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Editorial
Hong Kong must crack down on irresponsible pet owners
Fatal attacks by two large dogs in a week have sparked concern over public safety guidelines and the deterrent effect of current laws
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Editorials represent the views of the South China Morning Post on the issues of the day.
With hindsight, there was a warning in a big dog’s fatal attacks on two small dogs earlier this week that people might not be safe from sudden unprovoked attacks. But nothing prepared the city for the fatal mauling of a 33-year-old woman by a big dog in her care at a training centre and dog hotel in northern Hong Kong on Thursday.
In the first incident involving a 60kg (132lb) unleashed dog, a court will decide whether its owner, a 52-year-old Yuen Long man, failed to properly control it, after the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department (AFCD) laid charges.
The woman’s death is bound to be reported to the coroner. The big mixed-breed attacked her when she tried to return it to its cage after releasing it for feeding. She was alone at the time, which prompts the question whether backup would have made a difference.
Both dogs have a troubled history. The owner of the first is also facing a charge over an attack that injured a small dog on July 10. The dog that killed the woman was a stray awaiting adoption. A suggestion of some pit-bull ancestry, a fighting breed banned in Hong Kong, is troubling. It is good that Hong Kong environment authorities have said they will review the definition of fighting dogs and relevant regulations to strengthen public safety.
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