Unjustified cruelty: in Lithuania, dogs are illegally clipped by both breeders and well-known people in society

Certain breeds of dogs are illegally transported to other countries to be cooped up in the hope that this will avoid liability, but this is not true. When an animal is taken abroad for breeding and later brought back to Lithuania, the same legal responsibility applies as when the animal was bred in Lithuania.

Dogs are also illegally clipped in Lithuania. Some animals are illegally clipped in Lithuanian veterinary clinics, although according to Lithuanian law, a veterinarian’s license may be revoked for such illegal procedures. The State Food and Veterinary Service (hereinafter – VMVT) has also identified such cases where dogs are illegally clipped at home, when dogs’ ears are cut off in domestic conditions, thus causing great suffering to the animal.

In order to prevent dogs from being illegally clipped in Lithuania, the laws are expected to be tightened by prohibiting the breeding, sale and participation of clipped animals in exhibitions.

The representatives of VMVT, VšĮ “Givūņu gerovės initiativos” and VšĮ “Šuniukų fēja” tell in more detail about the cases of dog grooming and the damage caused to animals by these illegal procedures.

Owners flaunt their illegally harvested animals on social networks

VMVT has investigated and applied administrative liability to persons who published on social networks about the animals that were killed on their own initiative. The owners of the animals announce the purchased animal, and later – publish photos of the already injured animal with cropped and bandaged ears. According to VMVT, some of these punished persons are well-known people in the society.

VMVT has also identified cases where the owners themselves, without the help of veterinarians, cut off the ears of young puppies with scissors, tie their tails in order to disrupt blood circulation and cause part of the tail to fall off. Animal keepers watch videos on how to groom animals and undertake such procedures themselves at home. Unfortunately, there are plenty of such “educational” videos on the Internet. One can only imagine the consequences of such actions for the pet and the suffering the animal experiences.

According to the representatives of VMVT, in cases where the administrative responsibility for dog clipping is applied to animal breeders and the animals are confiscated, they usually do not carry out such procedures later.

GGI coordinator Lina Vaitekūnaitė also tells about the fact that breeders usually do not commit repeated offenses: “It was noticed that one breeder cut off the ears of all the puppies of one litter during the quarantine period. The breeder was fined and, to our knowledge, she no longer performs such injurious procedures on the puppies she breeds. All animals go to their new homes with ears.”

L. Vaitekūnaitė also tells about how one well-known woman bought a puppy with ears from the same breeder and announced it on social networks. However, after some time, this woman published photos of her pet with its ears already cut off on social networks. This animal had its ears removed when it was well advanced, at 9 months. A famous woman was punished for such cruel treatment of an animal.

According to GGI coordinator L. Vaitekūnaitė, people often show off their animals on social networks, but almost all humpbacked dogs, which their owners publicly announce on social networks and whose photos are shared, are known to the organization. “As far as illegal dog grooming is concerned, one of the functions of GGI is the monitoring of public space and social networks. Identified cases and information are transferred to GGI lawyers, who prepare the material and continue to apply to the relevant institutions with it, so that those who broke the law and illegally clipped dogs are punished,” says L. Vaitekunaitė about the organization’s activities.

Skaitė Svidraitė, head of the “Šuniukų fēja” NGO, says that people who are indifferent to the welfare of animals also report about mutilated animals on a specially dedicated platform: “People provide information about mutilated animals www.nukirpoausis.org, I fill in the missing information, and GGI forms a complaint and sends it to the relevant authorities. Among the punished people are breeders and well-known persons in society.”

S. Svidraitė also shares one story when, after the divorce, her ex-spouse was sued for illegally clipping her pet: “They sent evidence when the puppy was still with ears and already without them, provided information on which clinic the operation was performed. What’s more, he sent a photo of the tips of the ears cut off,” S. Svidraitė tells about the most memorable case.

According to S. Svidraitė, who owns her own animal shelter, the saddest thing is that the owners of their own injured and clipped animals often refuse and they end up in shelters: “Many such dogs are taken into care, because I work with the breeds that are clipped the most. Unfortunately.”

Docking disrupts the physiological functions of dogs and causes irreparable damage

The purpose of removing organs or tissues is to change the appearance of the animal, thereby damaging the soft tissue and/or bone structure. Shortening of tails and ears in dogs are painful operations, and complications are often possible. After performing such operations, the animal’s physiological functions are affected.

For example, these prohibited procedures are performed on young (2-5 days old) animals without anesthesia and without the use of long-acting veterinary pain relievers after such procedures, which may affect the future development of such animals. What’s more, complications can leave the remaining part of the ear or tail extremely sensitive, and when the animal grows up, pain may be felt, as if a part of the body that is no longer there hurts.

Ears 2-3 months. puppies are shortened for aesthetic reasons, these are painful and long healing procedures, which can lead to various complications. Often, after ear shortening, ear lifting anchors are used, causing puppies to feel uncomfortable, to say the least, and suffer.

Physiologically, dog ears protect the middle and inner ear from adverse weather conditions, foreign bodies or infection. Therefore, the risk of inner ear injury or ear infection increases.

Ear shortening is a serious obstacle for dogs to express their body language and to see vital signals for humans and other dogs.

Tail shortening affects the dog’s physiological functions, because normally, with the help of the tail, the dog not only expresses its emotions of joy, excitement, aggression, but also helps maintain the body’s balance when dogs are running or swimming.

If you notice cases of animal mutilation, GGI invites you to be civil and notify the State Food and Veterinary Service using the animal rescue instructions prepared by GGI: https://bit.ly/GGI-Instrukcija-Kupiravimas.

You can also report an injured pet while clipping it to GGI by using the link https://www.nukirpoausis.org.