On Tuesday, November 26th, 2024, the Dogs Trust Foundation reported a brutal act of violence against animals in Buzim, where a man shot a dog in front of bystanders.
According to available information, residents witnessed the shocking scene in the Gornji Brigovi neighborhood near a bus stop. The man exited his vehicle and shot a stray dog. The event appalled numerous citizens of Buzim, who have since called for the perpetrator to be identified and punished.
The following is the full statement issued by Dogs Trust:
“We strongly condemn any act of brutality and inhumanity toward animals, particularly the incident in Buzim, reported on Tuesday, November 26th, 2024, by a local news portal.
According to the report, an unknown individual, without any provocation, exited their car and fatally shot an innocent dog with a hunting rifle in Buzim, in plain view of residents, before leaving the scene without hesitation.
As an organization that has supported the humane and systematic management of the dog population in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) for over 12 years, in line with the national Law on the Protection and Welfare of Animals, we urge relevant institutions and authorities to urgently investigate the case, identify the perpetrator, and impose appropriate sanctions, keeping the public informed.
Additionally, we call on local veterinary clinics to fulfill their obligation and, following the Hippocratic Oath that applies to veterinary doctors, provide immediate intervention to save the lives of animals in need.
Brutality toward animals is a deviant behavior that significantly threatens society as a whole. The use of firearms in a residential area constitutes an additional criminal offense and poses a serious risk to the residents themselves.
We remind everyone that stray dogs are present on the streets solely due to human irresponsibility, not by their own choice. The law explicitly prohibits any form of inhumanity toward animals for good reason.
The only effective and sustainable way to address this issue – an approach mandated by law and the responsibility of local authorities and institutions – is to consistently and systematically implement humane, legal measures such as mass sterilization, vaccination, and marking of stray dogs according to the catch-neuter-vaccinate-return (CNVR) method; promoting pet sterilization; encouraging responsible acquisition and ownership of dogs; enforcing veterinary inspections of all dog owners; encouraging adoption; and raising public awareness and education. Only through such measures can the problem be gradually brought under control and ultimately resolved in a humane and lawful manner.
Using illegitimate and legally prohibited ad hoc ‘solutions,’ such as unnecessary and illegal killing or harming of dogs, creating mass shelters that quickly become inadequate and inhumane for animals and a financial burden on the budget, only deepens the problem and delays a truly permanent and humane solution that both the community and its dogs deserve.”
