Almost at 800!

Our unending thanks for your support on this mission! The letter below was sent to Minister of government in Trinidad and Tobago, all of whom have a say in what we want to achieve. We await the result!

Oh, and there has still been no feedback from the West End Police Station nor the officer who took my report, Ag. Sgt. Samuels.

***

The Honourable Faris Al-Rawi
Attorney General
Ministry of the Attorney General & Legal Affairs
AGLA Tower, Level 21, Government Campus Plaza
Richmond Street
Port of Spain

cc. Senator the Honourable Clarence Rambharat, Minister of Agriculture, Land & Fisheries
Senator the Honourable Kazim Hosein, Minister of Rural Development & Local Government
The Honourable Stuart Young, Minister of National Security
Councillor Symon de Nobriga, Chairman, Diego Martin Regional Corporation
Councillor Keeda James, Diego Martin Regional Corporation

Dear Attorney General:

I write as a citizen and member of the Diamond Vale community in search of answers and solutions to the national concern for the care and protection of animals.

My specific matter pertains to two stray dogs which breached my neighbour’s property to attack and kill one of my cats on the morning of 10 May 2020. In the midst of my grief at losing a member of my family, I have made all the relevant reports and complaints to the police, the community street captains, the TTSPCA and the Diego Martin Regional Corporation for immediate assistance to contain or remove the animals, and/or to charge the owner of the animals, as required by the Dog Control Act and Summary Offenses Act.

While I intend to pursue my matter to its conclusion, I am equally concerned about the larger issue that the mechanisms, systems and resources that compel local authorities to act on reports of cruelty or other mistreatment of animals are woefully inadequate, and in the case of Dog Control Units at each Corporation, non-existent. This is what I hope to change.

I have since written to and met with the Councillor Keeda James and Chairman Symon de Nobriga in an attempt to trigger a wider response. My communication was respectfully handled and I await their promised actions to upscale my report to the West End Police Station through the Municipal Police. It is imperative that the police are held accountable for their non-enforcement of the laws regarding straying and/or out of control animals. Otherwise, what’s the point of enhanced legislation? The local government officials also promised to examine how the Corporation can best allocate its resources to provide much needed dog-catching services to its burgesses.

Following up on those actions and discussions and in furtherance of my search for justice and in light of the woeful response to my report at West End, I started an online petition on 22 May to garner support for the matter to be addressed by the Municipal Police attached to the DMRC. The list of supporters (723 to date) and their comments are enclosed (for the Attorney General).

The ordeal and frustrations I have endured since 10 May have compounded my resolve to prompt action on a national level. I will now address the specific gaps that exist, as well as the possible solutions.

·       Straying animals
Although the Summary Offenses Act speaks to the need for owners to have control over animals, there is little to no enforcement of the law. Some of the large population of strays are lost but many more are homeless. This problem speaks to the non-existent regulations for owning an animal in the first place, as most do not accept the necessary responsibilities. Many owners do not spay or neuter the animals, causing them to roam, reproduce and increase the stray population.

·       Law enforcement
The police service regulars clearly are not willing or able to enforce animal control law. To be fair, they are inhibited by the paucity of reports of animal cruelty and other similar crimes, making them unlikely to act, unless they are knowledgeable of existing law. I therefore suggest that the municipal police officers play a role in enforcement as part of the Animal Control Units I will describe later.

·       Veterinarians
I was fortunate to be able to take my cat to a veterinarian immediately after the attack in the hope of saving his life. It was at 2:30am on a Sunday when I made the phone call, which was answered, to my immense relief. However, had the vet been mandated to contact police upon examining the animal and learning of how the injury occurred, the ideal opportunity is presented for the police to visit the clinic, speak to the owner and the attending vet and gather evidence almost immediately. This may accelerate the process of holding the owner/s of the offending animal to account.

·       Animal Control at the Local Government level
Apart from the TTSPCA and a few other shelters, there are dozens of citizens who provide the service of rescuing injured or homeless animals, sheltering them (in many cases in their own homes) and adopting them out to caring homes. None of the established organisations who do this non-stop, tireless work are for-profit entities. It is time for government to institutionalise the support provided to these NGOs in the form of an annual subvention to carry out their important work.

In an amended regime, the NGOs can therefore, work alongside the Regional/City Corporations through the Animal Control Units to achieve the following:

§  to provide essential services, using animal welfare experts, such as rescue and impounding of animals who have been abandoned, are homeless or are dangerous

§  to implement an electronic system for rehoming/adoption of animals in their care

§  provide robust enforcement of offences under the Summary Offences Act and Dog Control Act, using municipal police officers

§  provide accessible and relevant education to burgesses about the proper care and protection of animals, including food, shelter, spay/neuter, medical attention

§  conduct research on the pet population and additional services that may be required to serve them

The gaps that exist in the national framework for animal welfare must be filled urgently. Legislation is useless without enforcement, regulation and prevention services. Those elected and appointed to positions of authority to manage animal welfare issues must be held accountable to do so. I trust that I will receive confirmation of receipt of this correspondence and updates on any discussions held thereon.