KONGSTER SAYS: A dog's eye view
Chan Wai Kong
Malay Mail, 6 Nov 2005

Bobo, the doggie that I put to sleep a few years ago after she fell severely ill, visited me in my dream the other day, and barked an earful to me: “I’m glad to be in Animal Heaven now. Things on earth are really going to the dogs.

“I read in the Bow-Wow Mail about owners mistreating dogs, and that from now all dogs must go for training and pass a test by the MKA before getting a license to stay in places like Subang Jaya.

“The Subang Jaya Municipal Council declared unlicensed pet dogs could be confiscated. But what would they do with them, throw them into garbage trucks for disposal?

“I really have a bone to pick with these people. What new tricks can they teach old dogs if the pets have been with their owners for many years?

“Even the so-called smartest animal, called man, can’t learn new tricks once they are old enough to give excuses.

“If I failed the test, I wouldn’t want to suffer the indignity of being tagged as not fit to stay in Subang Jaya or worse, put to sleep.

“If dogs must go for training again, and re-sit the test, I fear the owners may get tired of paying MKA and decide to abandon old dogs or kill them off.

“I was told that the training includes basic hygiene. Grrr, I smell double standards.

“How come cats, which defecate all over Subang Jaya, don’t have to go for training? When I was guarding your lawn, I saw the neighbor’s cat doing its business on your roof.

“According to the Bow-Wow Mail, Kuala Lumpur and Petaling Jaya are still dog-friendly places, while the municipal councils of Subang Jaya, Klang, Shah Alam, Kajang and Selayang are friendlier to cats.

“Dog owners should also be taught how to behave. My pals in Animal Heaven say many dog owners gave them hell.

“Some dog owners are disgusting. When they walk their dogs, they want them to defecate in front of other people’s houses. When we refuse to do it, our owners get angry and bark us an order.

“Dog owners should also be taught to love us and pay attention to us, and not chain us up the whole day. Women are not the only creatures that want affection.

“Dogs are kind and affectionate by nature. They don’t call us man’s best friend for nothing. We are only taught or conditioned by humans to be aggressive to humans.

“The Subang Jaya Council thinks dogs are a danger to the public. What about the two-legged animals who grab handbags and hurt women? They should train dogs to catch them,” said Bobo before vanishing with a woof.

I really miss Bobo. She was a wonderful live-in companion that would never nag, but only wag her tail in empathy; things that I wouldn’t tell my missus, I would tell the furry kindred spirit.