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Cai Kunheng
WR 39C
Dr. Lynda Haas
Aug 20, 2015
Lovely Dogs, Friendly Dogs, Worrying Dogs
Julius Henry "Groucho" Marx, master of wit and famous American comedian and film
star, once said: Outside of a dog, a book is man's best friend. Inside of a dog it's too dark to
read.. Annotated by distinguished authors, positive dog quotes are pervasive on the Internet. For
example, Mark Twain complemented dogs in this saying: If you pick up a starving dog and
make him prosperous he will not bite you. This is the principal difference between a dog and
man. Twains comment points out that dogs could be considered to have higher morality than
humans, implying the affection he had for dogs. Hence, humans great attraction to dogs leads to
the question Why do we love dogs ?
The answer to this question seems apparent, yet it is complex and confusing. What factor
abridged the gap between humans and dogs, and even strengthened this relationship? John
Archer, Professor of Psychology at the University of Central Lancashire, was puzzled by the
question of why people love their pets, explaining that love for dogs and other pets poses a
problem. Being attached to animals is not, strictly speaking, necessary for human health and
welfare (132). Archer explains that Sufficient scientific studies have proven that people with
pets usually live longer with better blood pressure than non-owners (132); but in the literal
sense, as Archer argues, we don't really need all those dogs and cats to survive (133)
Eventually, Archer offers his own answer according to Darwins evolutionary theory, "consider
the possibility that pets are, in evolutionary terms, manipulating human responses, that they are

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the equivalent of social parasites. Social parasites inject themselves into the social systems of
other species and thrive there. Dogs are masters at that. They show a range of emotionslove,
anxiety, curiosityand thus trick us into thinking they possess the full range of human feelings.
Dogs are truly masters who emulate our emotions yet express in their most suitable ways. They
lick our faces to show their passion just like we gratefully hug each other; they cry and snuggle
with their parents when a thunderstorm is coming like baby humans; they wiggle tails and act
agog for small daily walks, acting as though theyve just receive the best Christmas gift; no
wonder that dogs incontrovertibly win our hearts and have become our best friends.
This stable while joyful relationship has a long history. In order to illustrate this amazing
symbiosis, investigating the behind-the-scenes history for both species is requisite. Leslie Irvine,
social psychologist and author of If You Tame Me: Understanding Our Connections with Animals
(2004) presents the great transformation of humans from hunter to farmer at pre-literate epoch.
When our first generation of intelligent homo-sapiens ancestors were smart enough to sharpen
their stone spears to hunt, and started to respect their prey animals, understanding the differences
between animals and humans. However, since they could not explain the differences, they owed
these mysteries to the unpredictable Mother Nature, and started to reverse feed nature by
sacrificing or worshipping animals on certain days; as Irvine explains, They were subjected and
worshipped, bred and sacrificed (35). As part of human evolution, our ancestors turned from
hunters to farmers, and this step was a major milestone. According to Irvine, It is impossible to
overestimate the importance of mankind's change from hunter-gatherer to domesticator of plants
and animals (46). Part of this step was that the relationship between humans and animals also
changed; humans no longer respected nature and animals in the same way, which led to the
beginning of their imperial domination. As a result, farmers started to gather all different sources

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and learned to store them; they also started to conquer land by separating out farms and
eliminating useless crops and animals such as rodents and birds. As Irvine describes, In
contrast, the transition to farming required both an intimacy with the natural world and a
conquering attitude toward it (36). This transformation truly changed the whole planet
abiotically and biotically; it had also introduced wolves into human life.
As humans became a dominant species, other species who got along with humans were
eventually ended up as pets or livestock. Wolves were the most successful species that not only
earned humans trust, but also co-evolved with humans to dogs during the last 12,000 years.
Archaeological evidence has long placed the origins of the domestic dog (Canis lupus
familiaris) just prior to the beginning of the Holocene Epoch, some 12,000-15,000 years ago,
according to Morey, Darcy F, the author of Dogs: Domestication and the Development of a
Social Bond. Morey indicates that the earliest dog, precisely the ancient wolves, intelligently
accepted the trending size of ancient humans population, and had started scavenging around
humans habitat. Gradually humans had begun to adopt wolf cubs and discovered their inherent
tamable characteristic. Eventually these two irrelevant species have grown intimate relationship
and loved to live with each other.

