Activist wants more humane laws for animals

ANIMAL rights activist Jowelle de Souza yesterday called on government to implement more humane animal laws, especially the way stray dogs are “executed” by regional corporations.

In a media conference at her hairdressing studio on Independence Avenue, San Fernando, De Souza said she had visited all the regional corporations “and what I witnessed was absolutely horrifying, the way animals are sentenced to death.”

She added that before they are put down, dogs are left in cages without food and water for days.

Calling for a stray animal registry, De Souza recommended that such animals should be neutered in order to reduce their numbers. Unwanted litters, she added, are causing overcrowding at shelters and becoming burdensome for animal volunteers.

There is growing cruelty to animals, De Souza said, calling on Commissioner of Police Gary Griffith to make it a mandatory part of police work to be on the watch for people who commit cruelty to animals.

She said, “If a hotline can be set up for the exchange of information to the public with regard to situations of animal cruelty or abuse, it would guide our citizens on what they can do to help an animal in need.”

She has written to President Paula-Mae Weekes about her concerns, as well as Chief Justice Ivor Archie and Attorney General Faris Al-Rawi, with recommendations on animal treatment, one of which is increasing the fines for people found guilty of cruelty to animals.