18+. Photos. Dismembered, decapitated and shot dogs found in Gyumri. What the municipality says.

On the weekend, dismembered and decapitated dogs were discovered in Gyumri, while today, some were found in a half-dead state with traces of gunshots. This is reported by Armenian Time.

"After the horrific incidents in Gyumri were raised first on social media and then in animal rights groups, the citizens who found the dogs submitted reports to the Police. A lady named Manushak discovered a dog’s head in her doorway (Moses Khorenatsi 2nd building), while its two legs were found the next day in front of her house. "I found the dog’s head in our entrance, the remnant around its neck. I put it in a bag and kept it. I let my dog out, and it went and brought those legs back. At first, I thought maybe it was killed and sold for meat, but since it brought the legs, then there must've been meat on it too; dogs eat it. Today many dogs are being shot in the city, and I will think that rather than cutting off their heads, they have shot them, left them, and the dogs are hungry, and they have eaten them. And the places where they ate, they are not evenly cut; it’s like they were pulled apart, cut where it was thin. This is not the work of a butcher; this is not the work of a head cutter, there is one shooter. Either from the municipality, the governor's office, or someone whose child has been scared, I don’t know," Manushak told us.

Gyumri resident Heghine also reported to Armenian Time about shooting dogs and leaving them helpless on the sidewalks this morning. She stated that she is still psychologically disturbed, unable to forget the sound of the half-dead animal in her ears. "In the morning, on my way to work right in front of the Tigran the Great restaurant (49 Teryan), I saw a shot dog in terrible condition. This is already the nth animal that has either been shot or decapitated. The municipality, the governor's office, I don’t know; I will even go to the blessed one, they have no right to close their eyes to all this. It is unbearable; there is a shot animal on every sidewalk, and the children will also see all this," Heghine said.

On social media, accusations are also being directed at the Gyumri municipality. Previously, the sterilization of dogs in Gyumri was carried out by the "My Vet" clinic under a contractual agreement with the municipality. Today, another company is performing the same work. Many Gyumri residents assure that there have been the corpses of killed dogs and half-dead animals in various streets of the city for several days.

Gyumri's Deputy Mayor David Arushanyan has also heard about this but unequivocally denies the municipality's involvement in what happened. He stated in a conversation with us that they are also concerned about the occurrences. "We have instructed them to contact the Police to understand what happened," emphasized Arushanyan.

When asked whether the municipality has instructed to neutralize the animals through shooting, the Deputy Mayor denied that as well. "Of course, we have not given an instruction to anyone to shoot. We sterilize the dogs. Animals undergo laboratory tests; dangerous dogs are put to sleep through injection. The organization that is currently engaged in this work, in my opinion, has experience in this, all documents are available, and they have the right to engage in such activities," explained the Deputy Mayor of Gyumri.

There are also rumors that animals are brutally neutralized in the street, for example, by tying them with a rope and pulling them. This information was not denied by David Arushanyan either. "Of course, there are dogs that you can coax, love, and play with to get into a vehicle, and then there are dogs that you should catch using specialized equipment that is not dangerous for the dog. It's better to use those methods that are within the law to take them, research those dogs that are dangerous. Yes, they should be put asleep. I am not afraid to say that. If we are not doing this, the knife has reached the bone, and people will kill," said the Deputy Mayor.

He also informed that all current publications will be clarified in cooperation with the police so that it is clear what types of videos and photographs they are, when and where they were made. A consultation has also taken place in the municipality concerning this issue. "Once again, we assure that there is no directive from us to treat the dogs in this manner. Our primary concern is ensuring the safety of humans—without violating any laws," emphasized David Arushanyan.

Currently, there are about 2700 dogs in Gyumri, of which almost 1600 have been sterilized in 2020-21. Subsequently, the process was halted for specific research purposes. "We paused the sterilization process for a moment. We saw that the municipality spent a significant amount, sterilization had been done for two years, but rather than resolving the issue, it deepened. Today, the problem is more current than it was two years ago when we did not sterilize. This means something was wrong. We understood that the problem cannot be solved solely with sterilization. Parallel euthanasia also needs to occur to maintain that balance," explained Arushanyan.

The new company currently has an obligation to sterilize 500 dogs, but there is a goal to increase that number not in one year but in a tighter timeframe. According to the Deputy Mayor, if only 500 dogs are sterilized in 365 days, more new dogs will be born during that time. "After finishing with 500, they will move on to the next 500. We need to be able to sterilize all the dogs in the city within one year. There is no other way. Those that should be euthanized will also be euthanized. There are 30 million drams allocated, but if needed, more money will be provided. This is a problem that must be solved," stated David Arushanyan.

The Armenian police also informed Armenian Time that they have not received any reports or alerts so far, and the publication will be examined.