Ragusa – It is a continuous and exhausting battle against neglect of animals, domestic, wild, free, stray. It is a battle that the volunteer and environmentalist Riccardo Zingaro, born in Puglia and Sicilian by adoption, He has been fighting for years against the ignorance and criminal acts of those who abandon or mistreat all animals as well as against the lack of attention of the administrations in dealing with what is a real social emergency: stray dogs.
In fact, Riccardo is the contact person for the province of Ragusa for Oipa, as well as being the coordinator for the same province of the Zoophile Guards of the International Animal Protection Organisation. And as such, even if ultimately his commitment has always been total, especially due to his nature, he has always taken care of other animals and has always made his own actions against the injustices that involve them.
«As Oipa we deal with animals and the environment – says Riccardo with whom we had already spoken in the article on the Clean Lands committee – and we monitor the territory together with the Terre Pulite group, reporting landfills and reporting environmental crimes such as fumaroles. This constant monitoring also allows us to understand how the packs of dogs move, reporting to the institutions any dangerous situations that require prompt intervention to prevent risks.”
TO DEAL WITH STRAYS, SHELTERS, HEALTH SHELTERS AND “FAMILY HOMES” ARE NEEDED
«Unfortunately – he says –, after years as a volunteer in the area, I can only say that the will of the institutions always remains the same, that of act in an emergency and patch things up, without addressing the issue of strays with foresight. A foresight that would require the creation of shelters, shelters and kennels where first aid should be given in the event of abandonment, feeding, vaccination and sterilization and then perhaps being able to reintroduce the dogs into their environment and in complete safety as happens in many civilized countries. and as the law requires.”
«The volunteers – he continues – meet at make up for the shortcomings of the institutions and the absence of planning against this phenomenon which is a social emergency and which should be addressed by professionals in the sector. I always preach that the world of volunteering must be made up of professionally trained volunteers who know what they are doing and, at the same time, what I find too often in institutions should be avoided, that is, that even those who have the various delegations concerning animals and the protection does not know the issue at all.”
Free dogs “should” be taken into care by the administration, vaccinated, dewormed and at the moment sterilized
In this situation of chaos and constant emergency, Riccardo and his “blue angels” from Oipa in Ragusa are taking care of 27 puppies, the children of two stray dogs. «We take care of these dogs and puppies by asking private individuals for help. Now obviously the whole adoption process will open.” «Thanks to our constant presence in the area we are always able to report risk situations and we realized how packs of dogs move, especially in summer, towards the city from the countryside where unfortunately they have been abandoned without control by the so-called owners, who in fact keep them on the farms without taking care of them. Unfortunately, this then gives rise to the creation of gatherings that can become dangerous for the animals themselves.”
OBJECTIVE: TO MAKE THE PUPPIES REMAIN IN THE AREA WHERE THEY WERE BORN
It all starts from abandonments. “AND There are also those who think that keeping a dog with you means alone leave him to guard a country farm and bring him food once a day.” «When we find an abandoned dog – he continues –, as required by law, we call the local police who make a discovery report by temporarily assigning it to a tutor who will then have it microchipped and sterilized free of charge in the name of the relevant administration. Then the adoption procedure starts and as far as I’m concerned I always try to find acceptance in the area.
We start from interviews with families, from pre-reliance, from checks, why where possible we try to keep these puppies in the area where they were born, ensuring that they are taken care of by loving families and not by people who, just because they have land, think they can take care of a dog and then lack veterinary visits, affection and control. But it’s not simple at all.”
The truth, as Riccardo points out, is that We need health shelters, those that have a first aid center inside which make it easier and quicker to intervene in emergency cases, especially at night and on holidays when healthcare is absent. The Municipalities are obliged to have them and I always suggest that the administrations choose to form a consortium in order to divide the management costs and guarantee veterinary assistance on a 24-hour basis. In an optimal situation, free dogs could be taken into care by the administration, vaccinated, dewormed and at the moment sterilized and then live peacefully among people and become community dogs. But for this we need planning.”
The same goes for kennels. «With the lack of availability of those proposed, as they are always overcrowded, some volunteers turn to private individuals and you are not always sure of finding good people. On the contrary. Not by chance, just last year, Oipa discovered a “lager” shelter for dogs and cats where, according to what has been reported, it seems that the owner of the structure offered stalls to local volunteers, always in action against stray dogs, and then left the poor animals in terrible conditions”.
YOU NEED A GUARANTOR MUNICIPALITY ON STRAY DOGS THAT YOU EXPLAIN THE PROCEDURES WELL
Among the actions to be launched in the area, Riccardo Zingaro also supports it the activation of the figure of a guarantor knowledgeable about stray dogs who explains the procedures to whoever has to deal with the first evaluation. «It is not possible – he says – that the citizen who finds a puppy cannot know who to contact or that he should even be afraid of calling the institutions and then have no idea what to do».
There’s more: in addition to abandoned dogs and cats or victims of accidents, the Ragusa Oipa section is also operational for the recovery of wildlife in difficulty and Riccardo Zingaro is the only volunteer in the province for the rescue and recovery of injured specimens traumatized, also recognized in this role by local authorities, who alert him in the event of findings or reports from citizens. A commitment that has allowed him over time to develop a particular propensity towards wild animals.
«Every year – he explains – there are around 10/15 specimens saved in the province: kestrels, hawks, buzzards, eagle owls found with broken wings, dehydrated or traumatised, are recovered and assisted in first aid, and then taken to the Wildlife Department hunting center of Ragusa. After treatment and rehabilitation in suitable environments, they are released, where possible, into the wild. Even because, we remember that wildlife is an unavailable patrimony of the State and that each Region has the task of protecting it in the interests of the national and international community”.
To find out more, read our interview with David Morettini.
