ANKARA – It has been alleged that 17 thousand 790 dogs housed in municipal shelters died of “natural causes.”

 

It has emerged that 17 thousand 790 dogs died over a 10-month period in animal care facilities operated by the Ankara Metropolitan Municipality (ABB). Following the entry into force of Law No. 7527 on Amendments to the Animal Protection Law, widely referred to by the public as the “Massacre Law”, municipalities began collecting stray animals.

 

Shelters operated by the Ankara Metropolitan Municipality have frequently come under scrutiny over allegations of animal torture and deaths. According to the report of “Monitoring and Inspection Form for Stray Animals”, in 10 months 41 thousand 142 dogs were collected and 17 thousand 790 of them have died due to “natural causes”.

 

When contacted for comment, officials from the Ankara Metropolitan Municipality did not respond to phone calls requesting information.