Two people are prosecuted for animal abuse in Risaralda and Bogotá

This Sunday, April 17, the Attorney General's Office prosecuted two people who would have caused the death of two dogs. The events are not interrelated; the first occurred in Arpia, Risaralda and the other was reported in Bogotá.

According to the investigating body, the case in Risaralda was presented on May 26, 2021. “Luis Alberto Durango — the first to be prosecuted — would have thrown poisoned food at a dog named Carpaty,” the Prosecutor's Office explained in a press release. The facts were recorded on a security camera, which is evidence, since minutes after the animal ingested the piece of food, the canine began to convulse.

A prosecutor from the Special Group for the Fight against Abuse of Animals (GELMA) conducted an investigation that establishes that Durango attacked the dog because it was allegedly “barking a lot” and that it had caused problems with the dog's caretaker. “In that sense, Luis Alberto Durango was accused of the crime of animal abuse,” the judicial body said.

The case that occurred in Bogotá is quite similar. Myriam Patricia Heredia, the caretaker of a dog named Luna, did not have her pet in optimal conditions. For that reason she was charged with the crime of animal abuse.

According to investigations by the Prosecutor's Office, the case was filed on November 17, 2018 after the District Institute for Animal Protection and Welfare made an inspection visit to a house in the town of Engativa, in the western part of the capital. “In the place they found Luna in poor nutrition and health conditions, and with obvious alterations in her behavior,” the entity said in the document.

The animal was taken to a veterinary care center, where it was detected internal bleeding that had not been treated in a timely manner. “Given the seriousness of his condition, the specialists euthanized him,” added the Prosecutor's Office.

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These are the legal consequences of animal abuse in Colombia

Animals, whether domestic or wild, are subject to violations of their rights in Colombia. Faced with this, those who perpetrate these attacks are subjected by the Attorney General's Office to multiple legal consequences that discourage the practice.

The judicial body explained that the appeal of Law 1774 of January 6, 2016 is available. This regulation ensures that the attitude between humans and animals is based on “respect, solidarity, compassion, ethics, justice, care, the prevention of suffering, on the eradication of captivity and abandonment,” the document cites.

On the other hand, the well-being of living beings lies, in turn, in that their holder must comply with five minimum principles: that they should not suffer from hunger, thirst, physical discomfort or pain; that they are not caused by negligence or carelessness, that they are not subjected to fear or stress and that they can manifest their natural behavior.

Those who cause death or injury that seriously impair the health or physical integrity of the animal may face imprisonment between 12 and 36 months. In addition, they would face special disability of one to three years for the exercise of profession, trade, trade or possession related to animals.

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