As Daryo has previously reported, at least twenty-five dogs were slaughtered in one of the private houses in the Tashkent region; the volunteers of 'Mehr va Oqibat,' the local animal protection society, and the Ministry of Internal Affairs employees received complaints from those living nearby the slaughterhouse. In this regard, animal activists and law enforcers March 7 arrived at a scene.
'Our journey to that place was a nightmare beyond our worst expectations. Despite our high spirits, we were confronted with cruelty towards innocent animals that left us heartbroken. We are all too familiar with such challenges and have witnessed the mistreatment of animals before, but never to this extent. It is unacceptable, and we must take action to promote kindness and compassion towards all living beings and stand against any form of cruelty. We understand that the root of such behavior lies in one's the educational background and personal development, but that is no excuse for these heinous acts', Mehr va Oqibat volunteer told Daryo correspondent.
In her turn, volunteer Nazimakhon Rakhimova said she heard a heartbreaking dog whining from outside.
'The guard said, 'Call whoever you wish; you can't do anything. You can even call President', the volunteers noted.
Upon the Ministry of Internal Affairs employee's arrival, the guard reportedly left the scene. The volunteers saw the slaughterhouse's owner and got 'dumbfounded by unbelievable cruelty.'
'We saw liters of blood, dozens of liters of blood dripping from every corner,' Nazimakhon and Yuliya said.
'A group of dogs was in the room, and they looked so frightened and in pain that they were huddled together. They were so scared that it seemed like they were dead rather than alive. It was hard to tell if they were even breathing. The house owner said he rescues dogs and takes care of them until someone adopts them. But seeing these poor animals, I can't help but wonder if that's true. It's heartbreaking to think about what they've been through', Nazimakhon emphasized.
'They slaughtered dogs in a particular barn area. Just through the door, there were other living dogs. And in the same place, there was a window they would throw the skins away through. There were vessels too. Those vessels may have contained meat. They'd hide the skins in the sand. Some skins were in the same place where live dogs were.
'Opening the door, we saw a dog that had just defecated. Blood was flowing from its jaw. It was hit, stunned, and about to get killed. Then we saw thirty-five dogs lying scattered. They huddled on top of each other. There were both large and medium size dogs.
'Seeing the dogs' excitement as they approached new people and scents was heartwarming. They were so happy to be away from the scent of death surrounding them', Yuliya said. She added that the dogs were thrilled to see the volunteers, 'licking our hands and jumping up to greet us'.
Yuliya commented that if these dogs were people, they would probably sit down and pray to God to help save them. It was clear that these dogs had thoughts and emotions just like humans do.
The house's owner told the volunteers he had just rescued the dogs, but there was neither food nor a water bowl in the room. Dogs were biding their time.
'Initially, the owner's worker came out of the barn in an apron, sweatpants, an oversized T-shirt, and boots, all covered in blood,' the volunteers said.
'We heard screams. Moan and silence. Moan and silence. Yes, there were groans. They may have slaughtered two or three more dogs in our presence', Yuliya recalled.
'The odor was unpleasant, both within and outside the building. The stench grew stronger as we approached the barn, and we could even detect it from the street'. According to Nazimakhon, the neighbors who raised a concern claimed the smell was also terrible in their home.
According to the neighbors, a truck with dogs would come during the day. Sometimes, the car came early in the morning. These trucks were carrying dogs.
Volunteers of 'Mehr va Oqibat' say some local restaurants keep offering meals made of dog meat on their menu, and trapping services are among those gaining profit from this illegal business.
Another volunteer of 'Mehr va Oqibat,' vet doctor Ulugbek Yuldashev recalled March 8, when he examined the condition of the rescued dogs.
'The dogs were in severe condition after volunteers rescued them from the slaughterhouse, where people killed dogs for food or other purposes. The facility admitted twenty-five dogs when we arrived at the 'Mehr' shelter. Among them were mothers with small newborn puppies. There was also one dog with a broken head, a severely beaten animal. It even developed hematomas, and blood flowed from its nose. And one small dog was admitted in a severe condition. Of course, we had to euthanize it humanely, but we had no other option because its state was horrible. We fought for every life, but the dog was in critical condition then. It would not have survived or lived an hour at that time. Probably, the volunteers of the animal protection society pulled the dog out from the knife. The slaughters seemed to beat the dogs in the head; all animals had hematomas. Their condition is now satisfactory due to the excellent vet doctors of the Mehr shelter and its Director, Lena, who is a very conscientious person'.
Inom Nasrullaev, head of the cynological service of the Ministry of Emergency Situations, was among searchers who participated in rescue and search operations in quake-hit Türkiye. He said that dogs helped pull out from the rubble eighteen living and about two hundred dead people, and he was horrified to learn about the recent animal cruelty case in the Tashkent region.
'I'm at a loss for words. Answering a question like that isn't easy, even for a cynologist. More recently, we have seen the feats our service dogs have done in quake-hit Türkiye. Hearing such news coming to Tashkent was horrifying. It is something inhumane. Every animal has the right to live in good conditions. Before adopting an animal, one should ask, 'Why am I doing this?' Because some people tend to adopt an animal as a toy. That thinking often leads to situations where the animal ends up abandoned on the street'.
The organizer of the slaughterhouse was detained for ten days.
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