Last week the municipality of Eyüp in Istanbul used anesthetics to catch about a hundred street dogs, which they took to a shelter to sterilise and treat them. But local animal rights defenders accuse the authorities of abandoning about 400 more dogs in nearby forests, a common practice in the city.

In the past few days, several videos were shared online that show municipal workers putting dogs into trucks. These dogs appear to be under the influence of strong anesthetics. In some of the videos, passersby yell at the municipal workers and try to stop them from taking the dogs away.



Two dogs lying in the street. In front of them, a syringe that the municipal workers used to anesthetise them. (Photo published on Instagram on October 25.)



A partially paralysed dog is taken away by Eyüp municipality workers while a woman – who is filming the scene – tries to stop them. (Video published on Facebook.)

Eyüp’s mayor explained that they were taking about a hundred dogs to a shelter “that’s as comfortable as a five-star hotel” located in Kısırkaya, about an hour away, to sterilise them and get them out of the neighbourhood. She said that Eyüp residents had many complaints about the presence of aggressive packs of dogs. In a TV report, several shop owners said they were afraid of these dogs and that they regularly bit people.

This Google Maps screengrab shows an aerial view of the shelter. For animal rights defenders, it is nothing like a “five-star hotel”. In 2016, a veterinarian employed there was accused of beating several animals and notably of having cracked a dog’s skull. He was sued by activists and fired from his job.



A dog’s protest



KOÇUM BENİM Une publication partagée par tek dostum hayvanlar (@hayvanlar_olmadan_asla) le 29 Oct. 2017 à 3h19 PDT

Animal rights activists organised a protest in front of Eyüp town hall on Saturday. A dog stepped forward and started howling loudly. The scene was shared on social media and struck a chord with many viewers, who were convinced the dog was expressing his despair at the disappearance of many of his fellow canines.

An activist from Eyüp told France 24: “The municipal workers started grabbing dogs at the beginning of [last] week. They administered anesthetics without any vets being present. This practice is illegal and potentially deadly, especially for the older dogs. According to our count, the municipality sent about a hundred dogs to the shelter in Kısırkaya, but another 400 dogs were taken who knows where … no doubt into the forest.”