in Election Ploy

Posted on September 20, 2014 by Sandra Jensen

General elections will be held in Bosnia and Herzegovina on October 12, 2014. As always, election ploys to garner votes are underway.

One of these ploys is to address the problem of the stray dog population in Sarajevo Canton. It is a problem. There are far too many strays in Sarajevo, as there are throughout Bosnia Herzegovina. But instead of applying what is a very good law on the Protection and Welfare of Animals of BiH, a law that includes the provision for ongoing spay neuter campaigns and of adequate shelters, the politicians decide, just before elections, to highlight an issue with dog bites and make a grand show of offering solutions by setting up a dog catching service and pouring funds into this service. In fact they have stated it will cost annually 680,000KM (340,000 Euros or 450,000 USD) to implement this service, and they have already allocated 88,000KM (45,000 Euros or 58,000 USD) for the cost of nine employees designated to this service, which includes a ‘hotline’ for citizens to report dog bites.

Zlatko Petrović, Minister of Spatial Planning and Environmental Protection states that the number of dogs bites this year is 600. But nowhere is it stated what dogs make up this number and in what circumstances. Dog fighting is illegal but rife in Bosnia Herzegovina. Do any of these bites happen during these fights? And do any of these bites occur from owned dogs? Or from dogs suffering during abuse, or even in during normal veterinary procedures?

During my recent visit to Bosnia, I encountered numerous strays. Every single one of them either came up for a cuddle, or hurried away timidly. I spent considerable time with a supposedly aggressive pack of stray dogs. The two eight year old boys from Germany I was travelling with hugged these ‘aggressive’ dogs closely without mishap.

“Aggressive” stray dogs…Note also that P. E. “Rad”, a company hired for dog catching and disposal of corpses, was in fact shut down in 2009 by the Veterinary Inspection of Canton Sarajevo, because its methods were illegal and contrary to the provisions of the Animal Protection and Welfare Act. Is it likely that their methods will have changed?

Also, the figure allocated as being necessary for the service to proceed must be considered in another context: P.E. Lokom, the public utility (‘hygiene’) service (established by the municipality) that will work in conjunction with P. E. Rad, has a shortfall in its budget this year of nearly 500,000KM.

“Is it conceivable that a shortfall will be covered fully, or to a large extent from 680.000 KM ‘estimated annual operating costs’ aimed to fund the “dangerous dogs special team?” This being Bosnia, sure,” states Zoltan Milic, consultant economist in International Trade and Development.

Of Lokom’s operational and budget procedures, Milic says, “How do they generate income? I don’t know. According to Sarajevo Canton Novi Grad’s municipal budget – Novi Grad established P.E. Lokom, to “manage and operate” facilities owned by the municipality on their behalf – the municipal direct transfer to Lokom is 250.000 KM with an additional ‘transfer to hygienic services with veterinary services within Lokom enterprise’ of 110.000 KM. Out of this 110K, 35.000KM was for ‘costs of care of sheltered animals’ and an additional 30.000KM was redirected from the funds previously earmarked to Cantonal Veterinary Services for spaying and neutering.”

Note that P.E. Lokom has no dealings whatsoever with any dog shelters or spay neuter programs…

Animal activist and rescuer Ivana Tomic from Tuzla says this about the stray dog population: “A solution exists, far cheaper than 680.000KM if we take into account that these funds are available to only ONE canton, but the solutions can’t be realized overnight. This entire charade that I am watching, discussions regarding the hatred and aggression toward the four-legged beings that have bigger hearts than many of the people who I know including some that I am related to, is nothing other than hiding evidence of wasted funds that have disappeared without a trace, which were allocated for the solution of the stray dog problem.”

Existing shelters in Canton Sarajevo are so poorly maintained dogs are better off on the streets if it were not for the efforts of activists – if they are allowed to help out, which frequently they are not.

