AFCD to step up threat assessments on feral dogs

The Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department (AFCD) will look into how to further strengthen the management of feral dogs in Hong Kong to ensure public safety, Secretary for Environment and Ecology Tse Chin-wan said on Monday. The remarks came after a 27-year-old woman died late on Saturday after being chased and attacked by three stray dogs in Yuen Long, marking the second similar canine-related case in just under a month. Tse said authorities were highly concerned about recent dog attacks in the territory. He offered his deepest condolences to the family of the deceased, adding that authorities would step up patrol operations and investigate where the pack of dogs came from. "The Agriculture and Fisheries Department placed a lot of emphasis on how to handle the stray dogs, and in the past years, the numbers have greatly been reduced," Tse said. "I think the programme, in general, has been very effective," he said, referring to management programmes that reduced the number of stray dogs caught each year from more than 11,000 in 2002 to around 400 in recent years. "But nonetheless, because of the current incident, tragedy, I've asked the department to review whether there is any possibility of further strengthening the management of stray dogs...