China slaughters more than 50,000 dogs in Yunnan province

All because three people in the region died of rabies in the past four months. This is a strange story indeed.

A county in southwest China has ordered all 50,546 dogs to be killed in an effort to fight a rabies outbreak that has caused the deaths of three people, state media has said. Around 90 percent of the dogs in Muding county, Yunnan province, had already been killed since the campaign began on July 25, the Beijing News said.

Owners were ordered to kill their pets or face having teams of local police and other enforcement officers kill them, it said. Even the 4,292 dogs in the county that had been immunized against rabies were ordered put to death, as authorities said the immunizations were not 100 percent effective, the report said.

From January through July, 360 people in the county had been bitten by dogs, with the three human deaths occurring since April, the Beijing Times said. Some owners have used methods including hanging their dogs, electrocuting them and clubbing them to death, while others used drugs, the Beijing News said.

Dog owwners had been compensated five yuan (60 cents) each for the loss of their pets.

A reporter for the Beijing News who visited the county said one woman was told by dog-elimination squads patrolling the streets that her dog had to be killed. She covered her eyes as the patrollers beat her dog to death.

To prevent dog owners from violating the order, roadside checkpoints had been set up to inspect vehicles for dogs, the Beijing News said. Any dogs found were immediately killed at the scene.

I don’t know. Something about this sure doesn’t sound right to me. I mean, couldn’t they have vaccinated and then quarantined the dogs? Yeah, I know, they might not have the infrastructure in place to quarantine 50,000 dogs, especially out in the countryside, but is there really no alternative to mass slaughter?

Found on the Internet’s best forum.

The Discussion: 78 Comments

I actually didn’t find this on Yahoo at first, but it was on CCTV this morning (that’s interesting). The chief of police in charge of the procedure defended it by saying it’s the only way they can be sure to get all the dogs with rabies (my wife pointed out how similar his philosophy is to Chiang Kai shek in killing ff a lot of innocents to get a few communists). Also, the cop said, “I’ve seen the victims in the hospitals, if you could see what I’ve seen, you’d do the same thing”. Disgusting

July 31, 2006 @ 1:30 am | Comment

I wonder which restaurants they sold them to.

July 31, 2006 @ 1:36 am | Comment

Actually, I sort of see their point. If there was danger of rabies, it would be understandable, because to us humans, the welfare of humans presumably takes precedence (however, I fail to see how this ties in with the Endangered Species law– are these species now classed as humans?) However, if it were me in charge of the whole thing, I probably wouldn’t have been so drastic. I mean, can’t rabies be diagnosed or something? One could make it compulsory for owners to take their dogs for a checkup yearly– preferably free of charge– and have something to show for it (certificates of health or something) and only take measures against the dogs who haven’t gotten checked up.

July 31, 2006 @ 1:53 am | Comment

Very funny, Ivan.

I thought rabies was undetectable until it surfaced, at which point it’s too late to treat. It can’t be cured, but it can be prevented. That’s why if you get bitten by a bat or potential carrier, you might have to go through the gruelling experience of getting rabies shots, even though you may not have been infected. That’s why I’d think quarantine would be the most humane approach.

I think there were only a couple of human deaths from bird flu in Hong Kong before they killed every chicken on the island some years back, so I suppose this sort of thing isn’t unprecedented. But dogs, which many people look on as a part of their family….to have them beaten to death in front of your eyes…no, it doesn’t sound like the best solution.

July 31, 2006 @ 2:01 am | Comment

The CCP paints with broad strokes…

July 31, 2006 @ 2:07 am | Comment

The CCP paints with broad strokes…

I don’t think the CCP is to be taken to task for this one, Johnny. That is, if by CCP you mean the Party Central. I may be completely wrong in this, but Hu & co probably have more things to do than ponder over dogs. I can’t really imagine Hu saying, “Go! Kill those dogs!” any more than I can imagine Mao saying, “Go! Kill those sparrows!” (Oops, he did say that, didn’t he…?) The point is that I doubt this order came from Beijing. More likely it was the local officers trying to make themselves look good to high-up by reporting, “Hey, we got rid of all possible rabies-carriers!”

So if by CCP you meant the local officials, you’d be right. But if you meant the whole thing… in a spirit of fairness, I think that the Party Central shouldn’t be blamed for an order they probably never gave.

