As the Sochi Olympics approached, citizens began to feel conflicted at the sight of seeing stray dogs purposefully poisoned because officials believed the dogs would pose as a nuisance. Stray dogs are one of the concurrent issues that Russia has trouble dealing with. To clear up all the stray dogs, the solution that the government came up with was to hire a pest removal company to exterminate all the strays. This action sparked a great outrage towards the animal activists because the government decided to do it in such an inhumane way.

The number of stray animals in Sochi recently surged as countless backyards were demolished to make room for Olympic venues. Unfortunately, this forced many pet owners to abandon their pets. Another reason for the increasing number of strays is that Russia never declared a policy in spaying and neutering. If Russia did have policies regarding spaying and neutering in the first place, the population of these strays would not have increased as drastically and would have been easier to manage. Rather than addressing the source of this issue, the government is attempting to solve the problem by eradicating the stray dogs, which is far from the right solution.

Many citizens have reportedly witnessed the shootings of several dogs being shot at by chemical-filled darts. These dogs are then thrown into trucks that are strategically waiting nearby. No matter how many times advocates stressed the cruelty in their actions, authorities persist, claiming that the procedure is absolutely necessary.

To prevent further killings, the number of shelters in towns began to grow. The animals that are entering the shelters are all receiving medication making them eligible for adoption.

Killing dogs for the sake of space and room is unnecessary. Rather than solving the problem in an inhumane way, it would be efficient to establish novel policies that will work towards maintaining animal responsibilities and controlling animal populations.