Netizens have reacted strongly to news that at least 30 dogs were killed in a Sichuan Province town to encourage people to vaccinate their pets and reduce the number of stray dogs suffering from diseases.
An online post which said stray dogs in Qingjiang would be hunted down and killed by the local government recently went viral on Sina Weibo. The post also said dog owners will be ordered to cover the cost of euthanizing their dogs.
Many netizens slammed the measures as cruel and urged the government to provide free vaccinations for pet dogs instead of killing them.
The head of the Qingjiang government office surnamed Li said that the initiative is carried out once a year and is aimed at preventing rabies from spreading to humans, stressing that only stray dogs and dogs whose owners refuse to vaccinate them will be killed.
"There were two dog attacks this year and about a dozen people were injured. Stray and sick dogs pose a threat to public security," he said, adding that since July, 32 dogs have been killed and 58 others vaccinated.
The killing of stray dogs has been taking place in other cities across China and has regularly caused controversy among dog lovers. But local authorities continued the practice when dogs hurt people.
