Ukraine's stray dog slaughter ends

Bowing to pressure from Western civic groups, the Ukrainian government yesterday ordered all mayors to stop "euthanising" stray dogs and build animal shelters for them instead.

The killings had been ordered to clear the street for the Euro 2012 championship in June. Thousands of stray dogs have been killed in Ukraine over the past year, often poisoned or injected with illegal substances. Some cities in Ukraine have up to 10,000 strays.