The Problem
Humans loved dogs but have neglected their superior fertility and tenacious survivorship
after abandonment or escape, India is a good example of a country that is currently grappling
with the problem of stray dogs overpopulation. Abandoned or escaped dogs have transformed to

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stray dogs, and adopted new freely lifestyle in streets with hobos and garbage. Without restrain
or birth control regulation, they started to reproduce in an alarming velocity, and the
overwhelming population of stray dogs generates problems such as rabies and biting. India has
the largest stray dog culture among the world. According World Health Organization estimates,
the total number of street dogs in India was between 25 and 30 million until 2004. Indian stray
dogs have been living with their masters for more than 15000 years since the Upper Paleolithic
era (Menezes). They are so adaptive to this life style, hence the reproduction rate and population
size are soaring ever since. Eventually the occupation of city stray dogs was too large to neglect.
The canine population is overwhelming and concerning in India. According to a WHO
sponsored national multicentric rabies survey, India has approximately 25 million dogs, with an
estimated dog-to-man ratio of 1:36 (WHO May, 2004). The enormous dog population is
believed the primary cause of high contagious rabies in India. Most animal bites in India
(91.5%) are by dogs. The steady increase in the number of cases involving dog bites and an everincreasing demand for postexposure vaccination poses the question of whether India is in the
midst of an epidemic of rabies in dogs or whether these increases merely reflect uncontrolled
growth in the dog population and greater number of humans exposed to them (Rozario
Menezes). Overpopulation of stray dogs increases the number of biting accidents and unsafe
communities. The flooding of stray dogs is mainly caused by Large amounts of exposed
garbage, which provide an abundant source of food. A huge population of slum and streetdwellers, who often keep the dogs as free-roaming pets, introduced by Indian Welfare of Stray
Dogs organization (WSD), one of a native legalized animal welfare associations which focuses
on limiting the amount of stray dogs. Slum and street-dwellers provide shelters for Indian stray
dogs, but the sanitary condition of these shelters is concerning.

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Gardiner Harris, a public health reporter for The New York Times, confirms Mumbais
poor sanitary circumstance in his published statistically study called Where Streets Are
Thronged With Strays Baring Fangs. With the majorly focus of the stray dogs problem in India,
the study illustrate that Mumbai has over 12 million human residents, of whom over half are
slum-dwellers. At least five hundred tons of garbage remain uncollected daily. Therefore,
conditions are perfect for supporting a particularly large population of stray dogs. India has the
highest number of human rabies deaths in the world (estimated at 35,000 per annum) (Harris).
Therefore, the poor sanitary condition in Mumbai encourages stray dogs to reproduce in their
best, while exacerbate their poor living condition by having more puppies since dogs generate
feces and garbage, too.
According to these studies conveyed by WSD, WHO, and Gardiner Harris. The alarming
sanitary condition facilitates the reproduction of stray dogs. Digging deep down to the root, the
canine overpopulation was caused by exponential growth of non-spaying and non-neutering
dogs. This exponential growth is so uncontrollable that stray dogs are too many to be maintained
appropriately.
According to a research,ACTION ALERTS Pledge to Practice Your ABCs: Animal Birth
Control by PETA, spaying is effective regardless the gender of stray dogs. Spaying one female
dog can prevent 67,000 births in six years, and spaying one female cat can prevent 420,000
births in seven years. The exponential curve of birth rate is simple, when one regular female
stray dog gives birth biannually with 2 cubs each time; each cub spends 5 months to gain sexual
maturity; and each cub has 2 offsprings each time like parental generation; a few years later the
parental generation will have a shocking number of offsprings just like what figure 4 illustrates.
As a matter of fact, female dogs can usually have more than 2 cubs per generation, and will keep

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breeding for several years. Thus, the fast reproduction of unsterilized stray dogs concerns the
Indian public health and jeopardizes the relationship between stray dogs and humans since the
overpopulation appears overwhelming yet hazardous. Concentrating on diminishing the
population of stray dogs with reliable approach is in urgence.