In Gladno Polje public shelter in Sarajevo, housing around 200 dogs, there was no running water on the day I visited. In the pens, the stench of fear, illness and excrement was literally unbearable.

One of the activists helping at Gladno Pojle says: “The only thing the shelter pays for is water, since there hasn’t been any electricity in the building for over a year, because of the damage to the roof of the building, which is leaking every time it rains.”

For photographs and videos of Gladno Polje public shelter from a recent visit, please go here. In this blog do a search on ‘shelters’ and you will find out more about the ‘horror’ shelters of Bosnia Herzegovina.

Please also note director and film animator Vesko Kadic’s public letter made in 2013 to the mayor of Sarajevo just prior to the elections. (Translation is here.) It clearly shows that the current situation is exactly the same as last year and that absolutely no progress is made on implementing the animal welfare law. Instead, government ministers seek to secure their position and their lifestyle.

For an idea on the BiH government approach, please read the Ambassador’s Notes: Embassy Sarajevo Views from U.S. Ambassador to Bosnia and Herzegovina, where David Barth, United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Mission Director for Bosnia and Herzegovina and COL Scott Miller, U.S. Defense Attaché state:

“At the donor conference held in July, the international community pledged over 800 million Euros in assistance for the flood-affected areas. More than 100 million Euros of this money has already been spent or programmed by the international community in the immediate aftermath of the humanitarian disaster and now in the recovery effort. However, international institutions have offered more than half a billion Euros in assistance to the government of BiH for purposes of flood relief and recovery. Little to none has reached citizens or municipalities in need. Four months after the initial floods, politicians throughout BiH have no real plans, or even serious ideas, to offer for recovery. Flood victims have seen little to nothing except for empty promises and excuses from their leaders. These same leaders instead quickly apply international assistance to fill their coffers to cover existing budget shortfalls that are the result of their policies, with little directed for flood response.”

Animal welfare activists want to use all legal means to end this horror, to save stray dogs and to make sure the government implements the existing Animal Protection and Welfare Act and that this dog catching and killing spree stops.

Many activists and rescuers are keeping vigil on the streets at night, and not only in Sarajevo.

A rescuer from a town north in central Bosnia Herzegovina who takes care of the strays in her area says: “The dogs here are also in danger, it is not just Sarajevo killing strays, they started to do it here 10 days ago, maybe two weeks ago, but I never thought it will be for real. Now I’m spending every night outside, or going around three or four times, to make sure my pack will be ok, we lost “just” two of them. I have to watch my dogs, and all together – I’m so tired, but I have to be sure that my dogs will survive. My pack will not be killed as long as i can spend my nights outside, but it can’t be forever, I have to move them.

Stray dogs are frequently gunned down in Bosnia Herzegovina, and the Sarajevo government’s new policy, widely reported in the media can only give encouragement to more killing. See today’s news item concerning two men with guns killing stray dogs in Kozarska Dubica, a town in northern Bosnia and Herzegovina. This horror was witnessed by primary school children. “It happened at the very entrance of the school, the sight of a large number of children.” (English translation here)

Another “aggressive” stray dog, in Sarajevo:

HOW TO HELP: currently activists need funds for legal proceedings and also to keep their rescues safely off the streets in pensions. If you can help, donation details are at the bottom of this page. Also please sign the following petitions:

Petitions:
BOSNIA! IMPLEMENT HUMANE STRAY-DOG AND CAT POPULATION CONTROL AND TREATMENT
Stop massive killing of dogs in Sarajevo
Petition to save Bosnia’s stray dogs! Please sign!
Also see the petitions on the Petitions page.

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DONATIONS

Funds are needed to help individual rescues, for spay-neuter projects, for education also to continue advocacy work in Bosnia, uncovering the truth about what is happening there.

Donations are managed by AWABosnia, an independent group of animal advocates. On their website, Animal Welfare Advocates for Bosnia, you can set up a monthly donation via PayPal, or if you want to make a one-off donation, please go to your PayPal account (or set one up, it’s very easy) and send the money to: donations@awabosnia.org as a ‘gift’. Click on the image below to be taken to PayPal’s home page.

