Guest guest Posted July 3, 2006 Report Share Posted July 3, 2006 Friend of stray dogs a bane to neighbours - New Straits Times*02 Jul 2006* Arni Abdul Razak <news ------------------------------ *SEREMBAN: To animal lovers, 66-year-old Eng Her Sun is a hero for giving stray dogs a home, but to some of his neighbours he is a nuisance. * On Thursday, the Seremban Municipal Council (MPS) destroyed 13 of the 26 dogs living with him at his terrace house in Taman Desa Rasah. While the council's action has caused an uproar among animal lovers who described it as cruel, some of the odd-job worker's neighbours defended it. Zulkepli Idris, 59, who has been living in the area since 1983, said Eng had been nothing but trouble since he moved into the area. " He's been staying here for about 10 years now. Initially, he had about eight dogs and they created so much ruckus, " he said. " Whenever we complained to the council, Eng would either threaten us or throw things into our compound. " The neighbours, he said, had lodged police reports over the years against the dogs. They also alleged that Eng had damaged their houses and compounds. Acting on residents' complaints, the council obtained a court order last December to destroy the dogs. Another resident, Mazlan Mohd Noor, 53, said he hoped the council's move would deter Eng from having more dogs. " Many of us do not feel safe on the streets and at the playground as there have been cases of residents being attacked by the dogs, " he claimed. S. Suresh, 38, who lives about 500 metres from Eng's house, said his parents had been living in fear because Eng had allegedly accused them of killing his dogs. He claimed that when he complained about the dogs, Eng had threatened him and his family. Yesterday, one of Eng's neighbours, Yusnita Mohd Yusof, 35, was quoted as saying that none of her neighbours had complained about the dogs. Yusnita said that the dogs did not make much noise, except when someone was standing outside Eng's house or when provoked. She had also said that Eng would clean up after the dogs when taking them for walks. Robert Gan, 46, who lives a few doors from Eng, however, did not share Yusnita's views. He said residents were worried about Eng's next move. " He knows we are telling our stories (to the Press). Who knows what he will do next? " he said. Suresh said the neighbourhood had nothing against the dogs, but they just wanted Eng to leave the area. " The two houses next to Eng's have been empty for years. We've had enough. We just want to live here in peace. " Long feud over as dogs are relocated-New Straits Times *03 Jul 2006* Arni Abdul Razak <news ------------------------------ *SEREMBAN: The 10-year tussle between dog-lover Eng Her Sun and his neighbours at Taman Desa Rasah here is finally over. * Eng, 66, had been worried about the safety of his 13 dogs after last Thursday's incident when workers of the Seremban Municipal Council shot 13 others at his house. A group of animal-lovers, including some from the Independent Pet Rescuers (IPR) organisation, saw him yesterday and took 11 of his dogs to " a safer place " . " The neighbours are annoyed with him because he kept the dogs in a terrace house. " But he (Eng) is also living in fear because he is aware of his neighbours' feelings and is constantly afraid they will harm his dogs, " said Sherrina Krishnan of IPR. " We feel it's best that the dogs find a new home. " To defuse tension in the neighbourhood, the animal-lovers have found a farm in Dengkil, a 45-minute drive from Seremban, for the dogs. " Initially, we wanted to send the dogs to Animal Paradise in Johor but unfortunately the farm is full. " Thankfully, we found someone who's willing to house the dogs until Eng finds a new place for them. " We told Eng to stick to the rules and only keep two dogs at home, " said Krishnan. Eng professed not to mind travelling every day to see his dogs, saying he is also considering moving out of the neighbourhood. " If anyone wants to offer their land to me and my dogs, I would be happy to sell my house (in Taman Desa Rasah) and relocate. " I have no one else here but my sister Lucy and the dogs, " he said, adding that his dream is to build a sanctuary for stray cats and dogs. S. Suresh, 38, a resident there, was relieved that Eng had finally agreed to take his dogs away. " I'm just happy the dogs are gone, " he said. " I hope he'll keep his promise for the sake of his neighbours and the dogs. " A house is not a place to rear lots of dogs. Especially not 26! He should find a bigger place where they can run around. " --\ --------------------- Letters from readers from The Star Monday July 3, 2006 Better ways to cull dogs I REFER to your report, " Owner of 25 dogs tries to save pets from death<http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2006/6/30/nation/14700989 & sec=n\ ation> " (*The Star,* June 30). I am very sad and disappointed with the authorities. There are better ways to cull a dog, like putting it to sleep. If the owner has gone against the law, then the punishment has to be upon the owner. Eng Her Sun's dogs should have been brought to the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. *PRISCILLA, Malacca.