(CN) Dogs heard but not seen as city orders ban on street-walking

[Guest guest]

South China Morning Post Thursday, December 20, 2001

http://columns.scmp.com/sbrief/ZZZVYASYAVC.html

by WILLIAM KAZER

 

Forget all you have heard about Shanghai's rapid development and how

it rivals Hong Kong. The city is going to the dogs.

 

Shanghai officials are barking mad about the rising dog population.

While the number of cats is limited, there are more than 100,000 dogs in the

city of 16 million people, according to officials trained to sniff out this

kind of data.

 

More worrisome, about 30,000 of these household pets are believed to

be living outside the law, as their owners have failed to gain a licence.

 

More than 12,000 dogs are added to the canine population each year

although a number of them are lost or unable to cope with life in the big

city.

 

" There are a lot of problems with so many dogs around, " said a

policeman who works at the Public Security Bureau's Office of Pets. " This

affects the environment. " Shanghai officials have made it an offence to take

a dog out for a walk.

 

Dogs, apparently, may be heard but not seen. They must stay at home

and become couch potatoes like the rest of us.

 

This will certainly make life rather dull for your average Fido, Spot

or Snoopy.

 

It could mean a growing population of overweight canines unable to wag

their tail in the great outdoors anymore.

 

It could lead to a sudden demand for exercise bicycles custom-made for

pugs, poodles and rottweilers, and it could mean a lot of unhappy residents

howling about cooped-up pets next door.

 

So why all the fuss? For one, it seems to be much ado about dog

doodoo.

 

As city officials see it, dogs are fouling the city's streets and

nipping at human residents so often that it is cluttering the legal system.

" Dogs biting people and people slipping on the animal excrement and falling

down are the main causes of pet-related law suits, " said Li Hongguang, a

spokesman for the People's Court of Jingan District.

 

He was quoted by the Shanghai Daily as saying that the number of cases

dropped sharply after regulations on pet ownership were first introduced in

1997. Although no figures were available, the dog-linked tally has been

climbing again, and that is why authorities are getting tough with man's

best friend.

 

The same newspaper claimed that about 45,000 people were bitten by

animals, though not all of them dogs, in the first 10 months of this year,

according to data from the Shanghai Disease Prevention and Control Centre.

Under present regulations, a pet lover can be fined 200 yuan (about

HK$187.4) for walking a dog in a public place. The pet can also be taken

away, sometimes to a dark and unmentionable fate.

 

Taking your dog to see the veterinarian is permitted, however, so keep

that excuse in mind if you are suddenly surprised by the Shanghai dog squad.

 

" This causes a lot of problems, " said a dog squad officer, referring

to the fines and more serious penalties for those pets found in violation of

city regulations. " Owners are really attached to their dogs and they don't

understand what we are doing. "

 

" I don't understand this, " said one owner of a well-behaved dog. " My

dog doesn't spit or run around in his pyjamas. "

 

Rabies is apparently not behind the latest dog crackdown.

 

" We've had no cases of rabies this year, but there has been one case

in each previous year, " said Li Yanting, director of the disease control

centre's epidemic department.

 

Some dog lovers insist they are being hounded unfairly. They note that

dogs contributed some 600 million yuan to the local economy. The city

fetches about 4,000 yuan for each dog registration, for example. In some

cities, though not Shanghai, authorities have required photographs - full

frontal and profile - meaning more work for needy government photographers.

 

Some dogs on the local market cost as much as 100,000 yuan each,

although the most popular pets take only a 3,000-4,000 yuan bite out of

their owner's wallet, according to those in the pet trade.

 

Dog lovers also pamper their pets. A canine beauty parlour employee

says that bathing a small dog costs 80 to 120 yuan while a " full service "

bath for a bigger one could cost 250 yuan. " This can take two hours,

including an ear cleaning and nail clipping, " said the employee.

 

Pet lovers also spend heavily on keeping their dogs healthy, buying

medication and putting to good use the X-ray machines and even dog CAT scans

at the city's animal clinics.

 

The crackdown does not appear to have everyone turning tail. " Sales

are still pretty good, " said a pet shop owner who did not appear to be on

the brink of financial ruin as he presided over a collection of dogs, dog

leashes, doggie shoes and plastic bones. " I still go out to the countryside

and buy a bunch of them every week, " he said, adding that the latest

campaign was likely to fade away quietly. For the watchdogs of Shanghai's

pet patrol, their bark is probably worse than their bite.