The choice of the traveler
Euthanasia?
Why do we agree with EUTHANASIA?
It is said that dogs are “man’s best friend.” As part of their ecological adjustment, they now share the same environment as humans. The domestication of dogs approximately twelve to fifteen thousand years ago has contributed to human evolution, and their numbers increase as humans settle down. Furthermore, dogs are capable of understanding people's feelings and can be one of their owners' most loyal and supportive companions. It has been observed that some dogs were kept as pets in the homes of their owners while others were roaming the streets without shelter. It is common for stray dogs to have been previously-owned pet dogs abandoned by their owners. Moreover, due to the unfriendly environment of the streets, dogs are more likely to contract diseases. In light of this, we are faced with an important question: Should we support euthanasia?
The idea of euthanizing dogs is controversial among people, since it is we humans who decide whether or not to do so, and it seems unfair to just end their lives in this manner. However, many others, including us, believe that the stray dogs should be euthanized, provided that certain conditions are met, such as they have been severely injured after being left in the streets for an extended period of time.
While dogs provide people with social and health benefits, they may also incite problems for not only their owners but people in general; for example bites, zoonoses, etc. As a consequence of its uncontrollable and logarithmic growth in their population, several strategies have been taken in both developed and developing countries. It is true that dogs can provide social and health benefits to humans, but if their populations remain uncontrolled, they can also be the source of disease and destruction. Under these two scenarios, it has become necessary to use euthanasia as part of the strategy to reduce dog populations.
It is very possible that owners fail to fulfill their responsibilities and dispose of their pets, therefore making it the owners’ fault that there are stray dogs. Dogs are promiscuous by nature, and, as there is no well defined seasonality in this species, they are ready to mate throughout the entire year. The owners of dogs frequently claim that they possess the right to own a pet, but they may not be able to fulfill their responsibilities. If there are no laws regulating dog ownership or if they exist but are not enforced, a surplus of dogs will end up on the streets or in shelters. A majority of animals entering shelters do not have a chance of being adopted and are euthanized as a result.
No matter which method is used to control dog populations, it should be based on ethical considerations and/or practical experience according to the national/local situation, preventing animal suffering and killing whenever possible, using effective, preventative programs. In order to decrease dog relinquishment and, therefore, euthanasia, it may be beneficial to reduce dog birth rates. Surgical neutering is by far the most common method of birth control in dogs but it’s too expensive to be performed at large scale; so, in many countries, because of its costs, it may be restricted or even prohibited.
(by Camille/Trinity)
If no other means of reducing the number of dogs, particularly those that are stray, are considered, the consequences of banning euthanasia of dogs could alter the dynamics of dog populations. For instance, the Barcelona City Council decided in 2003 to discontinue routine euthanasia of unclaimed stray animals in the city's animal shelters. There was, however, a marked increase in the number of stray dogs following the suspension of routine euthanasia. Eventually, in late 2004, canine distemper became endemic in the shelter, as euthanasia was not used to control the spread of the disease.
In cases where dogs arrive in very poor conditions and have few chances of adoption, they should be euthanized immediately. It is estimated that 75% of the world's dog population is strays. The management of these animals presents a serious problem in many countries, and has serious implications for both the health of the public and the welfare of animals. In spite of countries trying hard to maximize catching rates (up to 24% of dog population/year), killing stray dogs only produces a short-term benefit. (by Andy/Camille)
However, why do we also disagree with EUTHANASIA?
The purpose of euthanasia is often that humans can no longer take care of these animals, hoping to send these lives away in the most humane way, but is such euthanasia really humane?
The issue of euthanasia in Taiwan became the peak of public opinion in the year of 2003 because of a video released by Life Conservationist Association. The content of the film explains the euthanasia process of dogs in Taiwanese shelters at that time. They take the dogs out of the kennel first, so as to prevent other dogs from seeing their companions being euthanized or releasing the smell from the anal glands after death, which will scare other dogs. After bringing the dog out, they will try to calm the dog, but it is not that simple, because the dogs have little to no interaction with the staff while in the public shelter, making it easy for the dogs to be frightened during the capture process. Some might be resistant towards efforts made by the staff to take them out of their cages and kennels. The staff often try to intimidate these uncooperative dogs with dog sticks. Dogs tend to feel more frightened when they see the dog catch stick, as the dog catch stick strangles their neck while in use, making them obey orders out of fear of suffocation. Of course, the dogs will try their best to resist, and their resistance often results in them attacking staff members of the shelter.
However, in most cases, when facing a docile dog, the staff will gently tug it out of the cage with a dog stick. However, the other dogs barking in their respective cages also present a fairly tacky problem for the dog shelter staff. Their barking and growling often provoke the feeling of fear in the dogs meant to be euthanized. If, as mentioned earlier, euthanasia is to let these animals die in the most humane and "happy" way, then the fear experienced by dogs before they die is no longer satisfactory. However, worse is still yet to come.
After arriving in the room where the dog is to be euthanized, they will look at the state of the dog and choose whether they can directly administer euthanasia drugs or not. If the dog is too nervous, they will first give a sedative anesthesia to make it easier for the staff to perform the intravenous injection of euthanasia. Before euthanasia, they try to reassure the animals and try not to make the dogs tense and move around, as this can make it difficult to administer the IV. The intravenous agent they use is Pentobarbital, a drug that directly suppresses the central nervous system so that the animal can quickly become unconscious and die of a stopped heart slowly. After the dog dies, they clean up the area and let the next dog in. While this all sounds fine, it's actually quite difficult to implement. Many staff will prioritize not being bitten first, and will not spend time comforting the dog. After all, it is not easy to calm the dog before giving the intravenous injection.
Obviously, an intravenous injection on a nervous, small animal is more difficult than intravenous injections performed in any human hospital. Because of this, the staff developed their own method of euthanasia, which involves pushing the dog against a wall or the floor with a dog trap and inserting a syringe directly into the heart through the chest to inject the drug into the heart. However, the animals were restless, so two or three injections were often given without reaching the heart. Regardless of how painful it is to insert the syringe into the chest cavity, the drug injected into the chest cavity will anesthetize the chest cavity, making the animal gradually struggle to breathe and suffocate to death in a conscious state. From this way of death, there is absolutely no place for happiness. Finally, because the shelter has to euthanize a dog every few minutes, sometimes the next dog comes in without the staff cleaning up the previous dog's body at all. Summing up all the previous information, do you still think that euthanasia is the best way to solve the excessive number of stray dogs? We think not. (by Trinity)
