Hunting dogs rescued from a repeat offender hunter-breeder from Dordogne who left for Haute-Vienne
Around seventy dogs, geese, rabbits, and goats were kept in what we can only describe as a dumping ground. In other words, a farm building turned into a hellish place of filth and stench for the animals. This is where, on the morning of 4 March 2024, a group of police from the canine department, agents from the Haute-Vienne DDPP, and the mayor of the town where Richard Mandral’s new home is located, were dispatched. As the authorities’ first choice of representative, One Voice was there with its partners to save all of the dogs and to try to put a full stop to this hunter-breeder’s activities.
Along with the Haute-Vienne prefectural veterinary services, since January – and after much investigation footage and many legal proceedings in Dordogne since 2018 – we have moved heaven and earth to secure the maximum number of places in our partner rescue centres throughout France. We were able to rescue most of them. Other organisations had responded to a request from the administration as part of the legal proceedings, and were able to leave with the others. Thanks to them for their assistance. In the afternoon, the dogs were en route to the warmth of a loving home. They will initially be able to benefit from any care necessary, which is provided by professionals.
Run away and start again…
He had already adapted after being convicted for belonging to the Dog Connection network in the 1980s when hunting dogs, in addition to what they had already experienced, were sent to labs, following the summer of 2021, after his other conviction involving our rescue of sixteen of his dogs and multiple investigations, the repeat offender left Dordogne. He moved his out of control activities in breeding hunting dogs to a village situated at least 100 kilometres from there, in another department and even another region. What better way to escape the authorities, neighbourhood conflicts, and visits from our investigators? And to identically reproduce the operation, or even extend its harmful effects to other species…?
At the start of January 2024, we knew that the situation had – clearly – worsened in Haute-Vienne. We alerted the authorities and offered our logistical support. We had to act, and quickly. But without any places in rescue centres, it was not possible to do anything.
…a typical way of life for this hunter-breeder
On site, the dogs were not alone in wading distressed in mud and faeces. Rabbits were caged, chickens, geese, ducks, and turkeys joined their yelping cries. In the middle of the frosty hills, in a hutch in this cursed place, a rabbit snuggles against the lifeless body of its companion. Shut up in a van at the entrance to the property, a goat and its kid gaze upon the second baby that did not survive the birth that, according to the owner, happened overnight…
Nothing will stop us when it comes to these so-called “hunting” dogs!
Disputed by the hunting community, despite the videos and veterinary certificates which attested to the severity of the situation and despite a legal system that has refused to come down hard since 2019 because it only involved so-called “hunting” dogs, we have not given up.
Among our team and our supporters, no one forgot those sad griffons, porcelains, and dachshunds, some of whom wandered aimlessly and others who dug holes around the post where they were tied, while the weaker ones died without even being noticed and were eaten by their peers in a last attempt for survival. The memories of these dogs with deformed teats following repeated pregnancies, who had so much difficulty moving, of these dogs with enormous and painful untreated tumours, still haunt us.
Fear in so many of their looks… Where are the hunters who buy them and yet say they love their dogs? They turn a blind eye.
This repeat offender, who has spent his entire life (almost eight decades) abusing dogs and exploiting bitches, must be brought to justice once and for all! We will also fight tirelessly for the other animals and will be involved in proceedings against Richard Mandral in Haute-Vienne (and will thus bring criminal indemnification proceedings). These animals must not return to him under any circumstances and it is unlikely that he will be able to keep any animal whatsoever or continue his exploitation and reproduction activities. The dogs used by humans for hunting should receive as much care and consideration as any other, and their torturers should receive punishments appropriate for their wrongdoings. Hunter and impunity must no longer go hand in hand.