\u201cI thought of developing countries as having poor animal welfare, and I went there and thought, \u2018New Zealand could learn something from this\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n
Badorek said she was pleasantly surprised by the laws around street dogs in Mumbai, where harming them is a punishable offence, and where populations are controlled by sterilisation mandates rather than culling them. <\/p>\n
She was also struck by how residents treated animals with kindness and respect.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I first saw all these street dogs on the side of road, I thought \u2018I\u2019m going to hate this\u2019.<\/p>\n
\u201cUntil I started talking to people about how street dogs are looked after.<\/p>\n
\u201cBasically, the whole community looks after them.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey make sure they\u2019re fed; there\u2019s a charity that makes sure they get desexed \u2013 and most were desexed.<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t see one dog in Mumbai that had an ounce of aggression.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey were friendly and laid back, and people looked out for them.\u201d<\/p>\n
Donna Badorek said street dogs are respected and looked after in India \u2013 something many Northlanders could learn from.<\/p>\n
Badorek featured in a recent Paddy Gower Has Issues show that highlighted the growing problem of stray and roaming dogs in Northland and Auckland, which are attacking people, pets, and livestock.<\/p>\n
She said Northland was \u201cin crisis\u201d and more education about responsible dog ownership was needed.<\/p>\n
\u201cA lot of people up here lack understanding about the respect you should have for dogs.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019re not something you throw in your backyard on a chain.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s what\u2019s lacking … there\u2019s no consequence for people that ill-treat animals.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s people that reoffend up here all the time and get away with it.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe people in Mumbai and Sri Lanka know if they hurt and mistreat these dogs, there are serious consequences for that.\u201d<\/p>\n
Badorek also implored the Far North District Council [FNDC] and Government to introduce mandatory desexing.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe only way we\u2019re going to reduce the continuous overpopulation of these animals … is by saying enough is enough.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou do not need to breed these animals, unless you\u2019re a registered breeder.\u201d<\/p>\n
The issue of roaming dogs has reached \u201ccrisis point\u201d in the Far North, prompting Donna Badorek to call for mandatory desexing.<\/p>\n
FNDC has faced criticism for its high euthanasia rates for impounded dogs.<\/p>\n
The rates are influenced by the number of aggressive and untrainable dogs, often resulting from neglectful owners, because they can\u2019t be rehomed.<\/p>\n