A Kuwaiti-based company with ties to U.S. companies and multinationals is under fire from animal lovers for euthanizing 24 of its own bomb-sniffing dogs because it lost a contract with state-owned Kuwait National Petroleum Co.
Photos of the dead German Shepherds at the hands of their owner, Eastern Security, enraged animal welfare groups and sparked a petition through the online portal Care2 to force the U.S. Embassy in Kuwait to “secure the remaining 60-90 dogs” and turn them over to the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals International.
“The killing was not done by a licensed veterinarian and allegedly, the medicine used was not made for dogs, causing an excruciating death,” the group said. “Instead of a comfortable couch retirement, they were slowly and methodically murdered.”
The petition gathered nearly 60,000 signatures in two days.
Petition organizers claim that the dogs were trained in Louisiana and that Eastern’s top executives are U.S. citizens.
According to the company’s website, it is incorporated in Kuwait. It does list multinational KBR, Inc., and U.S.-based Gulf Clearing Co., as “strategic partners.”
Eastern Security did not respond to a request for comment.
Petition organizers claim “firsthand” accounts that report the dogs are mistreated and in need of medical care.
