KUCHING, May 10 — The disposal of the carcass of a dog reported to have attacked a woman while she was jogging at a park in Stutong last Friday into a river is an offence under local cleanliness by-laws, said Kuching South Mayor Dato Wee Hong Seng.
Wee said although public anger over the incident was understandable, disposing of the carcass into a river remained against the law.
“If you dispose of things into the river or elsewhere, of course it is against the law because that is not the proper thing to do. It falls under the cleanliness by-law.
“You cannot simply throw anything into a river or any place you like,” he told reporters when asked during the Kuching South City Council (MBKS) Community Market and Hawker Reunion Luncheon at Stutong Market here.
Wee said officers from MBKS and the Department of Veterinary Services Sarawak (DVSS), who went to the scene after the incident, were informed that the dog had already been beaten to death by members of the public before its carcass was disposed of in a nearby river.
“What they discovered was that the dog had been killed by members of the public and thrown into the river,” he said.
He said authorities were unable to determine whether the dog had rabies as the carcass could not be recovered for testing.
“Whether the dog had rabies or not, we do not know. But it would not be fair to simply say it did not have rabies because a normal dog, especially towards people who had been feeding it, should not behave in such a manner,” he said.
A video circulating on social media showed a woman being attacked by a black dog while jogging at the park, while another man attempted to stop the attack.
According to Wee, preliminary information suggested the victim had allegedly been feeding the dog prior to the incident.
He added that the dog’s aggressive behaviour was unusual, particularly towards someone familiar to it.
“A normal dog would not behave like that, especially towards the person feeding it,” he said.
Wee, however, stressed that his primary concern was the wellbeing of those who handled or killed the dog during the incident, urging them to seek immediate medical attention and anti-rabies vaccination as a precautionary measure.
“We are more concerned about those who handled the dog. We hope they will come forward to get checked and vaccinated because they may not realise if they had been scratched or exposed to saliva,” he said.
He added that MBKS would not take action against members of the public who intervened to rescue the victim.
“I think anyone would have reacted the same way in such a situation because the priority was to save the victim. That is a natural reaction,” he said.
Wee also reminded pet owners to act responsibly and ensure their pets were properly confined.
“If you are a pet owner, make sure your pet is kept within your compound and not allowed to roam freely,” he said.
He said MBKS and DVSS would continue efforts to manage stray dogs and contain rabies cases in the city, including vaccination programmes for stray animals.
“We are doing our best, but we also hope the public will play their part and be more understanding,” he said. — The Borneo Post