Or if you want to use the customised PayPal form, click the link below. However, a transaction fee and a percentage (2- 5.4%) will be deducted by PayPal for any contribution made.

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This site is dedicated to Vučko. Read his story and don’t let him have suffered and died in vain. Please help the stray dogs and cats in Bosnia-Herzegovina. The situation there is utterly dire, Vučko is but one amongst many horrifically abused animals. Even just one dollar or one euro will help make a difference.

Bosnia: Desperate situation in the state owned shelter for dogs in Doboj

Posted on August 28, 2014 by Sandra Jensen

Bosnia: Desperate situation in the state owned shelter for dogs in Doboj

From Journalists for Animals blog:
August 28 2014:

Animal rights activists visited yesterday the state owned dog shelter located within the Sport and recreational center Preslica”” which is located 12 km away from Doboj. The situation is more than scary just like it was in the previous years – reported the activists.

“The stories circulate in Doboj that there are no dogs to be found in Preslica and that the shelter has been closed for a long time” – one woman said to us. We went to check what that is all about.

It was raining. There was a zoo once, not far from the dog pound, which was now grown over by grass. In the distance, you could see the gate and hear the dogs barking.

We got out of the car. The dogs were barking. First thing we saw are the open doors on cages for dogs that were overcrowded till yesterday. We saw a dog in the small cage at the very entrance. It was barking and it seemed like with its barking, the dog was begging us to save it from this hell. Its cage was full of feces mixed with dry dog food. As it was raining, this food, obviously left by some good soul so it doesn’t starve, was slowly turning into a red stain….

For more on this story with additional pictures, please click here.

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DONATIONS

Funds are needed for spay-neuter projects, to help individual rescues but also to continue advocacy work in Bosnia, uncovering the truth about what is happening there.

Donations are managed by AWABosnia, an independent group of animal advocates. On their website, Animal Welfare Advocates for Bosnia, you can set up a monthly donation via PayPal, or if you want to make a one-off donation, please go to your PayPal account (or set one up, it’s very easy) and send the money to: donations@awabosnia.org as a ‘gift’. Click on the image below to be taken to PayPal’s home page.

Or if you want to use the customised PayPal form, click the link below. However, a transaction fee and a percentage (2- 5.4%) will be deducted by PayPal for any contribution made.

______________________________________________

This site is dedicated to Vučko. Read his story and don’t let him have suffered and died in vain. Please help the stray dogs and cats in Bosnia-Herzegovina. The situation there is utterly dire, Vučko is but one amongst many horrifically abused animals. Even just one dollar or one euro will help make a difference.

Facebook is Swamped with Appeals for Help for Animals – Why Help Us?

Posted on August 13, 2014 by Sandra Jensen

Facebook is Swamped with Appeals for Help for Animals – Why Help Us?

Facebook is full of desperate appeals for help by animal activists from all over the world. They publish their sad stories while asking people to financially support their projects…. read more…

via Facebook is Swamped with Appeals for Help for Animals – Why Help Us?

Related Posts
Rescuing the Rescuer

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DONATIONS

Funds are needed for spay-neuter projects, to help individual rescues but also to continue advocacy work in Bosnia, uncovering the truth about what is happening there.

Donations are managed by AWABosnia, an independent group of animal advocates. On their website, Animal Welfare Advocates for Bosnia, you can set up a monthly donation via PayPal, or if you want to make a one-off donation, please go to your PayPal account (or set one up, it’s very easy) and send the money to: donations@awabosnia.org as a ‘gift’. Click on the image below to be taken to PayPal’s home page.

Or if you want to use the customised PayPal form, click the link below. However, a transaction fee and a percentage (2- 5.4%) will be deducted by PayPal for any contribution made.

