Jiangning Police Station is being accused of misconduct and animal abuse after a video emerged showing officers transporting a stray dog in the most shocking way.
The footage was filmed in the Jiangning district of Nanjing, the capital of east China’s Jiangsu province. Since it emerged online, animal activists have been fuming. According to reports, the Jiangning Police Station received a complaint about a stray dog that was wandering and disturbing residents. When the officers arrived on the scene, they failed to find the animal.
Later that day, at 5:50 PM, officers received a second complaint about the dog. This time, upon their arrival, they located the canine— a small, white dog with ringworm and bald spots all over its body.
The video shows the stray being pulled by an officer who holds a snare outside of the passenger window. As the car drives, the animal struggles to keep up, its paws sliding along the asphalt.
As can be imagined, the footage sparked outrage from animal activists worldwide. People criticized the officers and accused them of misconduct and abuse. At first, the Jiangning Police Station stayed quiet. But, when the pressure mounted, they responded in the form of a written statement.
In the statement, the police station described their officers as “ill-equipped” to deal with the stray, saying they used this method because they didn’t have a cage.
The station apologized for the officers’ actions. It additionally promised to provide better training for these types of situations in the future. “The unprofessional way of managing the dog has upset many members of the public, especially animal lovers,” they wrote.
“We apologize sincerely for the incident.”
Sadly, situations like this are all too common in China— a country CNN describes as being in the midst of a “civil war” over dogs.
In China, dogs have long been considered as meat (as opposed to a pet), with Animals Asia estimating that 10 million Chinese dogs are slaughtered for this purpose each year. The idea of ‘dogs as food’ is a strong tradition among rural, Chinese populations. However, people in urban areas consider dogs to be pets. CNN describes the situation as a case of rapid urbanization changing people’s values in ways never seen before. The result of which is a raging battle between members of both sides.
Because of the difference in views, instances of animal abuse are common in China. Back in 2015, Zheng Weiyang from the Guangdong province of China was exposed after he chained his dog to his car because his wife had told him to “get rid” of it. Last year, in 2017, a dog owner from Hong Kong, China, went viral when he was captured dragging two exhausted dogs behind his car. When questioned by a local newspaper, he claimed he was “training them for an upcoming race.”
The white dog dragged by Jiangning police is currently being cared for at the Peace Luck Shelter, a non-profit animal organization in Beijing.
In a Weibo post (obtained via the Daily Mail UK) the shelter said: “Other than suffering from serious skin diseases, the dog did not sustain any other injuries and is in good health.”
According to the Daily Mail UK, the entire event has sparked online discussion among internet users, with many criticizing the officers for their actions:
“So cruel! What kind of policemen are they?”
“Even though it’s a stray dog, the officers shouldn’t have to hurt it like that.”
“I think they could have handled the situation better. This show that they are completely ignorant when it comes to stray dogs.”
Others, however, have supported the officers, writing comments such as:
“I wouldn’t have put the stray dog in my car without a cage— it had a serious skin condition that could have been contagious.”
“The car was traveling at a very slow speed. I didn’t think the police were at fault— they did the best they could.”
Do you think the officers’ actions were simply the result of a lack of training? Or were their actions the result of motivated cruelty?
Watch the shocking footage below.
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