Stray Dogs Stuck in Turkish Bath for 8 Months

A large number stray dogs have been stuck in the heating system of Bayezid II (Sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1481 to 1512) Turkish bath in Beyazıt district of İstanbul.

It is unknown how many dogs live that place which is sunless and less than 1000 square meters. However, you hear the dogs’ barking and sense their odors from the furnace of the Turkish bath which belongs to İstanbul University.

A café was built where the furnace room existed and during the construction, some of the exit points were closed by contractors. The only exit way for the dogs was sealed off that way.

Volunteers say officials from İstanbul Municipality came and tried to take the dogs out with sticks and located cameras to monitor the dogs, nevertheless volunteers stated it wasn’t a dog-friendly rescue work and all of the animals couldn’t be saved since there were difficulties result from Council of Monuments. 

* The only exit way inside the heating system for dogs leading into the cafe (October 21, 2015)

Coffee managers uttered they weren’t aware of the dogs when they rented the place and they always left dog foods for the stucked animals:

“You can’t even bang a nail on the wall because it’s a historical building and no one wants to take a risk. We appealed to many organizations; Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency of Turkey (AFAD) came, İstanbul Metropolitan Municipality officials came…but these dogs still can’t be rescued.”

Managers added the dogs were afraid to leave their holes and took the dog foods while there was no one around.

There isn’t a physical obstacle for the dogs to leave outside but they cannot use the only exit from that sunless hole and it is thought that these animals lost their eyesight due to staying in darkness for a long time. It is estimated that the dogs got affected with tetanus, fungal infection, and their health went bad because of dead dog bodies, dampness and stale air. Even if these dogs are saved, how their rehabilitation process will go on is another question.

Animal Rights Federation: Problem starts with the restoration  

* Photo was taken, when the café hadn’t entered into service yet and just the restoration started. (2013)

The Animal Rights Federation in Turkey (HAYTAP) representative, Ege Sakin:

“Bureaucracy and the building’s being of a historical place extended the period. We went there with experienced vets. The problem initially started with the restoration works.

“We aren’t sure whether construction workers knew there were dogs or not but municipality officials rescued 15 or 20 dogs, they couldn’t rescue all of them.

“They kept restoration even though they knew the situation. Rest of the dogs accepted they would go outside ‘in some way’ but they were stuck inside that hole which wasn’t a natural exit but a carved gap by the builders for the usage of café.”

Lawyers negotiated Metropolitan Municipality

İstanbul Metropolitan Municipality (İBB) held a meeting yesterday to evaluate the situation. One of the meeting participants, İstanbul Bar Association Animal Rights Commission President Hülya Yalçın informed:

“There can be new deaths until a decision is made to demolish. Moreover, demolition works in a pretty narrow place can harm the life safety of the animals inside.

“We can’t take that risk so we will wait for the dogs until meal time to rescue them. Our first target is to initiate the dogs to going outside that hole. İBB will appoint a team for it. We will inspect the area tomorrow. A camera system will be set up in order to monitor how many dogs stay there. It looks like rescue works will take long because it is not possible for all of the dogs to come outside simultaneously.

 “It is unthinkable to mention about animal rights in Turkey when those animals have been living in a dark tunnel for 8 months without seeing the sun.” (AE/ÇT/BD)

 Click here to read the article in Turkish