Imagine being a castaway. On a deserted island. No food. This tropical island is never like what you see in glossy travel brochures. It is muddy, it is far from civilisation, it is full of deadly snakes, it is not livable. You get the idea.
Like some horror movie island. Where you can check in and never check out. Ever.
If you are deported here, you will die. There’s no food, nothing. There’s danger aplenty. Snakes, mud, flies.
And you cannot swim. You will drown anyway due to tiredness as it’s really far away from any other island.
And sadly, you will die.
I read something sad today and while I am normally positive and upbeat, I want to help spread this news. I tweeted about it but it needs your support.
Bloggers always rally around to help be it a missing child, someone needing blood, raising funds for a good cause. And that’s why I feel it’s time as a blogger to not only write about fun things, good things, happy things but also to write about this. It’s horrible to think that Malaysians can be so stupid but I’m a Buddhist. I believe what goes around comes around. Life’s a big karma dish.
Anyway – to cut it short – dogs are being left to die on an island near Pulau Ketam.
Stray dogs.
I heard about it from Donald first this morning at his blog. Then I followed the links and went to TV Smith’s blog where he had a very touching photo essay of the rescue mission. And this is where you can get updates about the mission.
I think it’s outrageous that dogs are exiled to an island. I’ve always felt that the cruelest beings on earth have always been humans. While we have the power to do good things, we’ve also the power to do extremely horrifying things. And I consider this one of them.
So what can you do? (I hope you are a blogger and you can spread this message far and wide. If you are a flogger aka food blogger, why not blog about dogs for a change?)
1. Help by embedding the puppy poster on your blog. Get it here.
2. Any other assistance is much appreciated. Again, the email and phone numbers are listed here.
I’m just disappointed that human beings are so bloody cruel and thoughtless! And Pulau Ketam now probably will not only be famous for seafood, it will be notorious for killing dogs!
Oh yes, they’re also overcharging for the boat trips to rescue the dogs. What irony! They were the ones who put the dogs there! Perhaps we should all boycott the Pulau Ketam seafood restaurants – NOW that’s something floggers can write about!
That is really apalling! Malaysia is the one country that I have found that people are exceedingly cruel to strays and I have witnessed it time and again each time I return to Malaysia. In Singapore, it is not so obvious because people who are cruel to animals get caught on camera by passersby and are fined by the authorities. I will connect your article to my blog and put it on my facebook. Thanks for highlighting this. Grace
Hi Grace – Thank you for helping to spread the message. Yup, Malaysians are notorious for mistreating animals. And yet, the simplest way to deal with this is – why don’t they spay or neuter the animals? But of course that costs money and who wants to fork out money for a street dog. But it’s also this – some dogs are strays because when they are no longer cute and cuddly (means they’ve grown up from puppyhood), their owners abandon them. Just like how tortoises are abandoned and put into public ponds and lakes when they grow too big and not so cute anymore.
Hi Maya,
Yes, sometimes I felt that the owners of these dogs shouldn’t have dogs in the first place but they let them breed as they please. The only way is to get these dogs to mainland and have it adopted but problem with SPCA is they owner must have a conducive environment to live in. I wanted to adopt one years ago but I had to bring it to Johor as my hometown needs dogs cause the land is 30 acres and they can be a very good watch dog. Well, that’s prevents me from adopting a dog from SPCA.
William — Yup, people are so irresponsible when they don’t spay their pets and when too many puppies or kittens are born, they thrown them away. Humans have this sad idea that puppies or kittens can take care of themselves and we don’t need to interfere with Nature. I understand about the SPCA too. I suppose they too are looking out for the dog or cat. They really want good homes for these animals after all the trauma these strays go through. My cat, Margaret, was a stray. I adopted her from the street and had her neutered. I think that’s the best way to own a pet these days, especially with humans and animals fighting for space on a limited earth.
Omg, that’s just plain evil and inhumane1
Cleffairy – Yup. That is so awful. Luckily Sabrina and her friends’ efforts are published in today’s newspaper and I am happy that it got into the limelight for the right reasons. And that Rev. Dhammaratana outwardly condemned those who put the dogs on the island.