Four horses in poor medical condition were confiscated by the police of Calarasi. Their destination was an abattoir, but they had no proper medical records and their transportation was also illegal (Video).

Ever since the regrettable scandal, when many of the products from the shelves of half the Europe had horse meat in their composition, the Romanian authorities made the controls stricter. (more…)

cai · cai romania · Calarasi · carne di cavallo · Cavalli · Friends of Homeless Dogs · Horses · horses Romania · hundhjalpen · trasporto cavalli · working horses

At first it seemed to be a case known only in Great Britain, but the incident of horse meat sold as buffalo meat has reached other European countries, such as France or Ireland. It seems that this ground meat came from Romanian butchers, though the authorities deny these accusations, made by French and English companies. As a result of the incident, Findus has removed from the shelves of the French superstores all of their lasagne-type products based on casserole, which were proved to contain horse meat in a proportion of 99%-100% . (more…)

asini · cai romania · carne · Cavalli · cavalli e asini da lavoro · findus · Horses · magari · meat · romania · save the dogs

Even the living conditions of horses are dramatic in Romania these animals are used as real work machines to be exploited and then left to their own fate.

In our area, the streets are lined with injured hoses, malnourished to the point of exhaustion from pulling carts crammed full of household goods. When their legs are no longer in a condition to support them, and the shocks don’t have the effect of getting them to their feet, these animals are abandoned to die, which only comes after slow, painful starvation or they’re simply slaughtered in the street.

Diana was one of them. Launched into a trot along a Cernavoda street when the Save the Dogs President saw her, her body was reduced to little more than a skeleton, her legs were swollen and bleeding. With the help of the city’s municipal police, Sara Turette was sent in pursuit of the horse, and thanks to the intervention of the police force, who arrived promptly on the spot, we could offer our refuge to poor Diana.

The horse had been bought just two weeks previously from her exploiter. She was 12 and even though she was exhausted, he was paid 180 Euros, a considerable sum in Romania.

The diagnosis of the animal’s condition undertaken by our veterinarians and a British specialist, the outcome brought little hope: the level of dehydration was dramatic, and the horse was in an advanced state of malnutrition. And as if that wasn’t enough, she was also suffering from a micro-fracture on her leg and a broken ligament.

Despite this, we did not give up hope of beating it and we took care of her for several weeks, giving her a specialized diet and specific treatment based on restorative care and anti-inflammatory drugs. The situation continued until Diana literally collapsed on the floor, and at that point, in great pain, we decided on a compassionate euthanasia.

There are thousands of horses in Romania in the same condition as Diana.

From this year, Save the Dogs has brought to life, together with our Finnish partner, Friends of Homeless Dogs, a program of free home care for owned horses, providing owners in the Cernavoda and Medgidia areas with the tools, including those cultural, which allow them to give these animals a dignified life.  But for this work to really leave a footprint, we need for it to be carried out continuously.

Therefore, the recent contribution of the American association, Horses on Death Row, was important,  thanks to their help we can increase interventions and improve the shelter facilities.

A big thank you also goes to the Cernavoda police force for their very important support during the specific operation with the horse, Diana. We’re confident that in the future we’ll be able to count on them for other interventions.

Structuring a project dedicated to horses involves a great effort by Save the Dogs, but we know we can not pull back: in the context in which we work, to not take into account the suffering of horses would be short-sighted. To do this, we are once again asking our supporters to not leave us alone. Make a donation to our horse project by inserting the payment reference “horse project”. Together we can provide a decent life to many animals like Diana.

Cavalli · Cernavoda · first aid for horses · Friends of Homeless Dogs · Horses · sara turetta · save the dogs

When we saved him from his owners in the quarter of « Tabara » in Cernavoda, our Mini was only 5 months. Having lost his mother, who probably died of hardship, soon after his birth, Mini, had developed a serious form of rickets. Once he was taken to the Save the Dogs shelter, the colt appeared seriously dehydrated and undernourished, but the following weeks he had responded to the fortifying treatment and seemed to be getting better. However, a few days ago, the situation suddenly precipitated. After a night on a drip and a large meal of carrots the morning after, Mini died around 11.00 without notice, leaving a feeling of emptiness among the Save the Dogs employees who had taken care of him.

Our association predominantly looks after dogs but Mini’s case offers us the opportunity to speak about another category of animals that live in extreme painful conditions in Romania: they are the equines – horses and donkeys – that are used like work machines to the extreme limit of their forces.

Save the Dogs have been taking care of them for quite a while (our shelter of Cernavoda donkeys is the only refuge of this kind in all Eastern Europe).  However, lately we have further increased our efforts to help an increasing number of animals. In fact, because of ignorance or extreme indigence by their owners, these animals are not guaranteed food and the minimum veterinary treatment and are exposed to sweltering summer heat or extreme cold during winter. Our resources are limited but we hope that Mini’s and Eugenia’s experiences sensitize supporters and allow us to collect the necessary resources to create a new stable capable of  holding more horses that are mistreated, in addition to those already dependent on  Save the Dogs. The stable will be dedicated to Mini, victim of misery and ignorance.

We would like to thank all our supporters for the affection and the extraordinary solidarity shown towards little Mini.

In order to contribute to the creation of a new stable, it is possible to make a donation on Save the Dogs’ account stating as reason for payment: “Stable Mini”.

Cavalli · equini · Eugenia · foel · mini · puledro · rifugio degli asinelli · romania · sara turetta · save the dogs · stalla mini