By Alim Devecioglu, Y12
“The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated.” – Mahatma Gandhi
To the tourists wandering around the cobblestone pathways of Istanbul, Turkey, the saturation of stray animals in the streets is merely another sight, another opportunity for a photo essay, another picture for their Pinterest travel board. But for the citizens and government of Turkey, the subject matter of abandoned pets is a chronic and prevalent issue.
In Istanbul alone, there are 130,000 stray dogs and 125,000 stray cats. However, even this is only a small portion of the estimated 8 million stray animals that populate the streets, according to Nihat Köse, President of ADANA Chamber of Veterinary Medicine. This widespread problem can be traced back to the unregulated pet trade, where illegal pet shops and smugglers readily sell animals to misinformed customers. These inexperienced buyers then feel overwrought by the responsibilities brought onward by the ownership of a pet, and subsequently abandon them on the streets. The streets of Turkey have become teeming with strays: a forsaken and forgotten population.
Although local municipalities are supposed to take the responsibility of neutering and taking care of these strays, in practice that is far from the reality. Many are instead left famished and parched in shelters with unacceptable conditions.
Evidently, one must acknowledge that many gracious citizens do look after the strays, whether it be a kindhearted restaurant owner or a benevolent busker. Nevertheless, one must also take into account that the strays are left vulnerable to acts of violence and torture, as animal protection laws merely encourage fines for animal abuse, instead of classifying it as a criminal offense. In only 3 months of 2019, there were a total of 122 recorded cases of animal abuse or killings in 18 cities in Turkey. This animal abuse is more ubiquitous among stray dogs, who in more conservative and impoverished neighbourhoods are considered ritually unclean and impure.
As a result, many charities and NGOs have developed to help mitigate the problems of strays in Turkey. One of such charities is an organisation called Pets in Turkey (P.I.T.), a Swiss Based Organisation in partnership with ÇESAL, an NGO in Çesme, that aims to act as a representative for strays and protect the environment of the peninsula. Pets in Turkey holds as a mission to “help all breeds of cats and dogs in Turkey that are regularly being abandoned in large numbers.” They intend to do this across 3 main branches: the provision of support via “food and veterinary care” to NGOs (like ÇESAL), the provision of financial support to reduce the stray population in Turkey via “neutering and spaying” and finally, through an efficient adoption system that allocates abandoned pets to homes in Europe.
In order to help alleviate this problem yourself, you can sponsor dogs via PayPal on the Pets in Turkey website, come to charity events or even adopt a pet, by filling a form and only paying for the veterinarian fees (“around 350 euros”). The vaccinations, blood tests, microchipping, documentations and safe transfer of the pets are all handled by the charity. This comes to show that even if you happen to be thousands of kilometres away from the epicentre of a problem, you can take action and you can make a difference. Even if it that means one less dog or cat off the streets, that is still one small step towards a solution.
CONTACT
Address : Chemin François Rossiaud 4, 1247 Anières Switzerland
Phone: +41 79 285 18 03
E-mail: info@petsinturkey.org
Website: http://www.petsinturkey.org/
Sources
“40 Barınak,130 Bin Köpek, Sayısız Kedi.” Www.haberturk.com, 3 Oct. 2015, www.haberturk.com/gundem/haber/1135628-40-barinak-130-bin-kopek-sayisiz-kedi.
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“About Us Cesal.” Çesal Doğa Ve Hayvan Severler Derneği, www.cesal.org.tr/en/about-us-cesal/.
Deutsche Welle. “Istanbul’s Forgotten Dogs Struggle for Survival: DW: 08.10.2013.” DW.COM, www.dw.com/en/istanbuls-forgotten-dogs-struggle-for-survival/a-16997550.
“Karne Hediyesiyken Sokak Hayvanı Oluyorlar!” Www.gercekgundem.com, www.gercekgundem.com/galeri/yasam/3062/karne-hediyesiyken-sokak-hayvani-oluyorlar.
Mikhail, Alan. “The Moment in History When Muslims Began to See Dogs as Dirty, Impure, and Evil.” Quartz India, Quartz, 27 July 2017, qz.com/india/1038116/the-moment-in-history-when-muslims-began-to-see-dogs-as-dirty-impure-and-evil/
“Pets In Turkey: Swiss Association to Help Rescue Abandoned Pets in Turkey.” Pets In Turkey | Swiss Association to Help Rescue Abandoned Pets in Turkey –, www.petsinturkey.org/.
“Sokak Hayvanları Haberleri, Güncel Sokak Hayvanları Haberleri Ve Sokak Hayvanları Gelişmeleri.” Habertürk, www.haberturk.com/haberleri/sokak-hayvanlari.
