Arco’s Stray Dog Issue Resolved Thanks to New Shelter and Volunteers

The issue of stray dogs and dogs that have run away or been abandoned by their owners in Arco is practically no longer a problem.

Thanks to the daily commitment of volunteers from the Associazione difesa animali, who, in agreement with the municipal administration, handle the trapping and “rehoming” of animals, utilizing, as of a few days ago, the new shelter at the former slaughterhouse.

The new shelter

Modest but functional for the intended purposes, the shelter was created from a wing of the warehouse at the ex slaughterhouse in via della Cinta.

In front of the area where the cages are arranged, large and comfortable even for “extra-large” sizes, a high, rigid metal net has been erected, enclosing a space not very large but sufficient for “recreation” (not actual play: volunteers take the dogs for walks three times a day).

The facility was financed and built by the Comune with 25 million lire, 10 million more than initially planned.

The costs increased, explains Enrico Leoni, president of Ada, because it was necessary to make variants from the original project: replacing the soft net with a rigid one, which would have been easily torn down by large dogs, and enlarging the cages.

Thus, for quite a few years, the shelter will serve its purpose well, as established in the agreement signed on August 26, 1999, between Ada and the Comune.

Volunteers’ activities

The volunteers have committed to ensuring, 365 days a year, 24 hours a day, the trapping of stray dogs and their care for the following five days.

After that, if the dog is not returned to its owner or adopted by a new one, it is transferred to the shelter at Eppaa in Rovereto. The service provided by Ada for the Comune costs 80,000 lire per dog, covering expenses for food and any veterinary treatments.

The time spent by active members is naturally volunteered.

Their group (which includes Leoni, along with Rodolfo Ferrari, Elisabetta Prandi, Roberto Rigatti, Piero Tamburini, Nadia Torbol, and Rita Zanella) is driven by passion, and the only reward is bringing escaped dogs home and finding families for the “orphans,” as happened with the litter (there were six, now all adopted) of adorable mongrels abandoned at the former slaughterhouse about twenty days ago.

The agreement and initiatives

No one complains about the agreement, strongly promoted by the councilor Miori; on the contrary. It was modeled after those of Rovereto and Trento, and Borgo has now requested a copy.

Riva would do the same if only it could find someone willing to take on the role of Ada, which, due to a shortage of personnel, has had to decline the proposal from councilor Andreozzi to also manage stray dogs in Riva.

“We do not have enough forces,” Leoni explains; “We are also committed to educating about respect for animals.”

So far, we have organized four public meetings and are planning initiatives in schools. More than that…»