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BaselThe rescue of cats from Ukraine cost him more than 14,000 francs
A woman who lives in Basel has brought nine cats from Ukraine. The veterinary office learned of this and quarantined the animals. At the time of their recovery, the bill was salt.
Two of the Ukrainian cats.
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In late March, a Ukrainian woman reportedly brought rescued cats from the war zone and handed them over to a 61-year-old taxi driver who lives in Basel. “The cats were chipped, vaccinated and neutered on arrival”, explains the latter. She then entrusted them to interested persons in Switzerland. The veterinary office in Basel-City got wind of this story and quarantined the animals for a period of five months.
“When I wanted to pick up the cats one by one, I was only told that I first had to pay the total amount of 14,380 francs,” continues the taxi driver. When she wanted to know how this amount was calculated, she was simply told that we charged 50 francs per cat for one day. “Where am I going to find such a sum of money as a taxi driver?” she complained.
One story, two versions
The animals would finally have been returned to her without her having paid anything because the vet service was too overwhelmed by other residents. “The cats gave the impression of having been neglected: they were thin, sick and one of them had a broken tail”, condemns the 61-year-old woman. One of the cats would eventually die as a result of these ordeals.
Anne Tschudin, spokesperson for the Ministry of Health in Basel-City, disputes this description. “The cats were in good condition, considering the circumstances. The cat that unfortunately died suffered from a different problem than the one described,” she explains. She also states that she is not aware of a “broken tail”.
Anne Tschudin also reminds that animals cannot be imported illegally and that you cannot violate the special regulations regarding the import of animals from abroad.
( Gandalf Weidemann/aze)