______________________________________________

This site is dedicated to Vučko. Read his story and don’t let him have suffered and died in vain. Please help the stray dogs and cats in Bosnia-Herzegovina. The situation there is utterly dire, Vučko is but one amongst many horrifically abused animals. Even just one dollar or one euro will help make a difference.

BOSNIA: kill and slaughter until the dog is no more…

Posted on June 18, 2014 by Sandra Jensen

There are continued reports of dog catchers – ‘Hygiene Services’ – brutalising and terrorising strays in Bosnia Herzegovina. Dalida Kozlic, lawyer and animal rescuer has filed charges against Hygiene Services P.E. “Lokum” of Novi Grad for their activities in Sarajevo. You can read full details of these charges here.

The following is a summary of the charges:

The Hygiene Service does not have a licence. It is an illegal firm financed from the budget funds, which presents a criminal offence of money laundering. Stray dogs caught by the workers of this Hygiene Service have been disappearing under unclear circumstances.

Mustafa Mrkulić, a veterinarian in the veterinarian station “Stup” performs illegal euthanasia of stray dogs for his personal gain. Since euthanasia of stray animals without medical cause (which must be established by an authorized official veterinarian) represents murder of an animal with an intent, and in order to make financial gain, Mrkulic Mustafa has been committing a criminal offence of torturing and killing of animals.

The pattern of criminal activity is clear here: “hygienic service” of P. E. “Lokom” catches stray dogs and then takes them to be killed in C. P. E. “Veterinary Station Stup”. P. E. “Lokom”, which is financed from the budget of Municipality Novo Sarajevo, invoices catching of stray dogs through a legally non-existent hygienic service, and C. P. E. “Veterinary Station” invoices non-existent veterinary processing and diagnostic (in the meantime, dogs are not being veterinary processed but killed).

Kill and slaughter until the dog is no more!
The following is an excerpt of an article published on Taco.net on 15/06/2014. For the full English translation please see Journalists for Animals.

“I heard a great noise, and came out to see what was happening. What I saw was horrible: Hresa shelter employees and two employees of the Logavina local community had broken into the back yard of the “Mula Mustafa Baseskija” Elementary school, they had forced some dogs into the yard, and one of them was pulling a dog up the stairs by a noose. On the top of the stairs, secretary of the local community “Logavina”, Nermin Dzino, was waiting. He was beating the dogs with a metal stick. Bloody dogs were put into cages and then into a vehicle”.

That was the testimony of Alma Tefterdija, who witnessed Bosnian vision of the implementation of the Animal Welfare and Protection Act on June 9th 2014 on Toroman’s street in Sarajevo. Since she accidentally found herself in the back yard of the Mula Mustafa Baseskija Elementary that day, and dared to stand up to the people who were beating dogs with metal sticks, Sarajevo Canton PD issued a misdemeanour notification against Alma Tefterdija for public disturbance…..

…Since the problem of stray dogs exists in the entire Bosnia and Herzegovina and considering that the “stupid dogs” do not understand the entity borders, Mayor Hadzibajric has signed a contract for cooperation between Stari Grad municipality and the company “Glog” Ltd from Istocno Sarajevo who owns Hresa shelter.

“Glog” Ltd, run by Slavisa Jovcic, is apparently doing a great job “housing” the dogs in Hresa since the shelter not only has a contract with Stari Grad municipality, but also with the municipalities of Pale, Sokolac, Milci, Vlasenica, Srebrenica and the municipalities from Istocno Sarajevo.

The question is: How does a shelter that has, believe it or not, 18 stalls, solve the problems of thousands upon thousands of Federal and Republic of Srpska dogs of Bosnia?

Very easily.

As we would say, through orderly documentation.

Republic of Srpska has the original version of the Animal welfare and protection law in power, which allows for humane euthanasia of animals who are not adopted within 30 days of reaching the shelter.

