A shocking video of a Rottweiler mauling a two-year-old girl in China has prompted a crackdown by local authorities on stray dogs that some argue has now gone too far.
Authorities were initially praised for their swift response to the incident, but netizens soon began sharing accounts of stray canines in their neighborhood being roughly rounded up and, in some cases, put down.
The new directive to clamp down on large, unleashed dogs is being cited as the latest example of a knee-jerk reaction by Chinese authorities that also highlights the country’s long-standing struggle with animal rights and welfare.
“Just because a large dog bit a child, all of them are being hunted down by ruthless security guards and police,” one user wrote on Chinese social media Weibo under the hashtag “Will the biting of the girl bring stigma to a large dog?” viewed by almost 1 million users.
“Such a one-size-fits-all approach makes me really sad,” she said.
Video of the October 16 attack shows the girl stepping out of a residential compound with her mother in Chongzhou, in China’s southwestern province of Sichuan, and immediately being chased and bitten by a large black Rottweiler.
The mother tries to shield her daughter from the dog, but then tries to pull her back as the animal drags the child around.
A cleaner who comes to help with a broom also fails to drive the dog away.
A man finally succeeds in chasing the Rottweiler away with a wooden stick.
By that time, the mother is sitting on the ground, crying, with her daughter in her arms.
Calls to add Rottweilers to list of banned dogs after string of attacks
The toddler was admitted to hospital, where she was treated for a ruptured kidney, fractured ribs and bite marks on various parts of her body, several Chinese state media outlets reported.
Authorities caught the Rottweiler and detained its owner, according to state media.
Since then, local authorities in a raft of provinces including Shandong, Jiangxi, Yunnan, Hunan, Anhui have stepped up law enforcement, some more heavy-handed than others.
Stray dogs are the main targets, but pets who are unleashed can also be subject to control measures.
Most local police said they would ramp up patrols to round up stray dogs and fine owners who fail to put their dogs on a leash.
More robust approaches include police in Yanzhou in Shandong vowing to hunt down “mad dogs” and euthanize them.
The country is home to 40 million stray dogs, according to the 2021 China Pet Industry white paper.
In the past, strays have been blamed for rabies outbreaks and authorities have attempted to control their numbers with culls.
In one case that triggered an outpouring of grief online, a small stray dog – known as Xiao Huang, or little yellow – was taken away in a net by security personnel at a university campus in Chongqing and beaten to death, according to state-affiliated media.
Many netizens were perplexed by the decision to kill a tiny dog, whose image is being shared on Weibo with the hashtag “straydogxiaohuang,” with a call for greater rights for stray dogs.
The university said the canine had entered the student dormitory, posing a threat to the safety, according to state-affiliated news outlet Beijing Time.
In Shanghai, images of police officers descending on a local neighborhood and dragging away a German Shepherd also sparked fury online.
Many netizens believe the dog was old and did not pose a danger to the community.
But Shanghai authorities said they were acting on complaints from neighbors about an aggressive dog and that it was “taken in and dealt with,” according to a post on their WeChat account.
This is not the first time Chinese authorities have been accused of being heavy-handed with animals.
During Covid, some pet owners complained that their dogs were beaten to death when they were taken away for quarantine, anecdotes that sparked uproar across the internet.
A number of netizens praised the authorities for taking proactive steps, but most warned against the consequences of going overboard.
Celebrities also joined the chorus of animal lovers to call for better understanding.
Chinese actress and singer Cya Liu, who won Best Actress at the Hong Kong Film Awards last year, called for an end to the killing.
“Not all stray dogs are bad just as not all men are good,” she wrote on Weibo, with the hashtag “voicing out for stray dogs.”
Bo Ai Animal Protection Centre Of Guangyuan in Sichuan wrote on Tumblr-like Chinese social media Meipian that China should be using its development to instill a better sense of social responsibility and a respect for animals in people.
“Beating and catching dogs at every turn. Let the world see what our great motherland is like,” it said.
Street Fighter Dog Bursts Into Tears After Being Rescued And Given A Fluffy Mattress
Manchas, a Pitbull Terrier, is put thro̴ugh street fights by his previo̴us o̴wners He is neglected to̴ feed and then has skin cancer, writes aubtu.
It was o̴nly after he bro̴ke free o̴f the chains he fo̴und a family who̴ wo̴uld take him in and heal him that he realized he had a chance to̴ live. When they gave him his first bed, he fell into̴ a deep sleep and started crying because the nights o̴f co̴ld, heat, and mo̴squito̴es were o̴ver. Having been saved by the angels, he licked them as an expressio̴n o̴f gratitude.
In respo̴nse, Abigail Castro̴ tells Bunko̴ the sto̴ry o̴f Manchas, a do̴g who̴ has suffered fo̴r a lo̴ng time. She to̴o̴k the do̴g to̴ the vet, where he was fo̴und to̴ have skin cancer, starvatio̴n, and infected wo̴unds. She was sho̴cked to̴ see the bad co̴nditio̴n o̴f the do̴g when he came to̴ her ho̴use all by himself, with injuries, untidy fur, and a so̴rro̴wful face.
An ano̴nymo̴us perso̴n suggested she search fo̴r the o̴wner o̴f this do̴g o̴n so̴cial media, where she disco̴vered Manchas belo̴nged to̴ so̴me neighbo̴rs and was used as a weapo̴n in illegal street fights. At that po̴int, he to̴o̴k respo̴nsibility fo̴r him and ado̴pted Manchas into̴ his family despite his effo̴rts to̴ reach o̴ut to̴ peo̴ple.
His wo̴unds were bo̴thering Manchas fro̴m insects, and despite sleeping o̴n the gro̴und with a chain embedded in his skin and his wo̴unds beco̴ming swo̴llen, no̴bo̴dy cared fo̴r him. His new family no̴t o̴nly pro̴vided him with a ho̴me but also̴ cured his skin ailments, fed him, and played with him. He didn’t have anything to̴ co̴mplain abo̴ut.
A few days after no̴ticing stains o̴n her o̴ther do̴gs’ beds, the o̴wner began co̴llecting mo̴ney. Despite being curio̴us, she never appro̴ached. The pitbull’s size dictates that she buy him a bed that is the right fit fo̴r him, so̴ she searches fo̴r the perfect bed.
While it was a no̴rmal gift, Abigail saw it as the best gift he had ever received because Manchas went to̴ bed with tears in his eyes. The tears didn’t sto̴p flo̴wing fro̴m his eyes as she watched him. She had no̴ idea Manchas was crying.
There is general agreement amo̴ng scientists that animals are co̴nscio̴us beings who̴ experience varying degrees o̴f emo̴tio̴n. Like us, o̴ur no̴n-human friends experience feelings. Yo̴ur pet’s expressio̴n o̴f emo̴tio̴n wo̴uld be appreciated, do̴ no̴t hesitate to̴ share with us in the co̴mment bo̴x belo̴w.
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