Lonely Planet™ · Thorn Tree Forum · 2020 |

# Afraid of dogs - should I not visit Samoa? Country forums / Pacific Islands & Papua New Guinea
zewu 15:42 UTC 12 Apr 2010 | I'm considering going to Samoa for five weeks and have contacted a travel agency about it that is to look up prices for travelling there. I have, however, read both on this forum and on Wikitravel that there are many "feral dogs" in Samoa. I'm afraid of dogs and I was chased by two big, "feral" dogs when I visited Murmansk in 2007. I think that dogs notice my fear for them. This makes me hesitate about going to Samoa. What do you say, should I not go to Samoa being afraid of dogs? By "feral dogs" I mean dogs without owners that supposedly roam the streets of Apia/villages. |
Laszlo 06:09 UTC 13 Apr 2010 | I was (lightly) bitten on my ankle by a small mongrel in a village with the owner just looking on, so it is not just the strays you should beware of. It only happened (to me) once in a whole month though. Supposedly, some measures have been taken to reduce the population of "feral" dogs since. Whether or not the dog issue should put you off altogether is only for you to decide. Most people would not be put off visiting Samoa just because of this, but if you have such a great fear of dogs be prepared you will certainly encounter them all over the islands. I'd think they are smaller than the ones you could find in Murmansk though. | 1
wksamoa 11:28 UTC 13 Apr 2010 | I live in Samoa for 14 years and have never been bitten by a dog. My 86 year old mother is living with us now and we use to take a walk on the seawall in Apia every afternoon, the area most notorious for dog attacks before. Ourselves we actually never even heard about one or saw a dog there that did not keep away from people. We are not afraid of dogs at all though so I do not have any idea how these lazy creatures might behave otherwise. You are from Sweden, so did you ever go to the Canary Islands? Very similar dog situation there. You can visit the island of Manono here. Dog-free zone. | 2
hardnosethehighway 19:35 UTC 15 Apr 2010 | I've read that Samoan dogs-even feral ones-now have internet access and are planning attacks on those who would least expect it-there is no hiding! Be Afraid-Be Very Afraid!!!! | 3
pago 15:25 UTC 16 Apr 2010 | The local Oriental restaurants are doing their best to get rid of the dogs in Apia. | 4