Harbin dog ban unleashes anxiety
Source: Xinhua |
April 21, 2012, Saturday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
POLICE in Harbin, capital of northeast China's Heilongjiang Province, said yesterday that a ban on large dogs was enacted after an increasing number of public complaints.
You Long, a police officer in charge of dog management in the city's public security bureau, said the office received over 500 complaints annually about problems such as dog bites, and the number was rising.
The bureau, together with the animal husbandry department, drafted the regulation, which took effect April 1. It aims to better manage the city's dogs, whose population stands at around 100,000.
Under the regulation, each household is restricted to one dog. Dogs taller than 50 centimeters and longer than 70 centimeters are outlawed, with 49 breeds, such as mastiff, golden retriever and samoyed, being categorized as too fierce or too large.
"We are trying to balance the rights of dog owners and those without dogs," You said.
The regulation requires owners to give away large dogs, or additional dogs, by November, after which the police will confiscate them. The policy has triggered huge controversy.
Sixty-year-old Cai Qingbin has had two golden retrievers for the past two years, and is reluctant to give them away to countryside relatives.
"I see them like my own babies," he said. "It feels awful to give them away."
Dog owners see their pets as best friends and family companions. They also argue that gentle dog breeds, such as golden retriever and samoyed, are harmless.
Animal welfare advocates also voiced disagreement with the ban. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals Asia, a Hong Kong-based animal-rights group, wrote an open letter to Mayor Song Xibin last Friday.
It suggested that the government should not ban pet dogs based on size. "The fierce breeds should be banned, but some large-sized breeds, such as the golden retriever, are very mild and human-friendly in character," the letter read.
Some supported the new regulation. They noted that dogs roaming free and widespread dog excrement on the streets were problems that needed to be solved.
You Long, a police officer in charge of dog management in the city's public security bureau, said the office received over 500 complaints annually about problems such as dog bites, and the number was rising.
The bureau, together with the animal husbandry department, drafted the regulation, which took effect April 1. It aims to better manage the city's dogs, whose population stands at around 100,000.
Under the regulation, each household is restricted to one dog. Dogs taller than 50 centimeters and longer than 70 centimeters are outlawed, with 49 breeds, such as mastiff, golden retriever and samoyed, being categorized as too fierce or too large.
"We are trying to balance the rights of dog owners and those without dogs," You said.
The regulation requires owners to give away large dogs, or additional dogs, by November, after which the police will confiscate them. The policy has triggered huge controversy.
Sixty-year-old Cai Qingbin has had two golden retrievers for the past two years, and is reluctant to give them away to countryside relatives.
"I see them like my own babies," he said. "It feels awful to give them away."
Dog owners see their pets as best friends and family companions. They also argue that gentle dog breeds, such as golden retriever and samoyed, are harmless.
Animal welfare advocates also voiced disagreement with the ban. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals Asia, a Hong Kong-based animal-rights group, wrote an open letter to Mayor Song Xibin last Friday.
It suggested that the government should not ban pet dogs based on size. "The fierce breeds should be banned, but some large-sized breeds, such as the golden retriever, are very mild and human-friendly in character," the letter read.
Some supported the new regulation. They noted that dogs roaming free and widespread dog excrement on the streets were problems that needed to be solved.
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