“We are indeed seeing an upsurge in abuse, in dogs, mainly of the molosser type”, laments Sabine Métayer-Vivier, president of the SPA of Chartres and Eure-et-Loir.
His Acacias refuge, in Amilly, welcomes more and more “battered” dogs. Whether physically – we see that some were used in combat – but also psychologically because of the mistreatment they suffered. They are left alone outside, in the rain, in unsuitable conditions”, denounces Sabine Métayer-Vivier.
A partnership signed between the SPA and the police
dog education
Most of these dogs are staffs or malinois, adopted as toddlers by young owners, who sometimes think they are doing the right thing by wanting to save puppies from a painful fate. “The problem is that they are not informed of the needs and care that these breeds require. They have no idea how to educate them and they end up not managing them anymore. »
Locked up in cages all day because they damage their masters’ apartment or confined outside, in a garden or courtyard, these dogs become aggressive, end up biting other dogs or children… And these mastiffs find themselves in the already overcrowded shelters of the SPA.
Not a day without a call for abandonment
“Currently, not a day goes by that I do not receive a phone call from an owner who wants to abandon his dog”, testifies Sabine Métayer-Vivier. “These are often males, who are between 3 and 6 years old, but we know that we won’t be able to get them re-adopted right away. We work with a canine educator who comes to help them regain confidence and regain normal behavior. »
premium A second chance for beaten dogs
“Limit compulsive buying”
Chartres SPA teams are also increasingly involved in recovering animals that have been mistreated, alerted by a report. “We do a lot of investigations after being told that a dog has been beaten, left without food in a yard, etc. »
Sabine Métayer-Vivier can therefore only be delighted with the partnership signed yesterday between animal protection associations and the police: “Many people do not realize the constraints that an animal represents. We are already assisted by the police and the gendarmerie, at the departmental level, when it is necessary to go to save mistreated dogs. But I hope that the prevention officers who will be trained within the framework of this partnership will make it possible to limit compulsive or thoughtless purchases. »
Laurence Franceschina
laurence.franceschina@centrefrance.com
