After worker is filmed beating dogs in a shelter, Animals Asia again invites provincial government to attend animal management workshops.

By Animals Asia’s Cat and Dog Welfare Director, Irene Feng

China’s Zhoushan city has garnered a controversial reputation for the way it deals with stray dogs.

In the latest incident of cruelty, video published on Chinese social media showed a public worker savagely beating dogs in a government shelter.

The dogs cowered in fear as the man attacked them with a metal pole. With no escape, there was nothing else they could do.

This isn’t the first time the city’s treatment of animals has angered its residents.

In 2013, a large-scale and brutal cull of strays made the city the target of national outrage.

After the 2013 incident, Animals Asia extended an invitation to city officials to attend workshops on humane population control and encouraging responsible companion animal ownership.

Sadly, they did not accept our invitation. And five years later, here we are again.

We understand that city authorities must control stray populations to protect human health, but it must be done humanely if the authorities are to avoid similar instances of public outrage and social conflict.

Other cities such as Chengdu and Qingdao have already shown what can be achieved if the government and the charity sector work together.

Over 500 officials throughout China have attended our workshops and learned the techniques they need to humanely manage dog ownership.

In cities such as Mianyang and Zhengzhou, culls are a thing of the past. They have been replaced with campaigns encouraging responsible ownership of dogs, neutering programmes and shelters to re-home strays where possible.

But in Zhoushan, the mismanagement, bad headlines and public distrust continue.

In an attempt to assuage public anger over the incident, the city government announced they had punished the offending worker and had implemented training for staff dealing with animals.

Animals Asia has also sent the authorities materials on urban dog management and once again invited them to attend our next Dog Ownership Management Symposium.

This time must be the last time. If the Zhoushan government is serious about humane treatment of animals and regaining the trust of its citizens, then the time has come to accept the help being freely and honestly offered.

Animals Asia hosted China’s first large-scale management forum to promote better dog ownership in 2009. Our China Dog Ownership Management Symposium encourages local governments to work with animal welfare groups to develop advanced, humane, science-based policies governing dog owners and departments in charge of stray populations.

In 2018, we held our eighth symposium and the gathering, which takes place once every two years, is now China’s leading forum on dog management issues.

To date, a total of 523 governmental officials from 51 cities around China have participated in our symposiums.

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