CITIZENS OF FOUR PAWS

CITIZENS OF FOUR PAWS

 Domestic animals, such as dogs and cats, can be found almost everywhere around the world, and in many families they are considered as four-legged members. Nowadays, there are certain people who buy pets because they think animals are cute, adorable and not very time-demanding. Problems start when those people realize that taking care of the four-pawed members of their families was not as easy as they thought; for that reason, some owners make the decision to leave their pets to their fate. Most animals we can see on the streets are mongrels, black cats and dogs considered as dangerous; they are in poor conditions because nobody wants to adopt them. According to research carried out in 2015 by Universidad de Ciencias Aplicadas y Ambientales (UDCA) Bogota alone has around 1.2 million animals living on the streets, approximately 905,000 of which are dogs and 322,000 are cats; and these figures increase more and more every year. Furthermore, most animals are not sterilized, which creates a serious problem in the society.  A female dog can have around 24 puppies twice a year, which means that all these dogs will be living by themselves around the city. If it is not controlled, this could cause animal overpopulation. Effective solutions must then be implemented to prevent abandonment of animals on streets.

The fact of having such a big amount of abandoned pets on the streets may result in problems for the community and animals. Firstly, pets on the streets can ruin the image of the citizens of any city by considering them bad, irresponsible, inhuman and cruel.  People from other countries could judge the Colombian culture wrongly due to the perspective they get from the conditions in which pets live on the streets. Secondly, abandoned animals may cause traffic accidents when attempting to cross the streets or highways. Animals struggle to survive in the jungle of concrete; they need food, water, a place to cover from the cold and from rain. This causes them to move to different places in the city, which, at the same time, implies that they put their lives and those of others at risk to achieve this purpose. Finally, mongrels may cause health problems to humans and other animals since they are transmitters of contagious or fatal viral diseases such as rabies. According to Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM)(n.d), people’s health could be affected by animal’s feces in the streets. The research showed that “in Mexico 700,000 kilos of fecal waste are generated per day that are related to more than 100 human diseases” (P9). This problem not only happens in Mexico, it could be seen in any Latin America city.

Animal shelters may be very important places for a city when it has problems related to homeless pets. The most common solution for this problem is to create enough suitable places for taking them in. Animal shelters or animal foundations are the best way to deal with the abandonment problem since these entities are suited to satisfy all their necessities.  In fact, they do not only offer a home for these animals, but they also have health-care services. A document published by the Technical Cooperation Department (n.d) in Rome: mentioned that first aid most of those animals that have suffered all kinds of accidents on the streets need important surgeries, health treatments including medicine supply, vaccines and other products. Veterinarians could prevent or treat any type of illness that animals suffer. On the other hand, sometimes it is hard for foundation owners to take care of all animals; for that reason, promoting adoption or finding a new home for these pets is also an effective answer to the problem. The best way to achieve this solution is to have the support of the government and citizens because they are the only ones who can help these beings who have no voice. As mentioned earlier, foundations are the principal element to begin with because animals would be in a safe place; however, these enclosures must be provided by the government because animals are also citizens and also deserve protection. The government, with the help of important companies, can also promote adoption campaigns; in this way, the message in the community could be more welcome. If this strategy is implemented, we will probably begin to see a change in our city and in the mentality of the citizens. The number of abandoned animals could decline more and more, which would mean that the diseases transmitted by them and the accidents on the roads could also decrease.

All things considered, there are different solutions to the problem of abandoned animals. The principal aspect to take into account in this issue is to create a responsible awareness in the citizens regarding responsible care and possession of the pets. Some people usually think that this is not an important problem because they consider animals or, more specifically pet, as an object; they do not seem to be conscious that dogs or cats depend on humans. The problem mentioned above is something that has to do with everyone, even with people who do not have pets because even if they do not have one, they can help those animals that are living in the streets. They can adopt them or take them to a foundation. The government also has an important role because they can promote adoption campaigns or create suitable establishments.Animals can not survive by themselves as humans do, for that reason pets deserve to have rights in which the protection is the most important. Animal shelters are very important in cities as Bogota for many reasons. Because they give good protection to animals on the streets. So it should be a priority for citizens and local governments for improving the appearance, perception and environment of the city.

References

Department, T. C. (n.d.). Reform and Decentralization of Agricultural Services: A Policy Framework. Retrieved from www.fao.org/docrep/005/y2006s/y2006s0e.htm

Semana. (2015). En Bogotá hay 1,2 millones de perros y gatos abandonados. Retrieved from www.semana.com/nacion/articulo/maltrato-animal-en-bogota-hay-un-millon-de-perros-gatos-abandonados/453130-3

Villa, A. (2016). Animales en situación de calle. Un problema que nos afecta a todos.  
          Retrieved from www.jovenesconstruyendo.org/animales-en-     situacion-de-calle-un-                    problema-que-nos-afecta-a-todos/0