The State Animal Welfare Federation of North Rhine-Westphalia (LTV NRW) and the German Animal Welfare Federation welcome the decision of the NRW state government to help animal shelters in NRW with a special fund.
As part of the NRW Crisis Management Act, the state government has set up a special fund to deal with the current crisis situation, which also includes a total of EUR 1.5 million to relieve energy costs for animal shelters and similar facilities. “We are very pleased that the North Rhine-Westphalian Minister for Agriculture and Consumer Protection, Silke Gorißen, has followed the suggestion of the State Animal Welfare Commissioner, Gerlinde von Dehn, and is providing unbureaucratic financial support to organized animal welfare in North Rhine-Westphalia with its many animal shelters in this difficult situation for which we are not to blame. These 1.5 million euros will help to secure the structures in animal welfare,” said Dr. Ralf Unna, Vice President of the North Rhine-Westphalia Animal Welfare Federation.
Thomas Schröder, President of the German Animal Welfare Federation, was also pleased with the good news from Düsseldorf and thanked the state animal welfare officer: “Dr. Gerlinde von Dehn has worked resolutely to support the animal shelters on the basis of the figures and data determined by our state association and, by drawing up an equity guideline, has created the necessary conditions for the 1.5 million euros to now help the animal shelters.”
Thomas Schröder and Dr. Ralf Unna were hopeful that other federal states would follow the good example set by North Rhine-Westphalia. However, the initiative in NRW does not relieve the federal government of its responsibility, according to Schröder: “The concrete help now is good, but it does not solve the structural problems. Much more is needed for that.”