But dogs, which many people look on as a part of their family….to have them beaten to death in front of your eyes…no, it doesn’t sound like the best solution.

I don’t approve of mass animal-slaughter, but one wonders where to draw the line. Dogs? Cats? Birds? Some people love to keep tortoises. I think that people are wary after SARS (which was reportedly spread by masked palm civets), and this is the reaction. Killing dogs isn’t the best way to do it, but I think they’re so afraid of these diseases that they’re just doing everything that comes to mind.

Afternote: I just noticed that the rule apparently doesn’t apply to police dogs. Bah.

July 31, 2006 @ 7:01 am | Comment

If it makes it to western media it will make China look very very bad in the eyes of people in the west; the idea that the government could take something that belongs to you and kill it would seem extermely brutal over here. I can’t emphasize how much this would demonize China in the eyes of many people here in the US.

July 31, 2006 @ 7:41 am | Comment

Refreshing to see that they DO value human lives above dogs, though. Can’t say much for their way of showing it, but it does sound rather typical here. Shenzhen had a rash of purse-snatchings from motor-scooters, so of course, their solution was to ban motor-scooters.

By the way, Shenzhenren is down due to a hacker/spammer invasion, and may not be revived. Still trying to figure out if it’s worth the trouble.

July 31, 2006 @ 1:30 pm | Comment

Do they really value human life above dogs? Or do they simply value the preservation of their monopoly on power and seek to destroy any perceived threat to it???

Chuck

July 31, 2006 @ 7:37 pm | Comment

Do they really value human life above dogs? Or do they simply value the preservation of their monopoly on power and seek to destroy any perceived threat to it???

I don’t see how people keeping dogs would have any impact on the CCP’s monopoly of power. Please explain.

July 31, 2006 @ 8:11 pm | Comment

This is rank stupidity. By killing even all the dogs that are rabies vaccinated, you are sending the message that the vaccines are useless. Pet owners in the future are no longer going to bother with vaccination, and that would make future outbreaks that much more likely. As for trying to eradicate rabies in one county in china by killing all the dogs, that is such a fatuous goal that I don’t know whether to laugh at the chinese gov’t’s stupidity or cry that an entity (whether at the local or central level) so idiotic and irrational can wield so much power. First of all, some dogs are bound to escape, either hidden away by their owners or else strays. And there are other carriers, including wild animals like bats and foxes. Even if every rabid animal in Yunnan was exterminated, that still won’t be good enough, because all you need is one rabid animal to enter the province before the outbreak spreads like wildfire.

The only way to prevent future outbreaks is to encourage more people to vaccinate their pets and to keep the stray population under control. The best way the CCP could have done this was to round up and (unfortunately but necessarily) euthanize the strays, while sparing any animals already vaccinated or about to undergo vaccination.

July 31, 2006 @ 9:40 pm | Comment

But Battlepanda, you’re forgetting about the hukou system, which makes it illegal for dogs to migrate from one province to the next without express permission from the state.

July 31, 2006 @ 10:11 pm | Comment

Instead of spaying and neutering the dogs, the ugly and vicious chinese govt brutally kills the pets of people who may have no life other than their pets.

Maybe the chinese can demonstrate their idiotic and vicious dog beatings during the opening ceremonies at the olympics. Show us how wonderful their country is.

August 1, 2006 @ 4:16 pm | Comment

They should put the dogs to sleep if they have no other solutions. I think beating them to death infront of their owners is very insensitive.

August 1, 2006 @ 8:11 pm | Comment

Considering how the Communists continue to spread FAR more fatals diseases (SARS and AIDS, just to name two) than dogs do, wouldn’t a logical extension of this policy be for the Communists to exterminate themselves?

August 1, 2006 @ 9:21 pm | Comment

Thank you, Ivan 😉

August 2, 2006 @ 12:05 am | Comment

murdering chinese animals how can you kill a dog by beating it to death .
well i hope what goes around comes around
pw

August 2, 2006 @ 3:14 am | Comment

sick and dehumanizing. more lives are put at risk by this brutal, illogical and merciless display than rabies has ever threatened.

they may “only” be dogs, but the scale and methodology of the massacre makes the cultural revolution seem a more recent memory than it might otherwise be…

a few short steps back to khmer rouge, tutsi genocide, gulags, concentrations camps and lychings…

August 2, 2006 @ 3:37 am | Comment

Posted by: Aramel at July 31, 2006 07:01 AM

If it makes it to western media it will make China look very very bad in the eyes of people in the west; the idea that the government could take something that belongs to you and kill it would seem extermely brutal over here. I can’t emphasize how much this would demonize China in the eyes of many people here in the US.

