PETALING JAYA, Feb 15 — Johnny, one of the strays recently “hired” as security guard dogs by the Manjung Municipal Council (MPM), died two days ago.
The city council expressed its sadness upon discovering the loyal canine’s dead body on Saturday morning, as Johnny had only been “on the job” for just over a month.
MPM said in a post on their Facebook page that Johnny died from injuries sustained from a hit and run accident.
“Johnny, the stray dog that served as a security guard dog at the Seri Manjung Mangrove Park has been found dead after being run over by a vehicle,” it stated.
“He was a loyal companion to our security guard and was very friendly with all of the MPM staff here at the park.
“We even got a dog licence for him, but unfortunately he only stayed with us for a while. Thank you Johnny for your service and your loyalty.”
A month ago, MPM took in the two stray dogs — Johnny and Puppy — to guard the Seri Manjung Mangrove Park in Lumut, Perak, from intruders and wild monkeys.
Both dogs were also trained to chase away the monkeys or other animals that wander into the area and harass park visitors.
“Wild monkeys had previously stolen visitors’ food or women’s handbags,” MPM president Syamsul Hazeman Md Salleh told Utusan Online last month.
“The problem will cease to exist after this as Johnny and Puppy will chase the monkeys away besides protecting visitors from venomous animals.”
The park’s security guard Khairol Nizam Mohd Zaki, 37, who looked after Johnny and Puppy, said that it only took him a week to train the dogs though he was initially afraid of them.
“Each time the monkeys try to leave the park, I will get on my motorcycle and call Puppy and Johnny to join me in chasing the primates back to the mangrove area,” he told the New Straits Times.
“They know what to do now and the primates no longer harass the park visitors.”
Khairol added that Puppy first appeared in the area in April last year and had been staying there since October, while Johnny appeared in December.
“I took pity on them and began to feed them. They have been in this park ever since,”
Khairol also said that the dogs were tame, and understood their task to protect park visitors and not to disturb them — apart from barking at those who tried to feed the monkeys.
MPM is also believed to be the first council in Malaysia to use dogs to guard its properties.
