Cyprus-Forum.com

[Hazza]

Its a sad sight, driving from Larnaca to Limassol and seeing dogs on the side of the highway, on the hard shoulder, lying there, motionless, breathless, no sign of life. They have been hit by several cars before being pushed on the side. Today, there was a german shepard lying between the inside and outside lanes, clearly dead.

Where do these dogs come from? is it people just putting them in the back of their trucks and the dogs jump off/fall off? Are there any laws against this? Guaranteed that you will see at least 2 new ones in the space of a week, which is very shocking

[andri_cy]

Who knows...the truth is that not only is bad for the dogs but for driver's too. I remember once when my brother and I got into an accident because a dog jumped right in front of us out of nowhere. good thing we were wearing our seatbelts. we would have been dead.

[Sotos]

I don't see dogs often but cats is a usual thing. When you go with 100-140KM is hard to stop when an animal jumps in front of you.

[andri_cy]

sure is. and if its huge then woo hoo you see stars

[twinkle]

Alot of these dogs are hunting dogs that have been dumped. An easy solution is to enforce the microchipping of these animals. These poor animals die and their death causes alot of damage to peoples cars. If they are hit by a car and left dumped on the highway the driver of the car could prosecute the owner if the dog was microchipped. At least you would know who owned the poor thing. If the Government also stuck to its guns and stopped changing the dog laws things would be easier. First of all the hunters were only allowed 2 dogs but most have 3-4. Then they don't have to register the dogs until they are a year old or something. What on earth is there left to hunt???????

Hunters = Voters!!!

[annecollings]

It is a very sad sight all these poor run down creatures. But how many people out there actually realise that after your dog is microchipped you then have to go to the Government Veterinary Office and pay another CYP5 to register the microchip. A lot of people don't know this or don't bother! And I could count 10-20 dogs in my area who are not microchipped yet, let alone registered!

I really can't understand why the vets can't send the paper work once a month to the Gov Office for registration.

There are many stray dogs being found that are microchipped and not registered.

A year ago I really thought the dog laws were starting to pull into shape, but it has all fallen flat as far as I can see.

[GIz33k0]

I cant say i've saw a dog dead on the road in Cyprus before.. but many times i've seen poor , starved cats lieing there to one side. Does anyone know if there is an organisation like the RSPCA (UK) that protects animals in cyprus.. because if there is, they dont do a good job i must say!

[cyprusgrump]

Alot of these dogs are hunting dogs that have been dumped. An easy solution is to enforce the microchipping of these animals. These poor animals die and their death causes alot of damage to peoples cars. If they are hit by a car and left dumped on the highway the driver of the car could prosecute the owner if the dog was microchipped. At least you would know who owned the poor thing. If the Government also stuck to its guns and stopped changing the dog laws things would be easier. First of all the hunters were only allowed 2 dogs but most have 3-4. Then they don't have to register the dogs until they are a year old or something.

The dog laws are actually very clear as far as I understand them.

Rule 1. If you are English
All dogs must be micro chipped and you must buy a dog licence from your village council; failure to do so will incur a substantial fine.

Rule 2. If you are Cypriot.
Rule 1. does not apply.
Dogs may be kept in stinking tin huts away from your home so that you cannot hear them howling because they are hungry, too hot, too cold or too wet. Proximity to the homes of others should not be taken into consideration.
You are free to let your dogs breed and produce as many puppies as you like. Unwanted puppies may simply be dumped (away from your home of kennel obviously), preferably in the garden of a suitable English family.

Rule 3. If you are a Cypriot Hunter.
Rule 1. Does not apply.
Rule 2. Applies in full. In addition…
Any animal that does not magically perform as a hunting professional, in spite of being kept in a stinking hut with no food or exercise all summer may simply be left at the side of any suitable motorway.

Obviously I have had to translate this from the original Greek rules and have paraphrased in some areas but I think that just about sums the situation up.

[twinkle]

Cyprusgrump- Aha, now I understand. And I though the Law was there to confuse everyone. You have explained it perfectly. Ever thought of a career in politics?

[cyprusgrump]

Ever thought of a career in politics?

I’m too grumpy to be a politician.