SADLY, I HAVE TO DISAGREE ARAMEL. WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE SLAUGHTER OF 50,000 DOGS BY CHINESE OFFICIALS TO PREVENT RABIES AND THE MASS SLAUGHTER OF 4.9 MILLION SHEEP, 0.7 MILLION CATTLE AND 0.4 MILLION PIGS BY THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT IN 2001 TO PREVENT FOOT AND MOUTH DISEASE? THIS IS ALL VERY TRAGIC, THE WAY HUMAN BEINGS TREAT OTHER LIVING BEINGS. AND IN THEORY WE’RE SUPPOSED TO BE SUPERIOR. HA!

August 2, 2006 @ 6:17 am | Comment

The Chinese disgust me. Of all peoples on the earth, they strike me as the most brutal, the most violent, and the cruelest. I hate the Chinese.

August 2, 2006 @ 6:28 am | Comment

Think of the good Chinese people on the receiving end, the ones who had their beloved dogs beaten to death in front of their eyes. They are good people, victims of a backward system.

August 2, 2006 @ 7:34 am | Comment

I agree with SD, posted August 2. The Chinese DISGUST me, they are brutal, cruel and have no regard for life. I couldn’t sleep last night after reading a story about these dogs. How could any human being do that? What a horrific, painful, terrifying, and horrible way for these animals to die. Remember Gandhi’s quote, that a country is judged by the way it treats animals? When China is judged, it should burn in hell. I officially hate the Chinese and all that they stand for.

August 2, 2006 @ 10:09 am | Comment

i hate chinese people.they are cruelestpersons on earth.

August 2, 2006 @ 10:23 am | Comment

time to take a longer look at all the goods you buy from china…. call the american companys that have their product made there and tell them you won’t buy those products till china has a new policy for the treatment of animals.. if needed there are humane ways to put an animal down.. beating them to death is un-acceptable…….

August 2, 2006 @ 10:43 am | Comment

Oh wll. No more dog meat stews for them for awhile. This whole matter digusts me.

August 2, 2006 @ 10:59 am | Comment

Oh wll. No more dog meat stews for them for awhile. This whole matter digusts me.

August 2, 2006 @ 11:00 am | Comment

My heart breaks with this news.

Just imagine all the suffering, all the important breeding programs
that have come to an immediate, cruel halt, all the avoidable pain
these animals will have to endure. All because they can’t get
organized in dealing with rabies. How stupid – killing the dogs won’t
stop the rabies… what about their rats, cats, birds, bats, and other
well know rabie carrying fauna.

It is very hard to show compassion, humanity and respect to a people,
country and a society who allow these archaic, immensley cruel,
pathetic, ideology to constantly take place.

Boycott products from these countries, it’s the only way to get their
stupid attention. Maybe if enough of us do that, they have to start to
catch up with the rest of the world. They may be one of the oldest
societies in the world, but they sure are one of the most uncivilized
socieites.

JMHO… sorry I had to vent. This news totally ruined my day.

MM

August 2, 2006 @ 11:33 am | Comment

remember the cultural revolution and remember that this is how humans were treated. it is pathetic, disgusting, and an abomination. the chinese do not respect life in general. countryside or not, it is time for china to wake up and smarten up.

August 2, 2006 @ 11:59 am | Comment

I understand controlling disease, but that is sick! That has to be the least humane way to kill an animal and what about the over 4,000 that had their shots and were protected against this? They were killed too, so you tell me the reasoning behind that!
This is one of the sickest things I have ever heard and I believe that some sort of action should be taken!

August 2, 2006 @ 12:13 pm | Comment

What a bunch of fucking monsters. Never will I purchase anything anything from China. IF these idiots were educated they wouldn’t have to do this at least not the way they did. I only wish I could go there and cut off there penises and make them eat it.

August 2, 2006 @ 12:20 pm | Comment

woof …that stings

August 2, 2006 @ 12:54 pm | Comment

i bet now is not good time to buy alpo stock!!!!!

August 2, 2006 @ 12:56 pm | Comment

i bet now is not good time to buy alpo stock!!!!!

