He removed a kidney from a healthy mutt to transplant it into a purebred dog. There is a court decision
A mutt was adopted in one of the shelters near Warsaw. Saturn, as the dog is called, was supposed to be taken from there only to serve as an organ donor. The court decided to appeal after the verdict regarding the veterinarian.
The Viva International Animal Movement Foundation describes that the event took place in 2013. Shortly after adoption, an organ was removed from a healthy dog and transplanted to another – a sick, purebred shepherd dog. However, it did not help – the recipient died anyway. Saturn, however, was given to its next owners.
They performed an ultrasound. The sad truth came to light
They, not knowing anything about the dog's past, one day took him for an ultrasound examination. It then turned out that the dog was missing one kidney. He also had a scar where the incision was made to remove the organ, which was further evidence. In 2018, the foundation submitted a notification to the prosecutor's office on suspicion of committing a crime.
The District Court for Warsaw Mokotów in Warsaw acquitted the veterinarian. The justification stated that he acted “in a state of extreme necessity, saving a more important good – the life of an animal,” Viva describes. Attorney Katarzyna Topczewska informed about filing an appeal in this case.
The attorney says that her and the foundation's position on this matter is the same: “you cannot save the life of one animal at the expense of the health of another.” It is worth adding that after everything, Saturn required special treatment and did not return to his former condition – although he was a healthy dog before the procedure. – There was no doubt in my mind that Saturn suffered huge consequences of people's unethical decisions and, as a result, he could not live a normal life – says attorney Topczewska.
There is a decision of the district court. The fight isn't over yet
The district court overturned the judgment, which means that the case will be considered by the district court again. In the meantime, the decision was appealed to the Supreme Court, but the complaint was also dismissed.
It is worth adding that this is also about the identical case of Tosia's dog. This stray dog also donated a kidney to another dog, like Saturn. Both transplants were to be performed by a veterinarian who was charged as a result of the investigation, the foundation reports.
