The Turkish Parliament passed new legislation this summer that aims to remove all stray dogs from the streets by 2028, as these dogs are labeled by the government dangerous and causing harm to humans. This is a significant shift in policy in a country where street dogs have been embedded and accepted into its culture for centuries. Turkish animal welfare groups say in reality there are very few deadly dog attacks, but social media sensationalization and politicization of incidents have complicated debates. While everyone agrees there needs to be better plans to manage the country’s dog overpopulation, there is conflict on how to handle it. Animal advocates argue the 100,000 capacity in current shelters cannot humanely accommodate an estimated four million street dogs, calling the new stray dog legislation the “massacre law.” 

In the first episode of this two-part series, we explore the unique culture tradition of stray dogs living in Turkey, and discuss the problems and challenges around this new stray dog removal law.

We spoke to several guest experts about their perspective on Turkey’s stray dog dilemma with the new law. Guests include Elizabeth Lo (filmmaker), Nazlan Ertan (journalist), Lisanne Hillen (Melez Dog Rescue), and Ahmet Senpolat (HAYTAP, Animal Rights Federation).

For more information about the episode, guests, and featured links: www.dogsavethepeople.com/episodes/turkey-stray-dog-dilemma-2024-pt-1