A pet owner has caused an outrage after being caught dragging his two ‘exhausted’ dogs along behind his car on a busy road in China.
The two dogs, said to be one and two years old, were forced to keep up with the vehicle. One of them was seen lying on the ground when the car stopped.
After a video of the incident became popular, the owner of the dogs told a local newspaper that he was training them for an upcoming race.
A pet owner, in China, has come under fire after a video showing him dragging his dogs behind his car became widely shared on social media. Pictured is one of the two dogs
The dogs owner, surnamed Zhang, said he loves his two pets, which are racing dogs
A clip of the shocking incident was widely shared on Chinese social media today.
It was said to be filmed in Dalian, China’s Liaoning Province.
People have been horrified by the man’s behaviour, calling him ‘cruel’ and ‘abusive’. They claimed that the two dogs were clearly exhausted as they ran behind the car.
Among waves of criticism, the dogs’ owner, surnamed Zhang, told the local Peninsula Morning Post that he had been misunderstood.
The man defended himself by saying that he loves his dogs.
He said the two dogs were racing dogs and he was preparing them for a race, which would be held on September 25 in the nearby city of Huludao.
According to Mr Zhang, he wanted to prepare the dogs for an upcoming race, so he decided to attach them to his car by their necks and let them keep up. The public have voiced their anger
While being asked about the negative internet comments, Mr Zhang said: ‘I can understand the emotion of the web users, but they need to have a judgement of their own and understand what the truth was.’
Mr Zhang explained that normally he trains the dogs by letting them run on treadmills.
However since the race was drawing near, he decided to attach them to his car and let them run on his way to work.
Mr Zhang’s explanation apparent has not changed the web user’s minds as they carried on condemning the man after his interview with the newspaper.
Commenting on Mr Zhang’s apparent training method, Wendy Higgins from Humane Society International said she was ‘shocked’ and ‘appalled’.
Ms Higgins said: ‘There is never any excuse for tethering animals by the neck to the back of a fast moving vehicle.
‘These dogs were placed in extreme risk of injury or even death, and in fact the video appears to show one of the dogs having bleeding paws at the end of the ordeal, likely from desperate attempts to keep up with the vehicle. ‘
Ms Higgins also called on the Chinese authority to establish relevant law, ‘for as long as China’s laws place no importance on an animal’s welfare, some people in China will continue to treat them with indifference and lack of respect’.