August 2, 2006 @ 12:57 pm | Comment

i bet now is not good time to buy alpo stock!!!!!

August 2, 2006 @ 12:58 pm | Comment

deleted – hate posts against the Chinese people not permitted.

August 2, 2006 @ 1:22 pm | Comment

china is enjoying very good trade relations with the US. we are buying lots of china products and supporting these animals that would do this horrible thing.

Let them starve. Without US support, they will suffer. If they want our dollars and cooperation, they will have to show some compassion for others, lesser ones. why should we give, whatever, money, compassion, cooperation, so they can turn around and torture others – yes, even powerless dogs and cats). dogs and cats that want nothing more than love and affection and give so much back.

this was done by a nation and each individual. each person that handled a club or death instrument, and each person that stood by, and each person that approved or did nothing to object.

show that you object. write, call, protest in any and every way you can. including DO NOT buy products from China. Even, do not go to chinese restaurants at this time. Let them hear from you, all of us as a nation and each of us individually. Do something to make a difference.

China is actively courting trade with the US. China has warehouses full of animal furs. even dogs and cats furs. again, the animals are beaten and clubbed so as not to harm the pelt. we buy these items so in that way approve of these practices. if we continue to buy animal items from china, we continue to support these horrible practices. Stop buying any animal products from countries that allow abuse.

Cat and dog pelts are used in clothing we purchase. jackets, shoes, stuffed dolls. many are made with dog and cat fur. all of these animals are raised in hell conditions. suffer their whole lives and then die brutal deaths. be more careful of what you are getting from china. the cheap price is too high given the suffering involved. can you just imagine warehouses full of dog and cat pelts? its true. there are pictures available. do a google search for dog, china, pelts, clubbing.

Walmart is one of the biggest buyers of China products. Let Walmart know how you feel. this could make some difference.

with sadness for the animals that suffered and died. also for the ones that still live in unbearable conditions. These animals are given to us in love and trust. How cruel and dispicable a person can you be to do this horrible thing.

please do something about this. you, personally, today. and in any way you can. and get others involved. perhaps we could establish some standards of care for animals in countries we do trade with.

then perhaps we could also get inspectors for our puppy mills. we also have some terrible conditions for some animals. tho certainly we are mostly a nation with regard for life. and not a barbarian nation as a rule. tho there are always some exceptions. but china should not be allowed to let this go unnoticed or unpunished.

mary

August 2, 2006 @ 2:03 pm | Comment

Wow. I can’t believe some of these comments. If you people aren’t, aware here it is. We are the dominant species on this little rock we call Earth. As far as I’m concerned one human life is worth all the dogs on the planet. I don’t quite agree on the methods used in this situation, but I also know that not one person posting on this site was or is there. there are facts that cannot and will not be known.There are much worse things to worry about, but more power to you if you want to focus on this one little snippet of news.

August 2, 2006 @ 6:58 pm | Comment

Brick and all others like him have to be the biggest self-centered, egotistical, narsicisstic assholes on the planet.

August 2, 2006 @ 7:05 pm | Comment

This does seem like a terrible thing. But I wonder if there aren’t some cultural factors most of you aren’t taking into consideration. In the west, we view dogs as pets and family. In China, animals may not be viewed with such high respect, and killing them may not be such a horrible thing. You can condemn them for that, but it is really just an issue of where you set the bar, because we do similar things to other animals in the west.

Take, for example, mosquitoes. We kill them en mass with large scale spraying. Now, of course, no one cares about bugs, but that is a cultural thing. You could imagine a culture where people did care about bugs and would be outraged by our spraying. Should we stop killing mosquitoes?

In China, they may just look at dogs like we look at mosquitoes. One needs to be careful projecting their cultural values onto other cultures.

I just thought I would bring that up, because many people seem to be viewing this news story from a western-culture point of view. But, being western myself, I can’t fathom treating dogs and their owners like the people in this story.

August 2, 2006 @ 7:14 pm | Comment

We ARE the dominant species of the planet and also the most civil and intelligent. I don’t hate the Chinese, as judging an entire ethnicity would prove to be ignorant. However, the officials that chose to partake in such a horrific event digust me beyond belief. As if we’re so primitive to resort to such a ridiculous way of killing as beating. A shot to the head would have been less painful, ffs. How pathetic is their government that they won’t step in to pay for a humane way of euthanising these poor animals. How terrible that these innocent animals must suffer due to their governments obvious neglect on issues that they should have speculated to have arisen later. I can honestly say this sort of barbaric behavior doesn’t surprise me as the country has practiced infanticide for years due to their poor future planning. I can only hope their mental sickness doesn’t spread through the entire country.