You will no doubt ask how the process of humane euthanasia, which Mayor Hadzibajric pays 58 KM per dog looks in this shelter whose work costs the Congress of Istocno Sarajevo 130 000 KM of budget money.

According to testimonies of the animal welfare organizations who visited Hresa, dogs in the 18 stalls are starved, covered with water in sub zero temperatures, left without water for days, and the pups are humanely euthanized with clubs. As you can see, every problem has a solution, especially when the solution is performed by the veterinary inspector and if there is orderly documentation since the laws of this country must be obeyed.

As Jelena Paunović, activist and journalist, states in her blog, Bosnia: Floods and what comes next :

In most of Bosnia and Herzegovina, for no justifiable reason, the Animal welfare and protection act is not being carried out. The land is sodden with blood and mines spread across it, thanks to the butchers. Clearly as long as the inspections keep sleeping, blood is inevitable.

On the other hand, no matter what you read in the local media or on FB, there are few who report the breaking of this Act. They mostly don’t want to make their cousins, neighbours or brothers who are in one of the leading political parties mad.

In the meantime, rivers of innocent dog blood are flowing.

RELATED POSTS:

Hreša Shelter:
Horror Shelter Hreša – Back in Action
Earlier Investigations:
November 2012
Part One – Part Two – Part Three
December 2012 – February 2013
Part Four – Part Five – Part Six – Part Seven

Shelters in Bosnia Herzegovina:
THE HORROR SHELTERS OF BOSNIA – SOMETHING MUST BE DONE!
Bosnia Killing Dogs – No Different to Romania!
Saving Lucia and the dogs of Foča and Gorazde
BOSNIA! IMPLEMENT HUMANE STRAY-DOG AND CAT POPULATION CONTROL AND TREATMENT
Dog Shelters in Bosnia: A Complex Situation
Horror Camps for Animals in Bosnia
Concentration Camp for Man’s Best Friend
Concentration Camp for Man’s Best Friend PART TWO
Mass Graves Found Near Dog “Shelter”

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Or if you want to use the customised PayPal form, click the link below. However, a transaction fee and a percentage (2- 5.4%) will be deducted by PayPal for any contribution made.

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Horror Shelter Hreša – Back in Action

Posted on June 12, 2014 by Sandra Jensen

We have heard reports that dog catchers from Hreša “shelter” in the Republika Srpska (one of two political entities in Bosnia and Herzegovina), with the help of local community workers are working every day in Sarajevo, outside of their legal jurisdiction.

“Two days ago they were in the old town, they caught a couple of dogs, there was blood all over the place. It all happened in elementary school yard,” said one activist.

Reports say dogs were chased and beaten with iron rods. “Police were called to the scene but did not intervene, instead they issued a sentence for disturbing public order and peace to the citizens who stood up in defence of the dogs and rebelled against the abuse of animals.”

We await further reports.

RELATED POSTS:
Hresa Shelter
Part One – Part Two – Part Three – Part Four – Part Five – Part Six – Part Seven

Shelters in Bosnia Herzegovina
THE HORROR SHELTERS OF BOSNIA – SOMETHING MUST BE DONE!
Bosnia Killing Dogs – No Different to Romania!
Saving Lucia and the dogs of Foča and Gorazde
BOSNIA! IMPLEMENT HUMANE STRAY-DOG AND CAT POPULATION CONTROL AND TREATMENT
Dog Shelters in Bosnia: A Complex Situation
Horror Camps for Animals in Bosnia
Concentration Camp for Man’s Best Frien d
Concentration Camp for Man’s Best Friend PART TWO
Mass Graves Found Near Dog “Shelter”

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Or if you want to use the customised PayPal form, click the link below. However, a transaction fee and a percentage (2- 5.4%) will be deducted by PayPal for any contribution made.

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Hell Hole for Dogs in Bihać – PART TWO

Posted on December 4, 2013 by Sandra Jensen

Please read my August 12th post about Gorjevac ‘shelter’ in Bihać, Bosnia-Herzegovina.

