Warning, graphic content!

Our organization has received with concern a video of one of the many cases of mistreatment of dogs through involvement in fights with other dogs where the suspect is heard talking proudly about his dog that has participated in dog fights and has a face and jaw torn from the fighting and who is still chained and in extreme pain at his abuser’s home.

In this video, you can see the cruel consequences experienced by the poor dog, who was unfairly and violently forced to fight with other dogs.

These extremely disturbing images show once again that the state of Kosovo has a lot of work to do to prevent crime with dogs and the organization of fights between them. The punishments that the perpetrators have received so far for the criminal offense of Article 346 of the Penal Code are so low (so far) that animal abusers are at risk of continuing to torture animals.

Some officials of the Food and Veterinary Agency (FVA) and the Ministry of Agriculture (MAFRD) constantly seek “quick solutions” by proposing mass euthanasia of dogs and complain about the large number of dogs on the street, and constantly pretend to be concerned about the safety of people, and on the other hand, for more than 15 years, they have done NOTHING to prevent the illegal breeding of dogs that takes place all over Kosovo, and they have also done nothing to prevent the abandonment of dogs on the street, and they have never dealt with the treatment of crimes committed against dogs (or other animals) in Kosovo. These two institutions need to be urgently reformed to have professional people in animal welfare (small animals included).

We wish that the Government of Kosovo takes the necessary steps for these two institutions to work properly in protecting the welfare of all animals because cases like this are found in every corner of Kosovo and towards all animals, even those that are poorly kept in farms or anywhere else.

Many of the dogs used for dog fights are abandoned on the street and end up dead or in deep pain like this poor dog in the video. Our organization has come across hundreds of such dogs during our work over the years to monitor the treatment of street dogs in public projects. It is very normal then that the likelihood of dog attacks on people or other dogs increases, because dogs that have been taught all their lives by their owners to show aggression are constantly abandoned.

In relation to this case, our organization has notified the responsible bodies, and hopes for urgent actions to bring the suspect to justice and impose the maximum punishment according to the legal provisions in force. We have asked the prosecution and police bodies to confiscate the injured and abused dog and all the other dogs that the suspect possesses, as he is a serious and intentional abuser of animals.

Many scientific reports show that if abuse and violence against animals is not addressed and punished, it then spreads to cases involving humans.

We expect the FVA and the MAFRD to work intensively to fulfill their legal obligations to protect animals from abusers and from the terrible life they have in Kosovo. These two institutions and their irresponsible officials are responsible for much of the suffering and torture that many animals and dogs experience.

For news about this case, we will keep you informed.

Update 06.10.2022: After our organization’s report, the Police in Prizren took action to identify the suspect, and in cooperation with the Food and Veterinary Agency (FVA) inspector and the veterinary team, the dog was confiscated from the suspect and humanely euthanized, since the injuries it suffered after being forced to fight with another dog, were extremely large and incurable.

Our organization has also submitted a criminal report to the Basic Prosecutor’s Office in Prizren for this case, and we expect that this case will be handled according to the legal provisions in force and that the suspect will receive the maximum punishment he deserves. We have requested that the suspect be banned from keeping dogs, since this is not the only dog that the suspect keeps and uses to fight with other dogs.

The phenomenon of dog fighting is widespread throughout Kosovo, and there is still a lot of work to be done to combat this abusive phenomenon, which is considered a criminal offense under Article 346 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kosovo.

For our organization, in relation to this case, it is concerning the fact that, according to the suspect, the dog was initially sent to the veterinarian, and was released by the veterinarian with brutal wounds on the face, and that the case was not reported by the veterinarian to the competent authorities, which also constitutes a criminal offense. This reminds us once again that many veterinarians are still unfamiliar with the concept of empathy and the fact that animals are sentient beings that experience pain and are also not informed of their legal obligations to report animal abuse. Anyone who does not report criminal offenses becomes an accomplice to these offenses.

We thank the Police and FVA for responding and taking measures to stop the dog’s great suffering in a humane manner.

We hope that law-enforcement institutions will commit more seriously to prevent dog fighting from happening in the first place, as it is not enough to prosecute after the crime has been committed, because at the end of the day, the poor animals in the hands of the abusers are suffering the consequences.