The killing of pet dog Rocky in Port Klang has revealed the sharp divide between canine haters and lovers.
It was reported that the Klang Royal City Council (MBDK) was on a night operation at Taman Teluk Gedung Indah to catch stray dogs. Fifty residents joined in.
Former Klang MP Charles Santiago said Rocky was allegedly beaten to death by a group of men. This was despite attempts by a family, which had cared for it since it was a puppy, to save it.
He called the incident a “deliberate, brutal killing”.
MBDK counterclaimed that the woman owner had “acted aggressively” when trying to cut the noose around her dog’s neck. Her actions made it “difficult” for council officers to loosen the rope “for the sake of the animal’s safety”, said MBDK.
I’m sorry, but this sounds like damage control, especially the part about “animal safety”. It’s akin to “blaming the victim”.
What complicated matters is that many residents were allowed to join the operation. When such a crowd goes round a housing area hunting dogs, some overzealous men can turn an orderly operation into an angry mob. How could MBDK control the crowd?
Some were enraged, claiming Rocky had bitten somebody. But the lady owner avowed that her pet had never bitten anyone before.
“We raised him since he was small and he was part of our family. He didn't deserve to die like this,” she said.
A video of the incident shared by Charles shows the woman owner begging a shouting group of men to release Rocky. They clearly had more numbers and power than the lady.
Would she have dared to “act aggressively”, as claimed by MBDK? Is it more likely that she was simply desperate to save her beloved pet when trying to cut the noose?
Two-Malaysia divide
Conversely, many Malays point to dogs biting people. These have included attacks by fierce breeds such as Rottweilers and German Shepherds.
Although I love dogs, punishment is needed when pets injure others.
But it’s more fuzzy when stray dogs with no owners attack others. One side says that unlike fierce breeds, street canines usually don’t bite people - unless they are provoked.
The other side says all strays are dangerous and must be hunted down mercilessly. This encourages boys to throw rocks at dogs, as some deem them “binatang kotor” (unclean animals). But dogs can detect hatred and may react in self-defence.
Yet many other animals are deemed “unclean”, including carnivores with fangs (lions, what about cats?), birds with talons (eagles) and also reptiles (lizards, iguanas).
Yet they don’t evoke the same hatred as dogs. Is it because canines are bred by non-Malays?
And not all dogs bite; some just bark. But some people on motorbikes panic and end up crashing as a result.
This happened at Taman Teluk Gedung Indah in Port Klang, when a youth was allegedly chased by several dogs. He lost control of his bike at a road bump and then crashed.
He injured his head and went into a coma, but has since recovered. The photo of him on a hospital bed went viral and seemed to be the trigger that sparked the vengeful mob.
Somehow, this was twisted into claims that Rocky had bitten someone.
But running triggers a dog’s natural instinct to chase you. As a teen, I once tried to outrun a barking dog on my bicycle and then fell.
The dog caught up with me but didn’t bite - my bruises were caused by my own panic. I never repeated that mistake.
The correct response is to stop, get off the vehicle, then look calmly at any aggressive dogs - with compassion if possible - and they will back down. That’s how I’ve dealt with growling street dogs around the world without any problems.
Apart from freaking out, perhaps the motorcyclist didn’t wear a helmet. Is that how he injured his head badly after falling? Dog haters may hurl abuse at me, but let’s be honest and objective about what probably happened.
Compassion in Islam?
It’s disturbing that the crowd was still aggressive even though the lady was on her knees, wailing and begging for Rocky’s life. Even if the dog had no licence, surely some compassion could have been shown?
Islam teaches kindness. Muslims say “Bismillah” every day, invoking the name of the Most Gracious and Most Merciful God. But no quarter was shown to Rocky.
Were people with a “ketuanan” mindset bullying an Indian lady? If the dog was owned by a Mat Salleh, would they have behaved the same way?
Selangor’s Tengku Permaisuri Norashikin expressed deep sadness and anger over recent incidents of cruelty towards pets and stray animals.
Amazingly, this was the fifth time Her Majesty had spoken up about local councils in Selangor mistreating dogs, including in Banting, Shah Alam, and now MBDK. Surely a “royal” body should have higher standards?
I see this as a failure of the Pakatan Harapan state government, which controls Selangor local councils. We need elections for them to ensure they listen more to residents.
They should do this last good deed before they lose the next elections to the BN-PAS Malay wave.
Sadly, the royal reminder didn’t stop Malays from hurling dog hatred online and even insults against Her Majesty.
One comment went – when it comes to the pets of “bangsa asing” (foreign races), everybody makes noise, but when our children are bitten, all are quiet. One abusive fellow wrote, “Pi mampus la, anjing dah gigit org (go and die, the dog bit someone)”.
Another netizen accused Her Majesty of “talking too much” because the “Chinese were upset”. Another joker slammed her as an elite “T20 person” who didn’t understand reality.
If non-Malays had said similar things, they would have been quickly traced and arrested for insulting royalty.
Several Malays blamed the Indian lady for the dog’s death. Others shifted the topic to drunk drivers, the Carlsberg factory in Shah Alam, and even the death of fire and rescue personnel Adib Kassim during a riot. Anything to justify their prejudice.
Muar MP Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman posted on Facebook that the threat from a few dogs cannot be used to justify another injustice.
But abuse was hurled at him in response, including that his fiancée, Bella, should be bitten by a dog. He then removed his post.
A mob mentality of online bullying seems prevalent. Did the dog hunting “volunteers” in Port Klang have a similar mindset?
Is this sense of racial grievance and victimhood due to political fearmongering? And provocations by cyber troopers that the Malays are “under threat”?
Fair compromise solutions
Three probes into the Rocky killing by the police, Veterinary Services, and the Housing and Local Government Ministry have been announced.
Amid this heated racially-coloured debate, we need calm, clear heads to find fair, compromise solutions.
1) Responsible pet ownership means keeping dogs on a leash outside the house. Local councils should follow the humane trap-neuter-release approach of the Penang Island City Council (MBPP) to control strays.
Tengku Permaisuri Norashikin advocated this in 2024. It’s also done in the Muslim city of Istanbul. Yet Selangor local councils have ignored this. Why?
2) What about cats? I once had a neighbour with eight cats that kept invading my garden to deposit their stinking poop. Nobody compensated me for this nuisance and source of disease.
The dog haters should ask if people can go around catching or poisoning cats? If not, why is cruelty against dogs allowed?
3) Education is crucial. Bukit Bendera MP Syerleena Abdul Rashid said Islam doesn’t support cruelty towards dogs, but instead calls for compassion.
The correct ways to deal with stray dogs, as mentioned earlier, should be spread online too.
4) Any dog catching operations must be limited to council officers, not “volunteers” who may become vigilantes. Offering money to catch strays, as done in Shah Alam in 2024, only encourages more cruelty.
Some may even catch licensed dogs for the money. High redemption fees to release captured dogs are a blatant attempt to tax dog lovers. It’s probably more useful to offer money to catch litterbugs, dirty eateries, and corrupt officials.
Sadly, the killing of Rocky has become a racial issue and exposed how Malaysian society is “retak menanti belah” (cracked and waiting to be split open). We can’t go on this way. - Mkini
ANDREW SIA is a veteran journalist who likes teh tarik khau kurang manis. You are welcome to give him ideas to brew at tehtarik@gmail.com.
The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of MMKtT.
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