Two separate incidents of mass dog killings in Ankara over the past week have once again sparked nationwide protests, pressuring the parliament over Turkey’s inadequate stray animal rights laws. Animals rights advocates demand that every animal, with or without an owner, must be viewed as a living being by the law.

On the evening of April 10, the news of mass dog poisoning in Ankara’s Batikent district caused an uproar. A video showing dead dogs lying next to each other quickly circulated on social media, resulting in an immediate citizen reaction and the creation of the hashtag “#BatikentteKatliamVar” (“There’s a massacre in Batikent”).

Appalled citizens assembled on the side of a busy road, where many tried to remove the remaining poisoned baits. While some rushed the dogs to veterinary clinics nearby, others stood guard in the area until the next morning.

Ankara’s recently elected mayor from the main opposition Republican People’s Party, Mansur Yavas, announced on the night of the incident that he had appointed investigators and sent health personnel to the scene. On April 13, he announced that he would be taking part in the probe, siding with the stray dogs — news that was well received by the public.