The stray

‘Stray’ is a general term given to any domestic animal found roaming freely without human supervision.

 

In many countries the majority of stray animals have been abandoned by their owners or are owned but allowed to roam freely. The unsupervised dogs then breed, resulting in unwanted puppies. Strays depend on humans for most of their essential resources, such as food, although this may be found indirectly from rubbish discarded by humans. Because of this dependence on humans, stray animals are found roaming within and around human settlements. 



Life on the streets is hard - stray dogs fight over the limited amounts of food and that which can be scavenged. Injuries sustained this way are rarely treated. Tumors, skin infections and open sores are common for stray dogs. Over three quarters of puppies in developing countries die in agony from diseases including rabies and distemper.

 

Conflict with humans and public health

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Stray animals can become a problem for many reasons: they carry diseases that can be passed to humans and other animals (such as rabies),  they can cause road accidents, harass and attack citizens, damage property and pollute the environment. They are often seen as a nuisance and health hazard by the people who live alongside them, resulting in persecution by humans in the form of cruelty, abuse and inhumane methods of killing. The dogs are treated as nothing more than a vermin to be exterminated.

 

Population control

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Dogs follow their basic instincts and breed to propagate their species. Humans can make the decision to control their own population, and they have also been given the gift of taking responsibility for dogs. Sadly some people see that responsibility as a power to kill unwanted dogs sometimes in the most inhumane of ways. This has been proved ineffective as a method of population control because the vacuum left is soon filled by other dogs from surrounding areas who move in to utilise the resources available, or by the existing dogs using these resources to raise more puppies.



Trap-neuter-return (TNR) is the only effective method to control and reduce animal over-population.