Sofia Plans More Effective Measures on Stray Dogs

Sofia municipality has decided to take more effective measures to tackle the problem with the large number of stray dogs in the city, the Bulgarian "
24 Chasa"
reported.

"
A work group is already forming. I hope that we will be ready by February so that we can start the counting of the stray dogs then,"
said Maria Boyadzhiyska, Deputy Mayor of Sofia on Ecology.

According to data from the municipal company "
Ecobalance"
, there are about 9,500 stray dogs in Sofia and 1,000 in shelters for dogs.

The newest shelter for dogs in the village of Gorni Bogrov near Sofia has accommodated 500 dogs. This year, a new shelter for 1,000 dogs is planned to open doors in a Sofia district.

The Sofia mayor, Yordanka Fandakova, has said in an interview for the Bulgarian Nova TV that the problem with the stray dogs population is one of the most difficult she has to face. She noted that the program for free of charge castration and registration of yard dogs will continue throughout 2011 as well.

"
Stray dogs come from yards, construction sites and homes,"
Fandakova said.

Strict measures against throwing out home dogs are envisioned in a new order, which is to be voted in January in the Sofia Municipal Council.

People who throw out their dogs or have forgotten to castrate them will have to pay a fine of BGN 100-250. Up to BGN 400 will be the fine for people who have not paid the dog tax, who do not have registration or are walking their dogs without a leash.

The sanction for owners of aggressive dogs who have attacked or bitten people will be BGN 2,000.

Another requirement that is to be implemented envisions that dog's leash should be up to 80 cm long and the dogs who are more than 10 kg should be walked with a muzzle on. Also, teenagers below 18 years will not be allowed to walk dogs.

In 2011, the Sofia municipality will continue the program for limiting the population of stray dogs. About 14,000 stray dogs have been castrated since the introduction of the program in 2006.

More hunting teams and cooperation with eco-organizations, which also castrate dogs, are envisioned for 2011.

More than 250 dogs, who were placed in shelters, were adopted in 2010.

This has got to be good news Another good start to the new year

Oddy

oddball wrote:

This has got to be good news Another good start to the new year

Oddy

Yes, you are right oddball neutering is a good thing, the benefits in the dog population will not be seen for time though, but eventually the numbers will decline.

Shooting all the Bulgarians that feed them scraps and keep them alive might just work and would have the added benefit of fitting in with the rest of Borisov's long-term plans for the BG population

Its a start but like all things in Bulgaria its alway just that! they have these wonderful plans to do all sorts of things but most of them are just for publicity only

Stray Dog-Attacked Woman Wins Case against Bulgarian Capital

A woman who was attacked by stray dogs in the Bulgarian capital Sofia won her suit against the local authorities at the Sofia Administrative Court.

On December 17,2009, the woman was attacked by stray dogs at the district of "
Zaharna Fabrika"
. She was severely bitten on the right leg and had to undergo a surgery for transplantation of skin from her other leg.

On Wednesday, the Sofia Administrative Court mandated that the Sofia Municipality has to pay her a BGN 4,000 indemnity.

In October 2010, another woman who was attacked by stray dogs won her suit against the Sofia municipality and was paid a BGN 5,000 indemnity.

After this first lost case, the legal department at the Sofia Municipality continues to use the same tactics, stating that the Sofia mayor Yordanka Fandakova is not responsible for the stray dogs in the city because she had delegated this activity to the municipal company "
Ekorazvnovesie"
.

However, the court ruling stated that the Sofia Municipality has not taken enough effective measures to ensure the capturing and isolation of stray dogs and has allowed their overpopulation.

On Wednesday, the Bulgarian Helsinki Committee reported that the European Court of Human Rights has ruled that the government is responsible for the protection of its citizens in cases of attacks by stray dogs.

There have been countless attacks on people by stray dogs in Bulgaria. Fandakova has stated that this is one of the biggest problems of the Sofia Municipality.