August 2, 2006 @ 7:41 pm | Comment

No, many Chinese do not consider dogs as the loving, caring, life-saving critters that we do in the west, However, it is insane to kill a whole lot of healthy dogs, including the vaccinated ones to prevent the spread of a disease that, as someone said, is just as easily spread by many wildlife species

Even domestic animals raised for food deserve at least a humane death–which, by the way, the animals in England did get. And there is no vaccine for the diseases for which the animals in England were killed. If the officials who ordered the slaughter are profiting from the sale of 50,000 dog pelts, I am even more sickened.

If the government had provided vaccine for the dogs–either free or a low cost, the problem would have been eliminated.

There are also effective post-exposure shots for people who are bitten by a rabid animal–but they need to be done soon after the bite–another failing on the government’s providing of medicine of China–none available, I would guess.

And as far as the comment about killing all the dogs in the world to save one human life–That’s really a stupid comment. Over the years, heck last year alone, search and rescue dogs, police and guard dogs, army patrol dogs, guide dogs for the blind and hearing impaired, bomb sniffing dogs, cancer detecting dogs, and just plain old pet dogs have saved more lives than were lost to rabies in China last year and probably more than were killed by rabies in the past several years in China. Talk about throwing the baby out with the bathwater!

In Europe–particularly France in the middle ages, people killed all the cats because they thought the cats were in league with the devil. Well, low and behold, all the areas where cats were wiped out were MUCH harder hit by the Black Plague than areas that had cats to kill the rats that carried the fleas that spread the disease.

How many more Chinese will die of rabid wild animal bites, knife-wielding robbers, murderers, earthquakes, etc. because there are no dogs to protect them. How many will suffer hunger and perhaps starvation without the farm dogs to keep vermin out of the crops, chicken houses, grain storage bins.

Rabies is easily preventable. Why not prevent it rather than killing innocent animals for no reason. China’s method of dealing with problems is to fix the blame, not the problem,, and never think ahead to stop an epidemic BEFORE it happens.

And since when is one or two people dying, an epidemic? I don’t mean to make light of human deaths, but many more people die from vehicle collisions or industrial accidents–let’s ban all vehicles and factories and construction projects.

August 2, 2006 @ 7:51 pm | Comment

In China, animals may not be viewed with such high respect, and killing them may not be such a horrible thing. You can condemn them for that, but it is really just an issue of where you set the bar, because we do similar things to other animals in the west.

I know several Chinese people who own dogs and love them dearly, just as we do in the West. This might not have been quite so horrific if the poor owners didn’t mind, if they agreed it was for the best. That’s not the case. They stood and watched in helpless anguish as their beloved pets were beaten to death. I don’t blame the Chinese people for this – many Chinese people have expressed shock, outrage and horror in the BBS forums. I do blame the system which often goes way overboard and performs utterly senseless, futile acts – just as they responded until very recently to AIDS and Hepatitis B, by punishing the victims but doing absolutely nothing to stop the disease.

August 2, 2006 @ 8:00 pm | Comment

I will look at everything I purchase now and not buy it if is from China. I am sorry we are importing so much from people that BEAT DOGS TO DEATH.

August 2, 2006 @ 11:08 pm | Comment

I am so with MM (Merlin’s Mom). This news truly ruined my day(s). I came home to my two dogs, and when I locked eyes with them tried to imagine how anyone who dared call themselves a human being could do something so cruel, painful and utterly barbaric to another living thing. I said it before and I’ll say it again (and don’t you dare say I’m generalizing, because I’m doing the math here) I hate the Chinese. I wonder why I’m not seeing this news plastered EVERYWHERE in the media (saw it a lot on the Internet but not on TV). Too shocking? Kids won’t like it? I’m TIRED of hearing about Mel Gibson’s DUI.

Tell me more about WAl Mart and what I shouldn’t buy. I’m more than happy to boycott and be a conscientous consumer, but I don’t know all of the things to look for.

