FW: [hsi-animalia] Poisoning of Dogs TOMORROW in Israel -- URGENT

May 24, 2001

Efrati [efratie]Thursday, 24 May 2001 09:05AnimaliA (Animal information Alliance) Electronic Mailing List for animal protection professionals around the world[hsi-animalia] Poisoning of Dogs TOMORROW in Israel -- URGENT

This evening I learned that tomorrow and Friday, the Mateh Yehuda Regional Council (near Jerusalem) plans to poison free-running dogs including using strychnine in contravention to the Israeli Animal Welfare Law of 1994 and subsequent High Court of Justice rulings. Israeli law stipulates that dogs and cats can be poisoned only if they are dangerous and all other attempts to capture them have failed, or if a rabid animal had been discovered very recently in the vicinity. Neither happens to be the case, yet last week, 15 dogs in Mata were poisoned and died, even though they were friendly, accessible house pets belonging to residents of this agricultural collective, which traditionally allow their dogs to run free. Furthermore, the residents were given no advance warning of the impending operation. The regional vet, Dr. Amos Barzilay, has a long history of illegal and questionable poisonings and has (to the best of my knowledge) several open police files against him on animal cruelty.

TOMORROW the operation is to continue in Mata, Bar Giora and other areas of the council, although this time warning notices were posted up at the last minute. One of the local vets said that she doesn't even report these illegal poisonings anymore because complaining to the authorities hasn't helped. The heads of two animal welfare organizations (including one who lives in Mata and one of whose dogs died in last week's blitz) concurred. The current security situation preoccupies the media and the public here and none of the organizations has the $5000 it takes to request a court injunction to stop the operation.

Furthermore, the operation will take place on the eve of a long weekend, with all government offices closed until from tomorrow afternoon until next Tuesday. We URGENTLY need your help now, especially those of you in earlier time zones. We need the government officials to receive your e-mails when they get in tomorrow morning. They need to know that our security situation can't be used as a smoke screen for other illegal actions and that there are people who care.

Please just drop a line saying you are opposed to the illegal poisonings per se, and the use of strychnine, specifically and that these operations should be stopped immediately. Yes to animal control; no to poisoning!

Please write to the following:

Chief Vet, Dr. Oded Nir; Justice Minister Meir Shitreet; Environment Minister Tzahi Hanegbi; Agriculture Minister Shalom Simchon; MK Yael Dayan; MK Avraham Poraz. Their e-mails in the same order are:

odedn; sar; sar; sar; edayan; aporaz.

Jacqueline Hahn-EfratiSpokespersonJerusalem Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (JSPCA)Jerusalem, Israel

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