A council in Australia killed the impounded animals to prevent volunteers at an animal shelter from travelling to pick them up and potentially spreading the virus.
Fifteen rescue dogs, including 10 puppies, have been shot dead by a rural Australian council under its interpretation of coronavirus restrictions.
Bourke Shire Council in New South Wales destroyed the canines, which had been at its pound, to prevent volunteers at an animal shelter from travelling to pick them up and potentially spreading the virus.
“The council decided to take this course of action to protect its employees and community, including vulnerable Aboriginal populations, from the risk of COVID-19 transmission,” the Office of Local Government, a government watchdog, told The Sydney Morning Herald.
The spokesman said officials were investigating whether any animal cruelty laws had been broken.
Five of the dogs had been housed at the pound since early August and one of the dogs then had 10 pups.
The council said staff became concerned for the welfare of the animals due to overcrowding at the pound and two of the dogs attacking one of the others.
A source said the shelter volunteers were distressed and already had COVID-safe measures in place to handle the dogs.
And comedian Ricky Gervais has expressed his disapproval of the killings on social media.
Bourke Shire Council told ABC News the dogs were euthanised because the rescue organisation was from another local government area and they had concerns about people from other communities entering Bourke.
All of regional New South Wales has “stay-at-home” orders in place due to COVID-19.
The council said it had contacted its usual dog rehomer, who is based in the same area, but they were unable to come to Bourke.
The shelter that was supposed to receive the dogs declined to comment.
Animal Liberation regional campaign manager Lisa Ryan has called for an urgent investigation.
“We are deeply distressed and completely appalled by this callous dog shooting and we totally reject [the] council’s unacceptable justifications that this killing was apparently undertaken as part of a COVID-safe plan,” she said.
Australia has recently seen a surge in COVID-19 cases, forcing the country’s largest city, Sydney, to extend its lockdown through September and impose tougher restrictions, such as a curfew and a mask mandate outdoors.
Staff are allowed to work at animal shelters even when lockdown measures are in place, according to the Office of Local Government spokesman.
“Councils are also encouraged to continue to work with re-homing organisations and volunteers to care for animals, where that can be undertaken consistent with NSW Health advice,” he added.
Heartbreaking! The dog was attacked by thousands of parasites, unable to eat or drink for many days.
Blossom, the dog, was discovered by an OrphanPet volunteer in Greece. She had been a stray for weeks, if not months, and had been wandering the streets. The poor puppy was in appalling condition.
Her tail had a chain wire lodged in it that had been there for a long time. Her tail grew enormously bloated as a result of the chain being so firmly wrapped around it.
She was also coated in thousands of ticks, which made matters worse. They performed a blood test and discovered that her blood was extremely thin as a result of the tick bites. She wouldn’t have lasted much longer if they hadn’t saved her. Blossom’s time was running short, and they realized they needed to act quickly to assist her.
They gave her a blood transfusion and ended up having to amputate her tail after bringing her in. They worked diligently and methodically to remove as many ticks as they could one by one, but it took them nearly a week to remove every single dead tick.
Her transformation is absolutely mind-blowing. She is now very healthy and has made new doggy friends along the way. And best of all? She was adopted!
She’s now settled into her forever home and relishing her second shot at life. She would not have lived if this volunteer hadn’t found her and brought her in. Thank heavens for OrphanPet’s kind rescuers!
In the video below, you can see her rescue. It’s simply incredible!
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