Preventing animal cruelty

Stray dogs in Pakistan have been shot and poisoned for decades. This is not only brutal and futile, but is also unnecessary. There are better ways to control the population of dogs and spread of rabies in the country. World Animal Protection (WAP), an international organisation that works with governments and local communities, provides vaccination plans to solve the problem. In one of its publications, WAP wrote, “Killing dogs is not the solution as it does not stop the [spread of the] disease [rabies]; mass dog vaccination is the only proven solution.” Vaccination is logical, protects people from contracting rabies and is cost-effective in the long-run. A number of countries follow the World Health Organisation’s recommended mass vaccination and sterilisation campaigns. These also include the third world countries like Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal and India.

There are several animal protection institutions in our country like the ACF and the SOS that can be taken on board to solve the problem. People in Pakistan need to show kindness to animals and should also file cases in the courts for action against animal cruelty.

Sharifa Hyderally     

Karachi