To reiterate: This shelter was built in June 2012, and conditions were reported as inhumane as soon as December, 2012. It is said that this Gorjevac “death camp” is built on top of a mass grave where “euthanized” animals were buried.

There is no adequate food or medical care for the existing dogs. In winter, conditions are worse than dire. These recent photographs speak for themselves. Nothing but white bread for food. Corpses of dogs and puppies left amongst living dogs. Dogs devouring dogs they are so hungry.

As with so many of the so-called shelters in Bosnia-Herzegovina, this situation is complex and it seems once again the shelter is used to funnel money into human pockets and not spend it on those it is designated for: the dogs.

It is our understanding that the director of the city’s veterinary station Dr. Zekerijah Ika Alagić is to blame what is happening in Gorjevac ‘shelter’, Bihać: as elsewhere, money intended for dogs is not used for them. Instead workers feed the dogs with dry bread. Dr. Zekerijah Ika Alagić has been director of the veterinary station for 22 years, and is called by local activists the “Eternal Director”.

It seems Dr. Ika Alagić is protected by the Municipal Mayor of the city, Emdzad Galijasevic. In an article published in local newspapers Dr. Ika Alagić denies everything and says that the images you see on this page and in the slideshow below are fake.

The Bihać animal welfare Association “SALVATION” (SPAS) with volunteers and President Rosic Senad has for many years been leading a battle to change the situation for the dogs, but the political parties are very powerful.

If you are wondering why we are campaigning so hard to ensure amendments to the BiH Animal Welfare Act are voted against tomorrow in BiH Parliament, it is because the amendments will allow for continued misuse of funds intended for the benefit of the strays, but more importantly, all efforts should instead be made to ensure that the existing Animal Welfare Act is implemented.

The laws for animal welfare in BIH are in fact very good, requiring proper care for strays in shelters, prosecution of those who abuse animals and so on, but these laws are simply ignored. Instead the BiH Parliament spends time and energy on discussing, preparing and voting for amendments that will chip away at the welfare laws and meanwhile they ignore the ongoing illegal activities against animals throughout the country.

Please sign the petitions, but more importantly continue to write to your MEP if you live in Europe and to your Embassy in BiH. Details on Action to Take.

To help the dogs of Bihać Shelter, donations can currently be made by bank transfer to SPAS, the Bihać animal welfare group:
Uni Credit Bank Bihać
BI10 20011855001
Local Reporting Code 502012
IBA 393385004861224662

Or via Paypal to AWAB, send it to donations@awabosnia.org as outlined below but please mark it ‘for BIHAC’

And please keep contacting IFAW, Four Paws, WVS and The Harmony Fund in case they can provide assistance.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Animal welfare organization in Bihać: SPAS
Facebook Group
Facebook Page (English)
President of SPAS, Rosic Senad
Petition
Stop the inhumane treatment of the animals at the dog shelter in Bihać

HRESA “SHELTER”:
Part One
Part Two
Part Three

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Or if you want to use the customised PayPal form, click the link below. However, a transaction fee and a percentage (2- 5.4%) will be deducted by PayPal for any contribution made.

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IN MEMORY OF VUČKO

raising awareness and funds to stop animal suffering in Sarajevo and Bosnia-Herzegovina

Category Archives: Dog Shelters

What to do about Gladno Polje Shelter in Sarajevo?

Uncertain future for Dogs at Gladno Polje Shelter in Sarajevo

2014: What is happening to the strays of Bosnia Herzegovina?

Saving the Dogs of Gladno Polje, Bosnia

Stray Dogs of Sarajevo to be Killed in Election Ploy

Bosnia: Desperate situation in the state owned shelter for dogs in Doboj

Facebook is Swamped with Appeals for Help for Animals – Why Help Us?

BOSNIA: kill and slaughter until the dog is no more…

Horror Shelter Hreša – Back in Action

Hell Hole for Dogs in Bihać – PART TWO