(Figure 3: analogy of exponential growth in 3 years.)

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(Figure 1.1 left: Garbage provides a source of food.)

(Figure 1.2 right: Most strays are actually pets of street and slum dwellers)

(Figure 2 Free-roaming dogs live with villagers in peaceful at Kolcutta, India)

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Not only the overpopulation itself burdens the public health in India, but also the rabies.
Rabies is one of the oldest recognized diseases affecting humans and one of the most important
zoonotic diseases in India, according to the research Rabies in India by Rozario Menezes, a
well known Indian public health expert. Historically speaking, rabies has been recognized in
India since the Vedic period (1500500 BC) and was described in the ancient Indian scripture
Atharvaveda, wherein Yama, as the mythical God of Death, has been depicted as attended by 2
dogs as his constant companions, the emissaries of death. Rabies is endemic in India, a vast
country with a population exceeding 1.02 billion and a land area of 3.2 million km. The dog has
been, and still is, the main reservoir of rabies in India. (Rozario Menezes).The image below

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illustrates that India has the highest death rate from rabies among Asia.

Menezes also provides a record, which investigated in 2004 by World Health

Organization, basing on the temporary rabies problem at India. It states About 15 million people
are bitten by animals, mostly dogs, every year and need postexposure prophylaxis. Since 1985,

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India has reported an estimated 25 00030 000 human deaths from rabies annually. The majority
of people who die of rabies are people of poor or low-income socioeconomic status (Rozario
Menezes). Figure 2 from the National Multicentric Rabies Survey (NMRS), conducted in 2004
by the Association for Prevention and Control of Rabies (APCR) in India in collaboration with
the WHO, indicates the number of rabies patients was 20565. According by Rozario, rabies has
caused a serious public health problem in India among all Asian countries, and is majorly caused
by stray dogs biting. Therefore, reducing the canine population size will help with the reduction
of the number of dog bites and rabies.
Generally speaking, while the overpopulation and rabies keep bringing health problems
to India, the relationship between Indian people and stray dogs is deteriorating as well. Indian
people afraid of stray dogs and educate their kids to stay away of them. They (stray dogs)
basically start barking once you get anywhere near them and sort of surround you.

According to this WHO bulletin Indias ongoing war against rabies , 4 years ago 36% of the
rabies cases of the world were in India and most of them are because of infected dogs. Any semi
educated family is very very aware of this fact and it is drilled into the children's psyche to make
sure we don't befriend any stray dogs (Quora), cited from Quora and this an high voted answer
for the question Why are Indians afraid of dogs. Since the answer has made agreement by
more than 20 people, it can at least represents the unequal relationship between stray dogs and
some of the Indians. This inequality may harm the rapport between humans and dogs in India,
thus, we need to stop the overpopulation in order to greatly maintain this harmony symbiosis,
and keep our coevolution partnership as tight as possible.

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Figure 3: upvotes and views number for the question Why Are Indians Afraid of Dogs

Solutions
In order to reduce the trending of stray dog population, the Indian Animal Welfare
suggested vaccinating and sterilization provide the most effective method. Following the
decreasing population, the spread of rabies must be restrained as the result. On the other hand,
neutering and spaying are efficient individually, and are promoting by mainstream social medias
and scientists, too.
As a matter of fact, India government had not banned stray dogs culling until 2004 since
the method of simply killing them was adopted as the most effective one. Culling stray dogs as a
population control method was started by the British in the 19th Century-- Referred by WSD, the
Welfare of Stray Dogs, a legalized nonprofit organization dedicated to helping Indian stray dogs
since 1984. The organization states that stray dog culling was a large-scale mission (up to 50,000
dogs killed every year) annually before 1993 with the aims of eradicating human rabies deaths
and the stray dog population. However, the stray dogs culling was proved not as efficient as
animal birth control, reported by WHO, 2004.
In 2004, Animal Birth Control as well as ABC, a new approach was adopted by both
WHO experts and India government. The rationale of this program is to reduce the dog
population turnover as well as the number of dogs susceptible to rabies and limit aspects of male
dog behavior (such as dispersal and fighting) that facilitate the spread of rabies (WHO). The
ABC has been developed by WHO as the only practical solution to control the street dog
population and eradicate rabies. Therefore, Indian government replaced the culling by massive