From Novinite

European Court of Human Rights: the state must be held accountable over attacks by stray dogs

The European Court of Human Rights has ruled that a government is responsible for the welfare of its citizens in cases of attacks by stray dogs, the Bulgarian Helsinki Committee (BHC) reported on January 12 2011.

The ruling came in the aftermath of a case in neighbouring Turkey where the relatives of a nine-year old girl, killed by stray dogs, sued the country. The case, which went to Strasbourg and lasted five years, ruled in favour of the parents.

The parents had accused the authorities in the village concerned of negligence, demanding that the state be held accountable and liable in such circumstances, the report said.

"
Generally, the state has an obligation to protect the life and welfare of its citizens from such attacks when they are sufficiently predictable,"
the report said.

In Bulgaria, there have been countless attacks on women, children and others by stray dogs. Most of them have been harmless, resulting only in shock, but some were violent and resulted severe trauma. Tragically, some were also fatal.

In November 24 2010, a pack of stray dogs attacked and mauled an elderly woman in the western Sofia borough of Lyulin 7. She walking home when she was jumped on by a pack of about 15 dogs who brought her to the ground and attacked her viciously. The woman was lucky because a man named Metodi Georgiev rushed to her help.

In January 2010, a pack of strays penetrated Sofia Zoo and killed 15 animals, including deer and fawn.

On October 19 2009, a pack of strays dismembered a six-year-old girl, Kristiana Marinova, from the Razgrad village of Topchii.

A staff member at The Sofia Echo has also witnessed several attacks in the boroughs of Hipodrouma, Lagera, Krassno Selo and Borovo in recent months. Luckily, none of them were fatal or resulted in serious injury.

In 2007, British woman Ann Gordon died after being attacked in the Bulgarian village of Nedyalsko.

The BHC is an independent non-governmental organisation for the protection of human rights. The objectives of the committee are to promote respect for the human rights of every individual, and to stimulate legislative reform in Bulgarian legislation in line with international human rights standards, according to the mission statement on the BHC website.

Sofia municipality to pay 25 000 leva compensation to child mauled by strays

Sofia municipality has been ordered to pay a record 25 000 leva compensation to a child attacked and mauled by stray dogs, Dnevnik daily reported on January 14 2011.

Sofia administrative court ruled that the municipality had failed to provide a secure and safe living environment through its failure to address the issue of stray dogs in the region, which eventually led to the vicious attack.

The four-year-old girl was attacked in 2010 when she went out for a stroll with her father. Walking past the animal, she accidentally dropped her bag. Leaning over to pick it up, the dog bit her in the face. When her father tried to free her, he too was attacked and bitten.

Medical expertise showed that the girl had been suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder following the attack and has had periodic flashbacks to the incident, the report said.

"
The perpetual inaction on the part of the mayor of Sofia and the municipality represents a breach of their statutory obligations to apprehend and isolate stray dogs, so depriving citizens of a safe living environment,"
the administrative court said.

"
The mayor of Sofia municipality failed to take the necessary action, and failed to implement effective measures to capture and isolate the strays, which has led to their excessive population growth,"
the report said.

From Novinite

Sofia City Hall Mulls New Stray Dog Program

The Deputy Mayor for Environment, Maria Boyadzhiyska, says the main priorities of the City Hall stray dogs program are adoption and neutering. The Sofia City Hall is working on a new program, aiming at reducing the stray dog population in the Bulgarian capital.

The Deputy Mayor for Environment, Maria Boyadzhiyska, said Monday the main priorities of the program are adoption and neutering.

The information comes on the heels of last week reports about a Court rule sentencing the City Hall to pay damages to a woman, who has been bitten by a stray dog.

According to City Hall data, there are 9 500 such dogs, roaming Sofia's streets.

The program is to start at the Roma quarters where the problem is the gravest.

The City Hall is further preparing a new order providing for active checks of registration and neutering of pet dogs.

This is truely a very good start to 2011.

