Turkey passes law to get stray dogs off the streets and into shelters

ANKARA — Turkey's Parliament on July 30 approved a law that aims to round up millions of stray dogs and put them into shelters, a plan that has alarmed animal lovers who say a mass neutering campaign would be a better solution. Under the legislation, proposed by President Tayyip Erdogan's ruling AK Party, municipalities would have to get the strays off the streets and into shelters. Any dogs showing aggressive behaviour or that have untreatable diseases will be put down. Under previous legislation, municipalities have to neuter and vaccinate all street dogs and leave them where they were found following treatment. The population of street dogs in Turkey is estimated to be four million, and municipalities have neutered around 2.5 million in the past 20 years, according to the draft Bill. The animals are often taken care of by neighbourhood residents and treated like pets. There are currently 322 animal shelters with a capacity for 105,000 dogs, according to the Bill. The law also requires all municipalities to spend at least 0.3 per cent of their annual budget on animal rehabilitation services and building shelters.

Turkey passes law to get stray dogs off the streets and into shelters

Turkey passes law to get stray dogs off the streets and into shelters

Turkey passes law to get stray dogs off the streets and into shelters

Turkey passes law to get stray dogs off the streets and into shelters

Turkey passes law to get stray dogs off the streets and into shelters