More stray dogs are expected to be on the streets in downtown
Zhengzhou, Henan Province, when a new regulation on pets takes
effect on October 1.
It forbids the keeping of large dogs and only one dog per
household will be allowed.
"Fewer than one out of 100 dogs are licensed in Zhengzhou," Ye
Hong, head of the Pet Protection Society of Zhengzhou, told China
Daily.
"The old regulation required 3,000 yuan ($400) for a dog
license, and an annual payment of 500 yuan. It was too expensive,
even higher than that of Beijing," she said.
Police take away unlicensed dogs and send them to the zoo. If no
one claims them within a week, rumor has it "they are fed to the
lions and tigers".
"This may not be true, but the police have never made public how
they deal with the dogs," Ye said.
She has rescued about 300 strays in the past four years. "Lately
I have been receiving more phone calls asking me to accept more
stray dogs, but few requests to adopt some of my dogs."
Ye has more than 20 dogs. A staff member with the Zhengzhou
municipality surnamed Li told her that such animal shelters can
only be built in the suburbs.
"I won't be able to take care of them if the dogs are moved to
the suburbs," Ye said. The Pet Protection Society from time to time
receives donations from the public to help carry out its work.
Ye, a vet, treats sick dogs for free if the owner is unable to
pay.
Most of the society's income is used toward the rescue of
strays, Ye said. "The food doesn't cost much, but when dogs are
sick, the expense is high."
In a bid to cut costs, she uses traditional Chinese medicine to
treat skin diseases of dogs. "The results have been remarkable,"
she said.
Zhengzhou-based Business News quoted a staff member of the
city's legislation department, Wang Zhihong, as saying the
department plans to train policemen to catch dogs.
If police receive complaints about stray dogs, they will be
caught and placed in a warehouse or underground parking lot for two
weeks. If they are not claimed, the dogs will be sent to the zoo,
Wang said.
Zhengzhou public amenities administration official, Zhang
Xin'an, said he had no information about stray dogs being sent to
the zoo.
"The zoo is not a dog-keeping facility, it can't be turned into
a kennel," he said.
(China Daily August 31, 2007)