Tamashbeen
This is a distubring photo. Maybe even more than the one I had posted earlier.
It shows “sanitary workers” (wow, what a ‘sanitary’ spin!) in Karachi disposing of “dog carcasses” in Karachi as part of a municipal campaign to “eliminate” stray dogs. Supposedly, there are an alarming number of stray dogs in Karachi and around 150,000 people in Pakistan are bitten by stray dogs annually.
I find the picture of so many dead dogs disturbing and I am sorry to shove it in your face, but I have been wondering whether there is a better solution to this. There has to be. But what?
Life as a stray dog in Pakistan cannot be easy or good for the dog. And as many of us know, living around stray dogs is not easy or good either. In many cases they turn into semi-wild packs and there are real dangers for people as well as dogs.
The idea that some dogs have to be put to sleep is something people do not talk much about but it is something that happens everywhere. In the US, for example, between 5-7 million dogs are “put to sleep” every year. The question really is HOW they are treated while they are alive and as they are put to sleep. And I wonder HOW these dogs were “eliminated”?
I wonder also, what the right way to do this is? I ask because I really do not know. I do know that dealing with stray dogs, not just in Karachi but everywhere, is important for people as well as these dogs. But how?
I guess I am repeating my question again and again. But that is because I really want to know. In looking for answers I discovered that there exists something called PAWS – The Pakistan Animal Welfare Society. I went through their very nicely designed and informative website, but I did not find the answers I was looking for there either. Do you have any ideas?
Nusrat, like your humor but don’t get surprised if you still get a Fatwa from somewhere on your comment.
we could take a page from the chinese and korean [cook] book and start encouraging poor pakistanis to bar-be-cue the canines. hey, maybe if it tastes good, then the upper class could also dine on fido.
after all 1.5 billion chinese can not be wrong, and they also happen to be our closest allies.
p.s. imagine for a moment, the next hot dog you eat, could really be a hot dog.
This is really sad to see this picture it seems they all were healthy dogs because they don not seem weak or diseased. Where the ethics gone or animal right exist????? it could be a better solution if they just catch them and give some injections to them or treat them to not to breed further by the time there population will decrease. Even Allah will never forgive for killing any innocent creature. But Alas in our society when there is no right for human beings then how we can have hopes for these poor creatures. Aik hamaray han her maslay ka hal sirf death ban chuka hai……. :(
I didn’t know Edhi had a animal shelter program in Pakistan- the kindness and the generosity of spirit of this great Pakistani humbles me and I remind myself of him when I feel dejected by the crass and uncouth behavior of other fellow Pakistanis.
Dog in Pakistan is a low life creature, our literature and cultures belittle this animal, the major religion in Pakistan thinks of it as a Na-Paak animal as in there is a general thought if the dog touched your piece of clothing via his wet nose you can’t say namaz in those clothes or don’t let the dog enter the house or farasthey won’t enter it ( I don’t know the religious validity of these behaviors, just stating how the animal is generally perceived in the country).
I don’t see many Pakistanis pained by the pictures or feel inclined to do anything about it which makes me that more appreciative of the folks/organization who are working to change it.
Sad, though I’m more disturbed that the workers, in the picture, are not wearing any gloves.
Can you even imagine of the diseases that can spread?