06/29/04 Report to the Veterinary Inspection - Pet Stores
VETERINARY OFFICE OF THE CITY OF ZAGREB
Mr. Zeljko Devcic
Avenija Dubrovnik 12
10000 Zagreb
June 29, 2004
REPORT
Dear Mr. Devcic,
Based on citizen reports and our field inspections, we wish to report some pet stores that do not satisfy the conditions for animal keeping, especially for exotic ones.
We believe that shops PET SHOP ZEM TRGOVINA/PET CENTAR d.o.o., Heinzlova 62, 10000 Zagreb; AMAZONA d.o.o., Drag Ibler Square 10, 10000 Zagreb; KOKOLO d.o.o., Ante Starcevic Square bb, 10000 Zagreb; do not have the appropriate keeping–conditions and employees do not have the required knowledge, while animals have poor veterinary care and are showing signs of stress and apathy. We also have some doubts about the ways these animals have been purchased.
In pet stores, exotic animals are usually kept in small, inappropriate and non-hygienic conditions. Due to high prices, animals often have to "wait" for their owner for quite a while – in cramped cages, terrariums that are too small and non-productive for some species (such as primates, iguanas, prairie dogs, fishes, birds, etc.). Employees are often not educated enough for specific needs that these animals often have.
In Croatia, most veterinarians are not educated for treating sick exotic animals. Many pet stores sell these animals to customers with no previous experience in animal keeping and they give them incorrect information about the animal’s needs. Sadly, animals often die due to inadequate feeding, unnatural and uncomfortable environment, loneliness and captivity stress. Exotic animals could be the carriers some of the most dangerous diseases such as madness, tuberculosis, hepatitis, leptospirosis, salmonella and cause serious health problems to their keepers.
In the proposal for the new Animal Welfare Act, which was written by our organization and is expected to go to the Parliament this September, Animal Friends wants to ban breeding, selling and keeping animals that are on the CITES (Convention of International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) list.
All pet stores mentioned above are the first on the list we wish you to check. Also, we ask you to ban all animal keeping in inappropriate conditions and to sanction this type of acts. Based on our field inspections, we believe that other pet stores should be also checked.
With kind regards, we implore you to inform us about the ending of this process.
Sincerely yours,
Luka Oman
President