I’m not typically religious, but I am praying for these 50,000+ beautiful souls and hope they are in a better place (not a stretch) and that when the Chinese die they will enter a hell ruled by rabid canines.

What a helpless feeling. Nobody to call. What do we do? How do we OBJECT???? Why are we in trade talks with China?

August 2, 2006 @ 11:09 pm | Comment

I am so with MM (Merlin’s Mom). This news truly ruined my day(s). I came home to my two dogs, and when I locked eyes with them tried to imagine how anyone who dared call themselves a human being could do something so cruel, painful and utterly barbaric to another living thing. I said it before and I’ll say it again (and don’t you dare say I’m generalizing, because I’m doing the math here) I hate the Chinese. I wonder why I’m not seeing this news plastered EVERYWHERE in the media (saw it a lot on the Internet but not on TV). Too shocking? Kids won’t like it? I’m TIRED of hearing about Mel Gibson’s DUI.

Tell me more about WAl Mart and what I shouldn’t buy. I’m more than happy to boycott and be a conscientous consumer, but I don’t know all of the things to look for.

I’m not typically religious, but I am praying for these 50,000+ beautiful souls and hope they are in a better place (not a stretch) and that when the Chinese die they will enter a hell ruled by rabid canines.

What a helpless feeling. Nobody to call. What do we do? How do we OBJECT???? Why are we in trade talks with China?

August 2, 2006 @ 11:13 pm | Comment

Please don’t say you “hate the Chinese.” Remember, the victims – the pet owners – are Chinese, too.

August 3, 2006 @ 12:58 am | Comment

********where is god when brainless humans go killing around innocent creatures. **********if you can brutally kill a living dog why wouldnt you be a able to kill a person. i am so mad right now. *************

(edited for excessively inflamatory language)

August 3, 2006 @ 9:11 am | Comment

Not to take away from the absolute senselessness and cruelty of this new measure, but…do we have some PETA or ALF-ers here?

August 3, 2006 @ 10:01 am | Comment

You aren’t seeing it on mainstream media and that is by design. President Bush doesn’t want everyone to know because then he would be in the line of fire. People would want to know why he isn’t doing anything and the answer is he doesn’t want to do anything and won’t because our government doesn’t want to lose their financial gains from import/export of China because we have a sick selfish government.

August 3, 2006 @ 11:44 am | Comment

what is this, you are over the line with your racist, hateful comments. I appreciate that you’re angry but this is too much. I’m editing your remarks. If you wish to restate without the hate speech, please do.

August 3, 2006 @ 3:59 pm | Comment

I couldn’t agree more with Andy’s statement… thanks for that!

Some people may not love dogs, or most animals. But come on people – the means they used is downright wrong.

All I can say is that I am really glad that I don’t live in China, because I would probably be in jail if someone took one of my dogs and beat them to death in front of me.

August 3, 2006 @ 5:32 pm | Comment

This is disgusting! It makes me sick! These cruel people! I say I go up my block, and knock on all the doors, if a chinese person answers, I will beat them and their families to death with a bat, and then leave .60 cents for each person on the door step. You know, since our area is over populated with chinese, you know it would make sense…….

August 3, 2006 @ 10:37 pm | Comment

Ugh.

One more time. Anger is understandable. Strong emotions are understandable. But this isn’t LGF here. Hate speech is not acceptable.

August 4, 2006 @ 12:02 am | Comment

That last comment by “brandon” scans like it was written by a Chinese person.

August 4, 2006 @ 12:37 am | Comment

Ivan, I agree.

Whoever wrote it, it’s ugly. Though not as bad as the one I had to edit.

August 4, 2006 @ 1:34 am | Comment

IP address is Canadian…who knows. Truly disgusting and reprehensible.

August 4, 2006 @ 1:44 am | Comment

Now that China has been BLESSED / STRUCK with FAMINE (IT IS YOUR REWARD FOR GOOD WORK DONE BY ELIMINATING THE DOG POPULATION) KEEP IT UP – WHAT IS YOUR NEXT COURSE OF ACTION TO ACHIEVE SOME MORE REWARDS.

August 4, 2006 @ 4:21 am | Comment

CHINA U SUCK U PATHETIC EXCUSE 4 A NATION.. TAKING DOGZ AND KILLING THEM CAUSE UR 2 FUCKING LAZY 2 TAKE CARE OF THE REAL PROBLEM AND THATZ… YEAH U GUESSED IT YOU !!!