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sterilization and vaccination in 2004. In addition, releasing spayed dogs back to original areas is
as important as neutering itself. Spaying stray dogs halts their abilities to reproduce as well as
stops the exponential growth of stray dogs population.
In addition, sterilization helps reduce the charging and offensive behaviors of roaming
dogs, which are mainly caused by migration and mating, explained by WSD. As a matter of fact,
most dog aggression occurs during mating time, when dogs cross territories to mate and fight
with other dogs, which can easily cause accidental human-bites. However, As testosterone
levels come down after sterilization, both male and female dogs become less aggressive (WSD).
Thus, sterilization provides efficient approach as it can end up the stray dog overpopulation, and
also reduces their biting behaviors. Besides, sterilized animals also live healthier, longer lives
and are less likely to roam, fight or bite (PETA).
Recently, the developing sterilization science has provided varies edge-cutting
approaches that help Indian government control the case in a more efficient level. Among these
new methods, oral rabies vaccination and birth control pills present more advanced technologies
than normal vaccination and sterilization.
According to the research group from National Research Laboratory on Rabies and
Wildlife Diseases, WHO Collaborating Centre for Research and Management in Zoonoses
Control, F, Cliquet and his colleagues have found the oral vaccination provided better rabies
control than normal vaccination. They have called the new drug SAG2 and experienced this
drug on 9 random selected Indian stray dogs. Based on their observation, the efficacy was
shown 109 days post-vaccination after challenge with a highly virulent street rabies virus which
killed all five controls whereas all nine vaccinated dogs survived, despite the fact that only five
out of nine had seroconverted before challenge. (Cliquet et al). To be specific, All five controls

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died at 25, 29, 33, 84, and 85 days after challenge. The clinical phase lasted from 6 to 8 days.
This mortality delay has been observed in experimental and in field conditions. In contrast, all
nine vaccinated dogs survived the challenge and remained healthy throughout the observation
period (90 days post-challenge). This high survival rate suggests the clinical efficiency of
SAG2, while the utility remains unknown, due to the inadequate economy situation. Quoting
Cliquets statement, only 46% of bitten humans receive post- exposure prophylaxis consisting
of an anti-rabies inactivated vaccine but rarely serum or anti-rabies immunoglobulin (2% of
cases) due to its high cost. Thus, the massive using of SAG2 remains a question. However, the
situation is not always negative since the creation of SAG2 encourages the revolution of new
rabies vaccination, and provides novel ideas to investigate new approaches to cure rabies.
Furthermore, because this is such a complicated problem, individual, grass-roots
solutions are also necessary. Individually spaying and neutering home dogs must be highly
recommended by mainstream social media and online nonprofit organizations, and these well
informed and promoted messages also play important rules in ceasing the stray dog
overpopulation in India, as well as the rabies.
The advantages of neutering companion dogs include reducing breast/ testicle cancer;
reducing the chance of escaping, roaming, and dog fights; reducing the chance of spraying urine
or hormone on furniture. An early 1999 research, Body Conformation, Diet, and Risk of Breast
Cancer in Pet Dogs: A Case-Control Study, presents by Elizabeth G. Sonnenschein, a
veterinarian from the New York University Medical School, illustrate the significances of early
companion dogs neutering. Sonnenschein conducted a case-control study at the Veterinary
Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania in 19841987. She interviewed owners of 150 pet
dogs diagnosed with breast cancer, owners of 147 cancer control dogs, and owners of 131

