Can you imagine the public outcry if anyone were to suggest a trap, neuter, release (TNR) program for free-roaming dogs in this country? The media would have a field day. Scorn and hatred would be heaped on the poor person who raised such a possibility.Experts from areas as varied animal rights, public health, and politics (especially during an election year) would find themselves strange but united bedfellows as they sought ways to stamp out such an obscene suggestion.
And yet, if the circumstances were to change in response to climate change, habitat destruction, or the increased incidence of diseases transmissible between animals and humans, might we be forced to look at this option logically instead of emotionally? Perhaps not in my lifetime and not with rabies, but there’s a increasing number of other diseases on our doorsteps…
For those who missed the news coverage of this latest outbreak of rabies in China, you can read more about it here.
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