U SHOULD BE ASHAMED OF URSELFZ

BLOODY…

August 4, 2006 @ 12:17 pm | Comment

Dear “LD”, and “Bloodyhackxsawx”, the last two commenters here:

Please do not attempt to make any provacateur posts on the internet unless and until you have been trained properly by China’s intelligence services. Which, for you, will obviously never happen.

You do a great disservice to the REAL Chinese intelligence agents like Bingfeng, when you post such transparently provocative comments in your misguided attempts to seem like “Chinese patriots”. Although I’m not 100 percent sure that you’re Chinese, but that’s really beside the main point.

I do not agree with everything that the Chinese spies post on this blog, but I do have some respect for their intelligence, and I don’t like it when wannabe spies like you come around and try to act like provacateurs without knowing the first thing about the game.

Your mother is calling you. Now go away and leave us grown-ups alone.

August 4, 2006 @ 12:57 pm | Comment

I have spent alot of time in China and the chinese people are great. Just like everywhere there are good and bad people.

However this is typical of a government that has been historically careless and callous. Its one thing to put animals to death for a reason but to take them from their owners and beat them to death in the street? What does this do to young children watching this. It was not too long ago in the cultural revolution that people were beaten in the streets.

Remember the cover up for Sars. In Shanghai they play a recording not to give homeless money as there way to deal with homeless people. When a man set himself on fire in front of a government building the response was to place a fire extinguisher outside.

China has alot of challenges as a society. The government advertising callous brutality as an answer to a problem only makes things worse. It perpetuates the image of China as a brutal country and sends the message through society that people have no rights to protect themselves or their property.

August 4, 2006 @ 1:48 pm | Comment

this is insanity!!!! if they want to rid their country of rabies, vaccinate the dogs or the people!!!! to kill dogs in front of their owners is nothing more than torture for both. obviously if the dogs were living with owners and the owners did not show signs of rabies then the dogs were not infected. how do you just kill 50.000 dogs or kill 50,000 anything for that matter. do they have no souls?

August 4, 2006 @ 5:43 pm | Comment

Interestingly, a new journalist blogger speculates that the dog massacre may prompt larger anti-government actions in China:

many Chinese believe the government acted in a cold-hearted manner, letting the rabies outbreak grow out of hand, then punishing dog owners with a wanton slaughter.
While television newscasts portray the dog cull as a responsible government reaction to thwart an epidemic, radio call-in shows have portrayed the flip side, drawing fervent opinions from callers who say the dog slaughter was an over-reaction…
…Chinese in the big cities are passionate about their dogs, paying huge municipal fees to keep them. Perhaps the intense interest in this story is because it has the potential to spark broader outrage over government action.
Under China’s brittle political system, such small protests can easily flare into something larger.

August 5, 2006 @ 12:16 am | Comment

Today’s London Times reports that they’re planning to extend the slaughter to around half a million dogs.

August 5, 2006 @ 1:01 am | Comment

“Disgusting” doesn’t begin to cover it.

Here’s an excerpt from the article Ivan mentioned:

Zhang Luping, founder of the Beijing Human and Animal Environmental Education Centre, said the culling should stop: “This really damages our national image and sets a really bad example to show how lazy and inconsiderate those local government officials are.” Cases of rabies are on the rise in China, with more than 2,500 people reported to have died of the disease in 2004. Only 3 per cent of China’s dogs are vaccinated.

It goes on to talk about the popularity of dogs and pets in urban China, saying that there are 400,000 dogs in Beijing alone. Here’s a link to the article.

I have to wonder if that reporter is right. First piss off the peasants and the unemployed and the disenfranchised. Then piss off the middle and upper middle classes. Way to encourage social harmony, guys!

August 5, 2006 @ 1:11 am | Comment

I’m beginning to wonder how the 5 RMB bounty might be figuring into all of this.

Just think: If you’re one of the Communist Pigs who has the authority to use all of that money, then why not kill as many dogs as possible and then lie about how the owners “voluntarily” gave up half a million dogs, and then keep 2.5 million RMB for yourself? Or something like that, perhaps with the numbers a bit more widely spread and shared among several Communist Pigs.

August 5, 2006 @ 2:15 am | Comment

ROBYN… IF YOU READ THIS, YOU ARE WELCOME TO EMAIL ME (schrzan@hotmail.com). I CAN ANSWER YOUR QUESTION FOR YOU.