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noncancer control dogs. Throughout the survey, she had found the risk of breast cancer was
significantly reduced in dogs spayed at or before 2.5 years of age.
Not only scientists have claimed the advantage of dogs neutering, but also several
mainstream animal welfares have chose to promote this approach but in an adopted way, they
chose to use social medias as their platforms such websites, blogs and forums. The advantage of
promoting by social media appears enormous. As Shirky, Professor of Media Studies at NYU,
claims his impressions about social media in his TED presentation, he says the moment were
living for the moment our historical generation is living is the largest increase an expressive
capability in human history. Humans have been adapting 4 revolutions from the past 500 years
from radio to more private medias. The greatest change of the 21st century social globalization is
now we can both receive and send out messages instantly, and having both conversations and
groups at the same time. The size and complexity of nowadays social medias are enormous.
Propagandize animal welfare on social medias such as websites and blogs is considered wise and
efficient. Thus, the success of mainstream animal welfares largely attributes to the proper using
of social media which has boosted their promotion.

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(Figure 5: Infographic created by Samantha Paula Lara, Zicong Zheng, Kunheng Cai.)

Conclusively, the government-based methods include animal birth control and oral
vaccination, they are both effective with bright future. The individual and social media-based
methods include neutering home dogs and are also encouraged. There is not a method could

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perfectly solve the overpopulation and rabies by stray dogs immediately, a great amount of
patience and participations are required during this healing process. Mistakes were operated
during this process by India government, such as the faulty arbitrary culling had never worked.
Controlling India stray dogs population has never been easy, it asks familiarity towards to the
whole picture; it asks rich knowledge reserves; it also asks scientific insight that helps the
operator evaluate new approaches thoroughly. There were many other approaches than
vaccination and sterilization provided even better remedy, but none of them had actually stepped
into the case. The reasons varies, it could be expensive cost, extensive execution progress such as
long term shots, inadequate resources, or unpleasant flavor rejected by dogs. Throughout the
long time dispose and consultant, the India government, WHO, and mainstream animal welfares
have reached agreement on solving the problem of stray dog overpopulation and rabies,
sterilization and vaccination remain dominant governmentally, while neutering and spaying are
recommended individually. Thus, it is significant to consider all possible solutions and situations
they would lead before officially commanding orders or suggesting advice.

Work Cited
Gardiner, Harris (6 August 2012). "Where Streets Are Thronged With Strays Baring

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Fangs". New York Times. Retrieved 24 June 2013.

Menezes, Rozario. "Rabies in India." CMAJ : Canadian Medical Association
Journal. Canadian Medical Association, n.d. Web. 17 Aug. 2015.
Carding, A.H. "The Significance and Dynamics of Stray Dog Populations with Special
Reference to the U.K. and Japan." Dictionary.com. Dictionary.com, July 1969. Web. 12
Aug. 2015.
Sonnenschein, Elizabeth G. "Body Conformation, Diet, and Risk of Breast Cancer in Pet Dogs:
A Case-Control Study." Oxford Journals. Oxford Journals Medicine & Health American
Journal of Epidemiology, 1 Nov. 1999. Web.
"Romanian police recruit stray dogs for road safety lessons". The Raw Story. 201301-23. Retrieved 2013-11-16.
"Benefits of Spay/Neuter." SpayUSA.org. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Aug. 2015.
"Pet Overpopulation." Pet Overpopulation. American Humane Association, n.d. Web. 20 Aug.
2015.
"PETA India: India's Animal Rights Organisation | PETA India." PETA India, n.d. Web. 20 Aug.
2015.
Jaipur, Durgapura. "The Animal Birth Control Program Help in Suffering, Jaipur."
Http://www.hsi.org/. N.p., Aug. 2008. Web. 20 Aug. 2015.
Clay, Shirky. "How Social Media Can Make History." Youtube.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Aug.
2015.