Yes, having to pay out money spurs Bulgarians into action.

[size=55:2ddsfxfd]Sofia echo

Sofia municipality could face up to 40M leva in fines a day

As of February 1 2011, Sofia municipality could be – and by all accounts should be – facing up to 40 million leva in fines because of its inability to grapple with its stray dogs problem.

A new law on the protection of animals in Bulgaria, passed in early 2008, stipulates that, from February 1 2011, mayors in every Sofia borough could be fined up to 2000 leva for every unsupervised stray dog on their turf.

The law gave municipalities a long transitional period to resolve the problem of stray dogs by humane means. The strays were either to be adopted, culled, castrated, or accommodated in shelters. None of these measures would appear to have worked, however, in light of the abundance of strays throughout the city.

In November alone, Sofia municipality was twice forced to pay compensation following attacks by strays. In the first case, the administrative court ruled that the municipality should give 4000 leva to a female victim. In the second case, a record 25 000 leva was awarded to a father and child mauled by a stray.

The law is straightforward. From February 1 2011, "
mayors can be fined up to 2000 leva if strays are present on streets that fall under their jurisdiction. Fines will range between 3000 and 4000 leva for a "
second instance"
on the streets in the same municipality.

Conflicting reports put the number of strays in Sofia at about round 10 000, although their number could be greater. This means that Sofia municipality could have forfeited 20 million leva in automatic fines. In the wake of a second complaint the municipality should, in theory at least, be facing a 40 million leva bill by the end of February 1 alone. Of course, in reality, this is unlikely to happen.

[size=55:2wfjh0yu]novinite

Bulgaria's Sofia to Try Getting Rid of Stray Dogs by 2014

The problem with stray dogs in the Bulgarian capital will be solved completely by 2014, Petar Petrov, Director of Sofia's Operational Program "
Ecobalance"
has promised.

"
By 2014, we have to finish building the dog shelters and their population will be under control,"
Petrov said Tuesday in an interview for the Bulgarian private TV channel bTV.

He has explained that the Ecobalance is alarmed about 30-35 stray dogs every day, with 3-4 of them being aggressive.

According to data from stray dogs census, their number in Sofia is currently about 9500-10,000. In 2009, they were 8530.

Petrov has explained the increase of their number with the inability to castrate about 15% of what used to be pet dogs, which were thrown to the streets by their owners.

"
Out of the 200,000 pet dogs, our organization has registered only 4-5% of them as stray dogs,"
Petrov said.

In his words, Ecobalance cannot establish the owners who throw their dogs on the streets, so they cannot fine them. There are also no fines for city mayors, although the law envisions fines for every stray dog.

According to the Ecobalance director, the problem is the lack of strict control and gaps in the program.

He added that Studentski Grad (i.e. "
Student's Town"
) is one of the Sofia districts that has the largest number of stray dogs.

In Petrov's words, in order to avoid aggressive stray dogs, people are forced to run, use taxis or their personal auto mobiles.

[size=55:14eybigs]Sofia echo

Bulgaria's Sofia Introduces Public Transport Tickets for Pets



Sofia's public transport will allow pets but only if they go with a special ticket, the city's Municipality has decided.

The innovative idea is a part of an order prepared for the ownership and treatment of pets. The big dogs should be kept on a short leash and should wear a muzzle in the public transport, the order says. Small dogs and cats should be in transportation cages.

Dog owners in Sofia should install obligatory microchips to their pets within 6 months after the order passes. A BGN 500 fine will be introduced for those who walk their dogs without the microchips, which will be installed for free, BGN 1000 will be the fine should a second violation occur. Besides that, owners will have to carry the dogs' passports when they walk them.

Pets should no longer live in the areas surrounding the blocks of flats, the order also states.


I wonder if this will lead to more dogs being abandoned

It sounds as though there will be more dogs abandoned, because they will not be able to pay the fines. But the government are certainly trying to improve the dog situation.