Pallade Veneta - Vets bid to save Kosovo's stray dogs from cull through sterilisation

The sheer number of canines roaming free has become bothersome, and locals in the Podujevo district have drafted in experts to solve the problem "in the most humane way possible", according to vet Albatrit Halili.

He is part of a team of local veterinarians led by the Four Paws NGO who are sterilising and vaccinating the mutts to keep the population under control.

Some estimates put their number at 50,000 in the tiny Balkan country, sandwiched between Serbia, Albania, Montenegro and North Macedonia.

"I believe this programme is the only viable solution," said Halili.

The animals don't seem to mind -- one puppy wags its tail and bounces playfully as its cage is loaded into a van, while another enjoys having its coat ruffled by the vets.

Certainly they are better off this way than the more customary practice of culling.

And as there are not enough shelters to house them, these animals will be released and able to return to their life roaming the rubbish dumps.

Podujevo, which shares a long border with Serbia, is one of the worst-affected areas.

"In the absence of cross-border cooperation, the dogs can move around, sometimes on their territory, sometimes on ours," said Podujevo mayor Shpejtim Bulliqi.

This makes it difficult, he says, to even count the number of dogs.

But Luciana D'Abramo from Four Paws is confident that they will succeed, partly because the local community is on board with the campaign.

"We knew that there were lots of (attempts) and lots of goodwill to find solutions," she said, but the latest effort would be longer-term and better planned.

O.Pileggi--PV