"Leg Rotting, He Tied a Pipe to It": Volunteers Accuse Farmer of Animal Abuse
In the Rodnikovy settlement of the Zhirnovsky district (Volgograd region), volunteers are sounding the alarm: according to them, the owner of one of the farms is treating animals with extreme cruelty, denying them food and water, and refusing to provide veterinary care.
As Yana Chernobrovkina, one of the leaders of a small volunteer center in Zhirnovsk, told V1.RU, she learned about the animals on the farm in the middle of last year.
«In the summer, a guy who has a farm nearby was driving his horses and saw that this man«s horse was standing with a pipe on its leg. He approached and was horrified: the horse had a broken leg, and this farmer had put an ordinary pipe on its leg. It was covered in flies, the smell was unreal. I went to the veterinary station, called a doctor. He examined it, said what medications needed to be purchased. I bought them with my own money, just to help this unfortunate horse.»
A week later, Yana came to the farmer to ask if he was doing anything to help the horse.
«As it turned out, absolutely nothing. We gave injections once then, treated it, and stopped at that. Then I bought bandages, we bandaged it, treated it ourselves as best we could. In the end, I arrive one fine day, and the horse is gone. He said he gave it away, and I don«t know… Maybe it was killed?»
On the farm live «skeleton dogs» — as Yana calls them. A couple of them were managed to be placed «in loving homes,» but not all were so lucky.
«One puppy of his died: it ate some poisoned mouse. I brought him two huge boxes of meat bones, with cereal. But he fed them just cereal in water, which they don«t eat, and even that I only saw once. An acquaintance says that he himself is starving: at work he finishes everyone»s leftovers, even spoiled food. I would have kept bringing these bones, but I just don«t believe he will feed them.»
As Yana told, with each visit of volunteers to the farm, the man became more aggressive and hindered assistance in various ways.
«He told me that he works in the fire service and all his salary and pension go to paying off loans. He allegedly has fifteen hundred rubles ($17 at current rates) left per month. It«s impossible to live on that money. I came every other day, and people helped me feed the animals: some gave skins, some gave cereal. One day he started yelling at me, asking why I come to him. I explained that I would just feed them and leave, not steal anyone, not do anything. Literally on Thursday he made a scandal again. He sees that we are walking waist-deep in snow, making our way to him with a bucket of food — he stood there, laughing. Then he said that he took all the animals home, and we have no right to go there. All our work is in vain.»
When asked why the man has so many animals if they don«t bring him income, Yana answers: on the farm they »just exist,« and what is going on in the farmer»s head, she can«t even imagine.
«He recently had a dog give birth to a puppy. Two days later he took and cut off its ears, to make the puppy look like an Alabai (Central Asian Shepherd). He cuts off the tails of other small puppies… Can you imagine what«s in his head? In his pen, goats and sheep just live. He believes that all animals should die a natural death, meaning he doesn»t slaughter them for meat. They just exist. He has a horse, very thin. I personally gave it water in the summer. In the sweltering heat, none of the animals had water — it«s just abuse! He keeps breeding and breeding puppies, and we give them away.»
V1.RU«s correspondent failed to reach the farmer himself: no one answered the call.
V1.RU editorial office has inquired with the Main Directorate of the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs for the Volgograd Region whether any reports have been filed regarding the farm and animal cruelty, and whether an inspection is being conducted.
Recall that recently in the Tulak microdistrict, concerned volunteers tried to save a dog found on a stairwell among puddles of its own blood and feces. That same night the pet died, and animal rights activists intended to pursue criminal prosecution of the perpetrator. According to the volunteers, the dog was not only beaten but also previously attempted to be poisoned.
