“For an investigation into the Plérin pound. It is with this title that a petition opened on the Mesopinions.com site was launched by a defender of the animal cause in Brittany. Located a stone’s throw from Saint-Brieuc, this kennel welcomes 80% of stray animals in Côtes-d’Armor, often at the request of town halls. Member of the Assistance Society for the Control of Animal Populations (SACPA), the establishment is in the sights of Emilie Tournay, an animal protection activist based in the neighboring department of Ille-et-Vilaine. “I have seen negative testimonies passing on this pound for several years, in particular on suspicions of euthanasia carried out without respecting the legal deadline (eight days). I believe that checks should be carried out to verify that everything is respected, ”explains the author of the petition.
In recent days, the text has peaked at 25,000 signatories. A significant number which can be explained by the relays of a few animal protection Facebook pages. In the ranks of the kennel teams, this text has hurt. “It’s a flood of comments from people who don’t even know us. We have protocols to respect and we respect them. We have unexpected checks by the veterinary services and we have never hidden anything, ”defends Bernard Pecatte, regional manager of the SACPA in Brittany.
“There will always be unhappy people”
In the comments of the petition, several people testify to a bad experience with the pound, referring in particular to the death of animals before the legal deadline of eight days. Negative opinions that can also be found on Google, where several Internet users criticize the reception received. “There will always be unhappy people. And it is often them who put an opinion on social networks, ”replies the manager of the company in Brittany. The latter explains that the amount of 94 euros claimed to recover the animal is often badly perceived. Especially when the latter is not chipped and the pound has to charge 70 euros more. “That’s often when things go wrong. Sometimes we have to call the cops. »
Since August, however, the pound has been the subject of a complaint filed by a resident of the Saint-Pol-de-Léon sector (Finistère). The latter is convinced that the cat he has been caring for for several months has been euthanized at the Plérin pound. “I dropped him off on Friday. When I saw the reviews for the establishment I wanted to pick it up but had to wait until Monday. And when I called on Monday, they told me that my cat had escaped,” says Alban. The latter does not believe for a second in the thesis of the escape through the window delivered by the pound. “He was almost blind! I was lied to. In the ranks of the pound, we talk about human error. “The animal was not chipped. It is a legal obligation in our services. When it was time to identify it, the cat escaped through the window,” defends the SACPA official. For the time being, the complaint had not given rise to any hearing.
