The Guardia Civil's Seprona division is investigating the deaths of 27 hunting dogs in a van that was on a ferry which docked in Palma on Saturday morning.
The ferry had arrived from Barcelona. There were 36 dogs in all, just nine of them alive. A dozen hunters from Mallorca had been in Lithuania, where dogs are given specialised training for the hunting of woodcocks. The Council of Mallorca's website explains that this wading bird arrives in the Balearics in the autumn and winter and is "highly coveted by hunters".
Seprona officers were awaiting the results of necropsies to show the exact cause of death of the dogs, although it would appear that the dogs had suffocated. Arrangements were being made for cremation.
The hunters notified the ferry company of the deaths and that the company then contacted the Guardia Civil. The hunters had contracted a Catalan company which offers this type of transportation using a certified van.
Vehicles for this type of transport, which must be located in specific areas of ships’ holds, have an adapted ventilation system and backup batteries to respond to a possible breakdown, but the investigation carried out by Seprona and the hunters’ impressions indicate that this system didn’t activate and the dogs died of asphyxiation. The hunters say they are distraught by what has happened.