Euthanizing masses of innocent companion animals is not only inhumane, it will not solve the problem. There is considerable cost to that, also. This is not an animal problem, it's a people problem.

Any effective animal control programme must include at the very least:

- Effective laws against animal cruelty, neglect, abandonment and roaming pets, and
enforcement of same, including stiff penalties for violations
- Widespread high volume, low cost or free spay/neuter services (a good start would be
removing the prohibitions on foreign vets coming in to volunteer their time AND supporting
that with funding and resources)
- Education on responsible pet ownership
- TNR for community/feral cats

In addition to those components, the Bahamas needs to regulate out of control for-profit breeding, especially of bully breed dogs (which are banned from importation but somehow are the most prevalently bred breed in this country) and toy dogs especially Shih Tzus and mixes thereof.

It is unfair to expect underfunded, overwhelmed private non-profits to shoulder the majority of this burden.

The sad and frustrating thing is that this problem is absolutely solvable in an island nation with finite borders. But it gets little to no attention from the powers-that-be and little to no support or funding. So the non profits continue putting band-aids on gaping mortal wounds, and the issue continues to be ignored by those who are mandated to be responsible, and thus it will only get worse.

The Dept. of Agriculture opened an "animal control unit" on Grand Bahama in 2017. Four years later they still have nowhere to house animals. So unless the HSGB will or can accept them (with no recompense),that animal control unit is almost useless. They also have no directives to enforce laws or issue citations or cause arrests to be made. This is our tax dollars at work. Has anyone any knowledge of how effective the animal control unit on Nassau is these days?

There is a better way. It takes money and resources and governmental and private support. If more people would voice their concerns directly to their elected officials, perhaps it would be taken more seriously and meaningful ongoing action would occur.

If all of this could happen it would be at an initial considerable cost. But it is completely realistic to expect meaningful results within a relatively short period of time - 3-5 years and then the costs could start to be reduced as long as the other maintenance type components remain in place.

Keeping liquor stores closed is starting to feel more like a moral edict, than a reasonable safety effort and that should never happen in a democracy. The Bahamian Brewery in Freeport especially, had just started to get back on their feet after Dorian. The liquor store I'm sure was helping them to finance the reconstruction of the brewery. People are out of work. For what? A moral judgment? Do the powers that be WANT Grand Bahama to completely sink into the abyss and never recover? This store and many others have that have the ability to provide safe delivery and/or curbside service should be allowed to do so asap.

Pit bulls are generally not savage dogs. In fact they used to be known as wonderful family dogs, "nanny dogs" even. But they are being bred here at a ridiculous rate purely for profit, and bred for extreme physical and temperamental qualities that are detrimental and not recognized by any reputable kennel club. Many are not being treated well, which of course can lead to problems. The breed gets demonized because of idiot breeders who are doing them no favors. Ironic that it is illegal to import bully breed dogs into the Bahamas, but there are absolutely no laws prohibiting the unchecked breeding that goes on. Catching illegal imports at the border seems to be a problem also. Banning a breed has never fixed a problem anywhere it has been enacted. To be effective and progressive, better to require that all imports be spayed or neutered, and start enforcing better the existing requirement that all dogs imported must be at least six months old. At the same time, work on licensing and limiting breeders because as it stands now, it's like the wild west. Any and every one can breed any kind of dog with absolutely no oversight, licensing requirements, or veterinary care.

Meantime, sincerely hope the butcher who killed the dog featured in this story is found and prosecuted to the full extent of the law, including on animal cruelty charges.

Bravo Kim Aranha for writing this. Everyone who cares about animal welfare in this country should be commenting, and calling the relevant authorities on a regular basis. I challenge the Tribune and all other media in this country to be real journalists; investigate this and report on it, and keep following up. Instead of merely printing an opinion letter once every year or so, and getting a placating comment from a government department now and then, and then forgetting about it. Til the next horse drops dead on the street, or enough pictures of a bony and/or lame horse circulate online.

We wonder why our tourism dollars keep declining. We are stuck in the dark ages. The surrey horses are a perfect example. This is not culture. This is animal cruelty, plain and simple. The era when this was a charming, safe and humane excursion are clearly long past. Unfortunately, some ignorant tourists still participate in this horror, but many many more recoil at the sight of these poor horses and their old, chafing, broken down equipment, and how they are overworked day after day. Their lack of fresh water and food throughout the day is not only cruel but illegal, and if people could only see where and how the poor animals are housed at night, they would be even more horrified. Why are the laws not being enforced. Department of Agriculture? Department of Transportation? Tourism? Cabs Board? rbpf? vmab?

a nation is judged on many things. As many more people around the world are becoming more aware and sensitive to animal exploitation, this is certainly one very visible issue we are being judged negatively on and rightfully so. Will we act... or will we continue to sanction this atrocity?

