By the close of a complex rescue operation, that took several hours, and involved various people, the young Samoyed dog, that had fallen into a deep drainage pit in Bat Shlomo and was trapped there for more than one day on one of the coldest days of the year, was saved.
At around noon today, the SPCA call center was contacted by a Bat Shlomo resident who reported hearing yelps of a dog who had fallen into a drainage pit near her house. According to the caller, she had first called the Local Authority veterinarian and the fire brigade, who came to the site of the accident but left, claiming that nothing could be done.
Two rescuers from the SPCA set out immediately for Bat Shlomo and asked the Local Authority veterinarian to join them at the site. When they arrived, the rescuers found a drainage pit of about five meters deep, at the bottom of which was a huge space filled with deep water. At their insistence, a senior fire officer also came to the site and by means of a camera and flashlight attached to a rope, they managed to locate the frightened dog who was standing in a dry corner of the pit.
As well as the emergency measures carried out by the SPCA rescue team, the local residents also called the rescuer, Avi Kuzi, who arrived with appropriate specialized equipment. With the help of those present, Kuzi crawled into the pit and the Samoyed was extricated. The one and a half year old dog’s life was saved, though he was wet to his bones, despite the extreme cold, due partly to his thick coat and partly thanks to the fact that there was a small dry spot where he could stand in the pit.
The initial examination showed that, fortunately, the dog was not harmed and his hunger was staved off by the food that the SPCA rescue team brought along for him.
The lost dog had no electronic chip, but neighbors did recognize him and gave the owner’s details to the team. The Regional Authority veterinarian gave the dog back to its owner who claimed that the dog had gone missing two days earlier, and who promised to take care of the dog’s rabies vaccination and electronic chip, as required by Law, the following day.
During the rescue attempts a letter was sent by the SPCA to Dr, Nadav Galon, Director of Veterinary Services, and Dr. Deganit Ben Dov, Supervisor by the Law for the Protection of Animals, at the Ministry of Agriculture, the main subject of which was the neglect and outrageous disregard regularly exhibited by the Regional Authority’s official veterinarians. The letter raised the subject of the present case, where the Authority’s veterinarian, Dr. Shregenheim, came to the site of the accident, concluded that there was nothing that he could do to extract the dog from the pit, and went on his way. The letter also expressed astonishment regarding the inappropriate manner of dealing with these cases and the lack of responsibility undertaken by the doctors who, in their official and professional positions, are supposed to care for animals in distress.
We wish to thank all those who helped save the dog and hope that in the future the doctors from the Veterinary Services and members of the Ministry of Agriculture, who are responsible according to the Law for the Protection of Animals, will act in real time to prevent the suffering of animals in distress. This is their duty.
