What is a stray dog?

According to the International Companion Animal Management Alliance, the stray dog ​​population is composed of dogs with owners and owners without owners, and can be roughly divided into four types:

Free-range dogs:

Refers to domestic dogs that are kept by people, but the owners do not restrict the range of activities of the dogs, so the dogs can roam around outside.

Lost dog:

It means that someone originally kept the dog, but later lost it for some reason and ended up living on the street. If the owner fails to implant a microchip in the lost dog, the dog may not be found by the owner because its identity cannot be confirmed, and may eventually face the fate of becoming a stray dog ​​or entering an animal shelter.

Abandoned dogs:

Refers to dogs that have been maliciously abandoned by their original owners and end up living on the streets.

Ownerless dogs:

Refers to dogs that are produced by the cross-breeding of stray dogs with or without owners. They live on the streets from birth to adulthood and have no clear breed. host.

To solve the problem of stray dogs, we must adapt to local conditions

Targeting the different sources of stray dogs, we must adapt to local conditions and take a multi-pronged approach to achieve results.

In order to reduce lost and abandoned dogs, we should actively implement the pet registration system, strengthen education and publicize the importance of owner responsibility, and make it mandatory for owners and breeders to complete the implantation of dogs under their control. Pet registration microchips will issue fines to those who keep them inappropriately or abandon them. For street dogs raised without owners, the government should cooperate with civil society to implement source control through capture, sterilization, vaccination, and return (TNVR) to prevent stray dogs from continuing to multiply. Dogs that cannot be placed back after neutering can be dealt with through other methods such as fostering or sheltering. For the part about herding dogs. The method currently adopted in Taiwan is the Rural Neutering Action (RANA) program. In addition to effectively blocking reproduction and building an epidemic prevention network, it can also achieve the effect of on-site adoption and truly implement the owner's responsibility.

Thoughts on stray dogs

In fact, many people think that stray dogs wandering outside are either abandoned dogs or lost dogs. However, abandoned or lost dogs only account for a small proportion of these cases. Since domestic dogs raised by humans have lived in a stable and well-fed environment for a long time, once they are abandoned or lost in a strange environment, they lack the ability to survive and compete in the wild. Almost nine out of ten of them will not be able to survive in the end. For example, they must face crises such as being crowded out by stray dogs in the area, not knowing where there are food sources or hiding spaces, and roadkill. In addition, because their past experience of being raised makes them easy to get close to humans, they are more likely to be captured and entered into public shelters.

The reason for the appearance of stray dogs may be improper abandonment by breeders

Some groups point out that the problem of stray animals in Taiwan is caused by unscrupulous dog and cat breeders improperly abandoning them. But in fact, in the breeding farmDog breeds are mainly purebred dogs, while those entering public shelters are mainly mixed-breed dogs and cats [4][5]. What's more, purebred dogs (especially small purebred dogs) face the risk of not being able to survive if they are abandoned in the wild, and compared to mixed-breed dogs, purebred dogs are usually more likely to be identified as lost dogs and be imprisoned. People are temporarily sheltered or even put up for adoption. Therefore, the main source of stray dogs should be free-range dogs and street dogs that are accustomed to wandering in the wild and have strong survival and breeding abilities.