*"Besides failing to point out to the Supreme Court that the project was approved prior to the Bahamas signing on to the CITES and UNEP treaties, Blue Illusions alleged the Attorney General’s Office had also “deliberately failed to prosecute” the appeal of Justice Isaacs’ ruling, which was struck out."*

The Bahamas signed onto CITES in 1979. UNEP's SPAW treaty in 1990.

Blue Illusion's exploitative project was approved in the 1970's??? Were their lawyers that derelict, or were promises made that led them down this illegal path?

Are any of these regulations under the Marine Mammals Protection Act actually being enforced with regard to Blackbeard's Cay and the other three Bahamian captive dolphin facilities?
http://faolex.fao.org/docs/pdf/bha78763…

Past time to stop exploiting animals for human profit and greed. Do the right thing.

Sorry. This is just ignorant, misogynistic, and homophobic. Somebody please explain to me where all these foreign men are going to flock from to make babies with Bahamian women in order to get citizenship in this country with over 16% unemployment. Seriously? What is so great about becoming a citizen here anyway?! Voting yes simply means you are endorsing that Bahamian women have the same rights as men in this country. And if you say no to that, you are saying you want the Bahamas to be on the same level as backwards countries like Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan....what a distinction.

Would someone please explain why so many people seem to be ok with denying the children of Bahamian men citizenship. This child's mother is a permanent resident of the Bahamas and has been here since she was a child herself. The child was born here and has grown up here. If her father were foreign and her mother Bahamian she would be straight. This is clearly discriminatory and wrong and THIS Is what the referendum seeks to correct. To say one solution is for the mother to sign over her parental rights is just downright heartless and mean. Do you realize that means the mother has to say she basically denounces and rejects her child? THAT is a humane solution? The homophobia and xenophobia being exhibited by so many is truly frightening and is what will continue to keep this country firmly entrenched in third world status. For anyone to think that voting yes is going to mean a huge influx of foreign men coming here to marry Bahamian women. Think again. Come here for what? Our incredible economic opportunities? Our thriving economy? Our social benefits? Come on. And actually the Dept of Immigration has a great procedure in place to ensure that marriages are genuine and they can weed out the convenience ones. And nothing in this referendum gives automatic citizenship to anyone. It only gives all legitimate spouses of Bahamian citizens the right to APPLY for citizenship. Does not mean they will get it.

They are not uncared for. They were uncared for by their former irresponsible owners, or in many cases, by caring owners who had no choice but to give them up due to economic hardships, but they are very much cared for by the people at the shelter who rescued them. They are living breathing feeling creatures with a right to life, too, with very few caring humans speaking out for them. Suffering people have many organizations and gov't agencies to help them. The poor animals have only a pitiful few private organizations in their corner. Certainly everyone is free to donate to the cause of their choice but we hope that everyone is donating to something and not just criticizing. "The moral progress of a nation can be judged by how its animals are treated. - Mahatma Gandhi". Perhaps our crime rate would not be so high if more people had more regard for the voiceless defenseless animals. Kindness and compassion seem to be in short supply these days and what does that say about this nation and indeed this world.

Perhaps those posting with outrage over human issues should look in the mirror. If those are the causes nearest to your heart, what are YOU doing to assist those children, the homeless, the downtrodden? It seems that only those who care about animals and the environment care deeply enough to keep making noise and at least try to effect change. Where are the petitions and protests for better education, better living conditions for the poor and more opportunities, decent garbage service, anti-crime and drug initiatives, just to name a few? There are really only a handful of people in this country advocating for anything in an organized manner. There are thousands more who always jump up in a huff when an animal issue is brought to the forefront...but any person with a voice can start a movement and work for a cause! Please don't criticize those advocating for animals or the environment if you yourself are not working for any cause that you are so indignant about on this page. If you want those stories to feature prominently in the news, what are you doing to get them featured? The Tribune decided to do this story only after receiving emails and phone calls from concerned advocates who care enough to keep pushing day after day week after tiring week with very little community support to solve a problem which is caused and perpetuated by the community at large - finally an article in the paper about this horrific store and all you can do is attack the people trying to do something about it? You don't have to love animals to understand that the abuse and neglect of animals is directly linked to abuse and mistreatment of humans, and often leads to violence against humans. If we can't even treat the least among us, the truly defenseless and voiceless, with even a modicum of compassion, it does not speak well of us as a nation, and no wonder crime is so high and things are so rough for so many. How many of you criticizing the BHS about the surrey horses ever called the police to report an infraction or a struggling skinny malnourished horse? Have you ever dared to say something to the surrey drivers? Perhaps if more people would join together in compassion and concern for ALL righteous humane causes, this country would be in a better place today.

The police and the Dept. of Agriculture are the agencies tasked with enforcing animal cruelty laws, not the BHS. Lay blame where it is due.