Foreigners Champion Lost Cause of Samoan Canines

After all the problems stray dogs have caused in Samoa-and now that someone is finally doing something-you just knew some bleeding heart would slip out of the woodwork bleating and snivelling.

LOL - how true!

I would love to suggest them that instead of crying and whining, they should just get over to Samoa, try and capture as many of the strays as they can, to rescue them by taking them away to the safety of ... wherever they live.
In the effort they'd probably end up having other things to cry about! ;-)

It's amusing to read about carcasses being dumped "next to the Samoa Tourism Authority Fale" though.
I can imagine the reaction of all the Western tourists calling at the place!
Surely someone could tell them that while tourists probably enjoy being safe from dog-attacks, they don't necessarily appreciate actally seeing quite how that's achieved.

Laszlo - some years ago there was an attempt to reduce the number of dogs in Rarotonga - by neutering and extinction of strays. There was a movement, mainly from American visitors, proclaiming how cruel this was. The local press carried several stories of American couples 'adopting' dogs and taking them back to the USA. How much it cost them I hate to think and I have no statistics as to how many actually did it, but it caused a lot of publicity at the time.

I infer you are suggesting that tourists should be protected from seeing how dealing with stray dogs is achieved? Trouble is that's a bit like all of us meat eaters - we buy off supermarket shelves, but don't want to think about what happens in the abattoirs.

But make no mistake, I believe the question of dangerous dogs has to be addressed - in whatever country.

I personally eat meat and having studied animal husbandry/health back in my teens am well aware of where it comes from.
OK for me - that's life.

What I meant is that Samoa Tourism Authority, whose main job is to promote tourism, should be aware of sensiblities of ALL tourists - whether or not we consider some of them sentimental bleeding-hearts or not.
Cold logic and firm action is one thing, courting customers is another.
From a business point of view, some things are better done discretely.

Kiwis don't put slaughterhouses next to touristy restaurants either, just to show quite how the famusly tender NZ lamb ends up on the plate.

<blockquote>Quote
<hr>I infer you are suggesting that tourists should be protected from seeing how dealing with stray dogs is achieved? <hr></blockquote>Actually, what I personally feel is that it's STA that should be protected from the possible or even likely backlash coming from sentimental and probably largely uninformed holidaymakers.

Ok, Laszlo, we are actually on the same side. I agree that STA should be protected from sentimental holidaymakers.

That's precisely what did not happen in Rarotonga. And besides the fuss over adopting of dogs, I think that the reason for the failure in the dog control policy, which was as much for registering dogs as for extermination, was at least partly because of the fuss made by overseas visitors. This made it difficult for the government to continue a hard line. And this in a country that still eats dogs (at least some of the population) but tries to keep it from overseas visitors who might be scandalised.

And, yes, I know Samoa does not eat dogs, which is interesting.

This is too be expected and it's too bad.

Damn tree (dog) huggers indeed!!

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<hr>The same witness said some dogs come with proper collars and look well fed and clean<hr></blockquote>

In the dark, all cats are grey.

I would like to snarl up to Ms. Young and bite HER in the ass and see how she likes it!

Keep the bullets comin'...