Abandoned dogs that faced being strung up or dumped down wells in Spain are SAVED thanks to the generosity of Mail readers after we highlighted their plight
Abandoned and tortured dogs have been offered hope after Daily Mail readers responded to their plight.
Donations flooded in after we exposed the barbaric treatment handed out to Spanish greyhounds who are maltreated and then face a lingering or brutal death by owners who use them for hunting or hare coursing.
The galgos – sighthounds closely related to greyhounds – are deemed unworthy of compassion if they fail and the litany of cruelty includes being strung up in trees, thrown down wells or left tethered to tractor tyres in open, heat-scorched terrain without food or water.
Anna Clements cares for a galgo at her new dog rescue centre in Barcelona after Daily Mail donations
Donations flooded in after we exposed the barbaric treatment handed out to Spanish greyhounds
Thousands of greyhounds face terrifying deaths when owners abandon them at the end of Spain’s hunting season. One such dog, op die foto, was thrown down a well
But campaigner Anna Clements’ efforts to save them, treat their wounds and re-home them with loving families sparked a wave of sympathy and generosity from readers.
‘The response after the Daily Mail article was humbling and inspiring,’ says British-born Clements. ‘Their messages of support were uplifting and the donations have allowed us to keep going through the pandemic.
‘Galgos are wonderful, friendly and gentle dogs yet they are seen as just a tool by some hunters who discard them when they no longer serve a purpose. Ongelukkig, they are also viewed with shame if they don’t win races or are not efficient killers – for that they are punished with horrible deaths.
‘Animal cruelty does not exist in just one country but their plight struck a chord with the public who were determined to help us.’
Donations have helped the charity survive the pandemic and open a rescue and education centre on the outskirts of Barcelona
The dogs were maltreated and then faced a lingering or brutal death by owners who used them for hunting or hare coursing
The article also brought a six-figure donation from Israeli-Canadian businessman philanthropist Mark Scheinberg and his family’s foundation, along with substantial donations from the UK-based D Foundation, which have helped the charity survive the pandemic and open a rescue and education centre on the outskirts of Barcelona.
Die webwerf, which has spacious pens and exercise space, is home for a maximum 33 dogs whose injuries are treated by vets while volunteers and behavioural specialists help socialise them.
The caring environment helps the galgos recover physically and shake off the trauma of abuse.
The dogs stay for anything from a few days to a month before they are re-homed and new rescued dogs take their place.
The Surrey-based Greyhounds in Need supports the centre and has pledged to take 20 galgos for UK families to adopt.
The caring environment helps the galgos recover physically and shake off the trauma of abuse
Clements and her team, who have given new lives to more than 3,000 galgos over the last 20 jare, take rescued dogs into schools around Barcelona
Attempts to reclassify galgos as domestic animals have met with fierce opposition from the hunting lobby
Clements and her team, who have given new lives to more than 3,000 galgos over the last 20 jare, take rescued dogs into schools around Barcelona for lessons on looking after animals, and plan to run daily educational sessions at the new centre to build awareness of animal cruelty and a create a generation that will put an end to the plight of working dogs.
Thousands of galgos, which are exempt from animal welfare rules as they are viewed as working dogs, are abandoned across rural Spain every year with many being killed in road accidents or from malnutrition and thirst.
Others have been rescued from wells and trees where they were dangled.
Attempts to reclassify galgos as domestic animals have met with fierce opposition from the hunting lobby which says episodes of cruelty and abandonment are rare and that hare coursing – two dogs chasing a hare across open land which was outlawed in the UK in 2004 – is a part of rural culture.
The season lasts for four months and attracts huge betting activity with a guaranteed ‘kill’ as the hares are imported and released on land with no cover.
Campaigners claim that female dogs are kept as ‘breeding machines’ while males are worked to exhaustion on the land then discarded or killed when they can no longer hunt or hare course successfully.
