Man's best friend wants image makeover

Man's best friend or Public Enemy No. 1?

Man's best friend or Public Enemy No. 1?

HT Image

A vicious attack earlier this year by three pet Rottweilers on a 9-year-old boy _ which left him badly lacerated - has set off a fierce debate on whether dogs should be allowed on the streets of Malaysia. The dogs' owner, charged in court Wednesday, faces six months' jail if convicted of negligence.

The March 18 canine crime made front page news here, and impassioned letters swamped editors' desks. Some supported dogs, and many condemned them as disease-carrying, noisy nuisances at best - and the devil incarnate at worst.

"In other countries a man biting a dog would be news. In Malaysia, dog biting man is BIG news," said Freddy Lim, a dog owner and breeder.

Not surprising. The dog debate is a racially loaded powder keg in this multiethnic country where communal harmony is finely balanced by ensuring that no race is slighted by actions of the others.

The majority people of Malaysia are Malay Muslims. Since dogs are considered unclean in Islam, very few Malays keep dogs. Most dog owners are from the minority Chinese and Indian communities. Some Malays and a few Chinese have called for a ban on all dogs.

An Anti-Dog Association, led by a Chinese, sprang up. The head of the youth wing of the ruling United Malays National Organization party, Khairy Jamaluddin, visited the mauled boy in hospital to express solidarity. Authorities in one neighborhood of Kuala Lumpur issued strict, restrictive regulations on keeping dogs as pets.

"This (keeping of dogs) is bad for unity in our multiracial society. We hope the government will implement the act (to ban dogs) so that it will reduce friction," said Low Kim Hean, chairman of the newly created Anti-Dogs Association in Selayang Baru town. Coincidentally, the attack that stirred the controversy had a racial element.

The Rottweilers' owner, Chong Foo Meng, is a Chinese. The victim, Muhammad Hazman Seh Zahidi, who received 180 stitches for his wounds during an eight-hour operation, is a Malay. He was attacked on a street of Sepang town near Kuala Lumpur while walking home with two cousins after Friday prayers. The powerful black and rust animals were unattended and it is not clear what provoked them.

Chong, a 42-year-old salesman, was charged with not taking sufficient steps to safeguard his dogs from posing a reasonable threat to people. He pleaded not guilty, and will go on trial on Aug. 30. His dogs have been seized by authorities and incarcerated at the Sepang Veterinary Services Department.

Shahrul Nizam, a resident of Batu Caves near Kuala Lumpur, is one of those who wants to see the back of all dogs. "Dogs being dogs, they may return to their natural habit of attacking other animals and people," Shahrul, a Malay, wrote in the New Straits Times. "I wonder how many attacks must occur, and how many injuries and fatalities before we realize that dogs are too dangerous to keep as pets," he wrote.

Already, Malaysia is one of the least dog friendly countries in the world. "No Dogs Allowed" signs warn visitors at the entrance to all public parks. Dogs are not allowed on public transport. Residents of apartment blocks and condominiums cannot keep dogs, only cats. Under a 2001 law, only people living in houses of at least 200 square meters (2,152 sq. feet) are allowed to keep dogs. In Shah Alam, a predominantly Malay majority neighborhood of Kuala Lumpur, City Council authorities have banned certain breeds of dogs including Rottweiler, Pit Bull Terrier and American Bulldog. Also, pet owners there must obtain permission from their neighbors before keeping dogs at home.

Soon after the attack, City Council authorities patrolled the streets in vans with loudspeakers, asking people walking their dogs to return to their homes immediately.

Paul Chan, a dog obedience trainer at the Malaysian Kennel Association, said people and authorities are barking up the wrong tree in blaming dogs, especially Rottweilers, who although big and fierce-looking are very intelligent and easily trainable. "A lot of people in Malaysia keep their dogs chained and free them at their convenience. This is unfortunate. Dogs are social animals and need companionship," he said.

"If you chain a dog for a long time the psychological impact is serious," he said.

Lim, the dog breeder, said there is very little understanding about dogs in the country because of a general dislike for the animals. Also, most Malaysian children are being taught to fear dogs, not respect or love them, he said.

"Some of these people making the rules have no idea what a dog is. A well trained dog can bring pure joy to the heart," he said.