August 5, 2006 @ 4:25 am | Comment

The asians treat all animal life as nothing.. No respect for the pain and suffering of animals.. Kill them quick and treat them with respect.. I have no respect for these people.. Everyone will be judged one day.. I feel bad for asians, because they will have to answer for the their sick actions against all creatures

August 5, 2006 @ 6:03 pm | Comment

By the way you can email me about my thoughts

August 5, 2006 @ 6:05 pm | Comment

This article shows just how stupid, cruely, and useless the chinese government is. They so dumb they start killing out of fear because they are intelligence enough to understand how rabies works. The government serves no purposes except to spew hatrage, pain, and misery on everything in the world. This government will have to change or eventually be destroyed. They deserve nothing else.

August 6, 2006 @ 8:53 am | Comment

Where were these commenters for the numerous PD posts when *people* got beat up in China? Or the Abu Ghraib stuff? Or any other atrocities Richard has talked about? Yknow, the ones involving human life?

I love dogs, but when the abuse of dogs makes you more outraged than the abuse of people… I mean, you should at least have an equal amount of moral outrage, dontcha think?

August 6, 2006 @ 9:19 am | Comment

“…but is there really no alternative to mass slaughter?”

Let just put it this way: there really is no cheaper alternative to mass slaughter. It saves money, and it saves human lives. So it is all good.

For all you opportunists who have posted the “all Asian people suck” messages, let me remind you that in Canada, the Great White Men (behold!) club 330,000-plus newborn baby seal pups to death every year. It is not even for saving human lives. It is strictly for the furs and profits. And it is sanctioned by the Canadian government. You can Google that.

But hey, we are Asians. We prefer to stay out of other people’s business that does not concern us. We do not have an obsession with power or an urge to dominate, control or tell other “lesser” people how to behave or what to do for their own good.

I fully support the White men in Canada. I say whack all the dogs and seals. We all be clubbin’!

August 8, 2006 @ 3:32 am | Comment

Just got a quote from our doctor. Rabie vaccine, not covered by insurance (I am in US), a series of 3 shots with each shot costing $150, for our family of 3, it will cost a little under $1500 US. Vaccinate all dogs, please. Where is the money? I am sure glad the outbreak is not here. I know not every one in the States can offered $500 each person vaccine. Plus, even if vaccinated, complicated workup is still needed. Meaning, expensive..
Fact: 70% of household in CHina own dogs
90% of rabie cases in China are spread by dogs
3% vaccinated
There is 1.3 billion people in that country, and a LOT of dogs!!

August 8, 2006 @ 8:45 pm | Comment

Do they have to beat people’s beloved pets to death in front of their eyes? Also, rabies vaccine is not nearly that expensive. Rabies shots – not vaccine – are.

August 8, 2006 @ 9:59 pm | Comment

Yep, as I thought, getting a dog vaccinated for rabies costs from $6 USD to $15 USD (pdf file). It would be a lot of fun exposing the BS people try to pass off here to excuse anything and everything that takes place in China – iif it weren’t so depressing.

August 8, 2006 @ 11:15 pm | Comment

hey, what do you expect from a country that slaughters their daughters too. Anyone that thinks this okay is scum.

August 10, 2006 @ 7:44 pm | Comment

some of you people are fucking idiots, saying “i hate chinese people.” what the hell do you rednecks know about life in the chinese countryside? do you know what an outbreak – of anything – does to a rural place with no infrastructure? westerners are too used to the excess of wealth and help in their society that they can’t recognize that maybe domesticating animals carries some heartbreaking risks. enough chinese people die needlessly as a result of corruption and incompetence, they don’t needle western-world MEDDLERS making their situation any worse. if it means improving the state of things for HUMANS, in china, fry another 100,000 dogs. think with your brain, not your uninformed emotions (which are by the way not where they should be).

August 15, 2006 @ 11:25 am | Comment

I will agree that the comments assailing the Chinese people are stupid. However, it’s not just Western meddling – millions of Chinese people across the country are outraged over this, even more than we are.

August 15, 2006 @ 5:12 pm | Comment

Killing or abandoning female children and beating dogs to death in the street in front of their owners is immoral. “Western mentality” has nothing to do with whether or not they are murderers.

August 31, 2006 @ 4:25 pm | Comment

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