(HK) Animal Earth's Stateent - Baby boy savaged by pack of stray dogs in Hong Kong

[Guest guest]

Statement

 

 

 

Dog Attack in Yuen Long, 2007-12-21

 

 

 

We wish to express sincere condolences to Chow Shui-lan, the 14-month-old

boy who was attacked by stray dogs in Yuen Long on Friday, 21 Dec 2007, as

well as his family. We hope he will have a speedy recovery from the tragedy.

 

 

 

It is very sad to see endless reports of similar attacks from time to time,

and it is quite instinctive for people to put immediate blame on the dogs.

But is it not more productive to take a logical step back and think about

who (apart from the attacked) the victims really are, why these incidents

take place and, most importantly, could such tragedies be avoided, and how?

 

 

 

One of the main causes of stray dogs is abandonment by people and by

commercial interests like, in this case, the container yard. Others sources

of homeless animals include construction sites, warehouses, illegal breeders

and puppy mills. Sometimes, people simply find their once-loved pets not

worth loving anymore. In Hong Kong, while it is a criminal offense to

abandon animals, we seldom see it enforced in reality. We urge the police to

step forward and track down the original owner of the container yard. One

person's decision has caused this tragedy and we demand that justice be

served to the toddler, his family, and the dogs who will now most likely

lose their lives.

 

 

 

When once-domesticated dogs are left on their own to survive, like any other

animals including humans, they have to act on instincts. Like us, animals

have different feelings, and when they feel threatened, they take action to

defend themselves.

 

 

 

These homeless dogs did not choose to be where they are. They are there

because of irresponsible people, unenforced laws, and uninformed government

policies and implementors. When their instincts caused them to hurt people,

the dogs are always chased after and, if caught, always killed. For over 20

years, the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department has maintained

its existence on such reactive operation. The cold fact is that the

department's practice will never solve the problem of strays. The dogs, as

well as the humans, are the victims.

 

 

 

Apart from calling for more stringent enforcement of abandonment laws,

animal welfare groups have long been working hard to bring

Trap-Neuter-and-Release (TNR) schemes into the local community. TNR has been

scientifically proven in similar overseas cities as a more humane and

effective way to alleviate the problem of homeless animals.

 

 

 

Catching and killing for more than 20 years has proven the AFCD ineffective

in controlling the number of strays. But sadly, AFCD has been very

antagonistic to individuals, groups, and district councils who are working

to help communities pilot these desexing programmes. Very little public

education has been carried out by our government to help people understand

more about the problem of homeless animals.

 

 

 

If stray dogs can simply be wiped out, it would not have taken our

Government 20 years and still sees no hope for achieving it. Something must

be wrong. We must have our laws enforced so that people cannot dispose of

dogs and cats as rubbish. There are well-researched schemes for dealing with

problems of strays which are readily available if the AFCD wishes to improve

it's current practice. Revenge killing alone will only get us into endless

loops of dog bites once every so often.

 

 

 

 

 

Animal Earth

 

 

 

 

 

_____

 

aapn [aapn ] On Behalf Of Cate

Sunday, December 23, 2007 11:40 PM

aapn

(HK) Baby boy savaged by pack of stray dogs in Hong Kong

 

 

 

Baby boy savaged by pack of stray dogs in Hong Kong

Dec 22, 2007

 

Hong Kong - A 14-month-old baby boy in Hong Kong was Saturday being treated

in hospital for severe bite injuries after being savaged by a pack of stray

dogs as he played outside him home.

 

Chow Shui-lan was playing in the yard outside him home on Friday afternoon

when the eight dogs mauled him, biting him on the head, arms, back and

buttocks, police said.

 

The boy's mother rushed out of their village home in Yuen Long near Hong

Kong's border with China when she heard her son screaming, and chased the

dogs away with the help of a passer-by.

 

Dog catchers were later sent out to try to trap the mongrel dogs, which are

thought to have attacked other children and villagers in the area in recent

weeks.

 

Hong Kong is home to more than 25,000 stray dogs. Many are used as

unofficial guard dogs on constructions sites, then abandoned when building

works are finished.

 

The dogs involved in the Yuen Long attack are believed to have been left to

run wild after being used as guard dogs at a container truck parking area

that closed last year.

 

2007 dpa - Deutsche Presse-Agentur

 

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