Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a significant drop in global tourism. As a result, the stray dogs of Bali are beginning to feel the pain of hunger without the usual number of tourists. This prompted the animal welfare group, Four Paws to team up with the Bali Animal Welfare Association in order to come to their aid and provided thousands of starving animals with food.
Four Paws released a message that read, “Currently, thousands of stray animals on the usually bustling island have been forced to survive on minimal food and innutritious scraps like dried husks and kernels of corn.”
Their dedicated program was comprised of two teams who are on full-time feeding duty. They are expecting to be busy over the next three-and-a-half months. So far, the group has already completed three weeks of work, giving thousands of stray animals much-needed food.
But there are other good things coming out of this charitable effort. Not only are the sick or injured strays more likely to get the medical attention that they need, but the stray dogs are also more likely to have protection against those who’d want to trap them and sell them to the dog meat market trade.
The head of Four Paws Stray Animal Care projects in Southeast Asia, Dr. Katherine Polak, explained how the lack of normal food sources has been due to a number of reasons, not just lack of flights and tourism. Other facts include loss of jobs, restaurant closures, or repatriation of ex-pats returning home.
Dr. Polak continued to relay that the dogs’ lack of food also puts them at a greater risk of being poisoned or killed through other horrible means.
“Many starving dogs tend to steal food or hunt and kill farmed animals, placing them in conflict with local communities,” she said.
It’s wonderful to see that the strays of Bali are being looked after by people who care. All dogs deserve someone to look out for them.
