Mr. Fijnje with some of the dead animals

The dire need for an animal shelter within the townships of Gouves, Hersonissos and Malia was brought brutally to the forefront recently by, firstly, the abandonment of 25 dogs and cats by one person in Gouves, and, secondly, the gruesome murders of at least seven of the animals.

Enraged by the two related incidents, which were heavily reported by both the print and broadcast media, local residents are demanding immediate action by the town government and police, and have begun to formulate a Friends of the Animals Committee which will circulate a petition to have an animal shelter in the area.

This latest outrage cast upon the local animal population was first reported by Peter Fijnje of Kato Gouves who called this newspaper to say a British man, who apparently kept 15 dogs and 10 cats, had gone back to England and abandoned the animals. Mr. Fijnje said he and his neighbours started to feed the animals, since they received no results after pleading to the township for help.

Eventually, several of the pets were adopted, but by the third day, Mr. Fijnje said that someone had poisoned the remaining animals. He found seven murdered pets around his property, but didn’t know how many more had wandered off and died in the fields.

Gouves municipal policeman Kostas Martimianakis said he was very upset when he first received the call from the residents.

“I care for animals and our demos should have at least a shelter, but since it doesn’t there was nothing I could do,” he said.  “The only demos I know who has done something about the stray problem is Iraklion, but when I called them they said the shelter is filled to capacity and couldn’t help us.”

Gouves Vice Mayor Vangelis Hatzakis said: “Unfortunately our demos was not prepared to handle this and it is a shame. We must find an answer to the problem of strays. We will start with the ministry of the interior. Perhaps if the three townships of Gouves, Hersonissos and Malia act collectively we can come up with a plan to build a shelter and staff it.”

Actually, there is a Greek law regarding “companionship (pets) and stray animals,” which was voted and approved by the parliament, which, in part, reads: “by common decision of the finance ministry, public management and ministry of agriculture, funds will be provided to suitables (townships or animal friendly associations) for the founding of animal shelters . . .”

However, obtaining these “funds” seems to be another story.

“The central government and the ministry of agriculture in particular must give us the funds – funds which we have asked for but still have not received,” said Hersonissos Vice Mayor Yiorgos Danelakis. “We must hire the professionals which are needed to catch and transport these animals and find the right site to keep them. However, what seems more plausible and more doable right now is to at least get the funds to start a sterilization program for the animals, provide them with an overnight stay and then release them to their natural environment.”

Mr. Danelakis agrees with Gouves vice mayor Mr. Hatzaki regarding a joint venture animal shelter being feasible.

“Yes, perhaps the three townships could collectively deal and fight for this important issue,” he stated.

Malia’s newly appointed vice mayor, Antonis Papathoyianakis, said his township has no present plans for an animal shelter, but it is doing other things to help deal with the problem.

“For now we will go ahead with informative discussions in demos schools about the care and treatment of animals, so that our children will grow up with the proper knowledge,” he said. “Mr. Manolis Souranakis from Mohos, president of the Cretan Veterinarian’s Association, has volunteered to assist with this program, as has Mr. Nikos Halkiathakis, president of the Malia Friends of Animals Association.”

In regard to Malia pooling its resources with Hersonissos and Gouves for a possible tri-township animal shelter, Mr. Papathoyianakis said, since he has only been in his present position for a month, he could make no comment until he was brought up to speed on the subject.

So far, the only neighbouring township successful in operating an animal shelter is Iraklion. For two years now, it has maintained a public shelter in Finikia in co-operation with the Animal-friendly Action Association.

And just recently, Iraklion contracted for seven stremata of land for a new shelter with administration offices and two buildings for housing stray and homeless animals. It has an estimated budget of 524.369 euros and a completion date of six months.

Meanwhile, many local residents are saying enough is enough and have begun to form the Gouves Township Friends of Animals Committee. Among the committee members to date are Niki Papathaki and Teresa Massey of Kokkini Hani; Peter Fijnje and Reinou Minnesma of Kato Gouves; Margarita Koutsia of Anopoli and Colin Paton of Pano Gouves.

Committee member Mrs. Papathaki

The first action of the committee will be to circulate a petition requesting the township to take immediate action in providing an animal shelter and sterilization program.

“I was horrified to hear about killing of all those stray animals,” Mrs. Papathaki said. “It is essential to have some form of shelter in our demos, both for the good of the animals and for the demos in general.  Soon it will be tourist season, and it’s not good to have dogs roaming around since many people are afraid when they see a pack of wild dogs.”

Mrs. Koutsia said: “There is a big problem with stray animals and the demos must not only provide a suitable shelter, but establish a proper sterilization program and make arrangements to have veterinarian services available, at least on a part time basis.”

She said that the problem is not restricted to populated areas.

“There are serious situations in the farm areas, too,” she said. “Stray dogs often chase and kill farm animals, like lambs and chickens.”

As of press time, the petition is available for signing at The Khronicles office, Teresa’s Laundry, Το Κύμα Ταβέρνα and DVD Internet in Kokkini Hani, The Tap in Kato Gouves, and Manos Mini Market in Pano Gouves. In addition, committee members will be circulating throughout the township seeking signatures.