* --\ -- Monday July 3, 2006 Convince owner to give up pets HOW cruel it was to have shot dead 13 dogs! Looking at the picture showing the dog owner bundling up his dogs in his car to save them, I felt so sad. The authorities should have convinced the owner to give his dogs away to the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals or Paws. *MIMI, Puchong.* --\ ----- Try other methods before shooting dogs in owner's house BIVAI Special Dogs, an organisation which trains canines to help disabled and elderly people through physical assistance, therapy and companionship, is greatly distressed, shocked and appalled by the unmerciful action taken by the Seremban Municipal Council to shoot dead 13 of 25 dogs belonging to a pet owner, " Owner of 25 dogs tries to save pets from death<http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2006/6/30/nation/14700989 & sec=n\ ation> " (*The Star*, June 30). The fact that the extremely cruel killings took place in the owner's home and in a residential area is totally unacceptable in our society. It is not surprising why the owner and dogs turned " aggressive " in such a confrontational setting: in the dogs' eyes, strangers and intruders armed with guns coming to harm their master, and the owner, doing his best to protect his animals which have been showering him with love. Even with all the " aggression " , the dogs could have been removed without violence if only the authorities had tried a different approach of luring the animals through food treats and others. The authorities should have exhausted all other means, even calling a psychiatrist to help the dog owner who could have suffered from an animal hoarding problem. They could also have used the expertise of animal welfare NGOs to re-house the dogs. Killing the dogs in front of children and youngsters will only help to perpetuate a violent society rather than try to build one of respect and love for human beings and animals. Some of those dogs could well have been rehabilitated to work with disabled and elderly people as companion dogs. We call for an immediate ban on shooting of dogs. *ANTHONY THANASAYAN, and Trainer, Bivai Special Dogs, Petaling Jaya.* --\ - Image as civilised nation marred by incident I WOULD like to express my feelings towards the news of the killing of 13 dogs in the owner's house, " Owner of 25 dogs tries to save pets from death<http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2006/6/30/nation/14700989 & sec=n\ ation>' (*The Star*, June 30). I am truly disgusted and heartbroken after reading the news. I could not believe that Malaysians could be so cruel towards these innocent and harmless dogs. I believe there is an alternative, like sending these dogs to the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. The way the Seremban Municipal Council enforcement officers handled the situation has tarnished our image as a civilised nation. *RACHEL CHONG MUN KIT, Kuala Lumpur.* --\ -- Council officers had no option but to kill animals I REFER to the letter " Better to tackle dog issue gently<http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2006/7/1/focus/14707603 & sec=fo\ cus> " (*The Star*, July 1) by Lim Yew Choy who criticised the Seremban Municipal Council enforcement officers for being high-handed in killing 13 dogs in the owner's house. This was a long standing issue and the owner had been given more than ample time to take his dogs somewhere else so that they would not be a nuisance to his long-suffering neighbours. In fact, he had done so but, after some time, he brought them back to his house. Perhaps he thought that the furore had died down. He was wrong! The council wanted to tranquillise the dogs. That would have been a humane way of doing things. The owner refused. The dogs and the owner also turned aggressive against the officers. Under the circumstances, what else could they do except to kill these dogs? Nowhere in his letter had Lim given any suggestions of how the matter could be settled " humanely " . Perhaps it would be interesting to know how he would have done the job under the circumstances. *WONG FEI HOON, Kuala Lumpur.* --\ ---- Owner to blame for putting dogs at risk DO YOU want to be a neighbour of a man who owns 25dogs in a terrace house? Ask this question before you complain about the killing of 13 dogs by the Seremban Municipal Council officers. My sympathy for the dogs but the officers have no other option. The man should blame himself for putting the dogs at risk. He should have settled the issue amicably if he really loved his dogs. Obviously, he had no respect for the neighbours or the enforcement officers. The officers were merely carrying out their duties as they were acting on court order and public complaints. I have one dog in a semi-detached house and yet there are so many complaints from my neighbours: noise, foul stench, hairball and so on. It is a lot of hard work to maintain one dog, but 25 dogs! I can say the neighbourhood must have suffered enough to make a complaint. Let the officers do their job or they will be reluctant to act when something like this happens to you. *LET'S BE FAIR, Ipoh.* --\ ------ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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