Street Dogs

Sleeping alongside a building

Dogs in Thailand are everywhere!  Most dogs are "street dogs" meaning they have no owners and they live on the streets, begging for food.  If you walk along the side of the road, you will see evidence of dogs who have walked before you, no one is there to pick up after the dogs, so it leaves quite a mess, one must step carefully!  I have seen very few homeless people in Thailand, it seems that the dogs have replaced them, sleeping on sidewalks, curled up in the shade along buildings, and hoping for a hand out.

Many people who no longer want their dogs, will drop them off at a local temple or Wat.  Temples always have plenty of food and the owners believe that their dogs will be fed and cared for at the temple.

Street dogs are very cautious around cars, and will quickly move out of the way.  Although they "hang out" on sidewalks and on the sides of the streets, they clearly understand that the cars have the right of way.  For those dogs that need a little help, a quick honk of the horn reminds them to clear out!  

Street dog waiting for food at the school

We live near a Thai elementary school and in the mornings when the students are being dropped of, I often see dogs patiently waiting for handouts from the students or their parents.  The dogs wander into the school yard, and play along with the children, and it is an accepted practice!  These dogs receive no medical care, give birth to puppies on the streets, not an easy life.  It is hard for a dog lover like me to see the conditions that these dogs live in, but with thousands of "street dogs" in Thailand, it would be impossible to adopt them all.

Another "student" waiting for food

This guy follows me around while out for my morning walk

   There is the occasional dog with a collar, who has an owner, but that dog is the rare exception.  It is such a complete change from our culture, where dogs must be leashed, licensed, vaccinated and cared for.   These street dogs are endearing, but also wary, they are careful of me, and I, in turn, am careful around them.  People have been attacked by strays, but it is very uncommon.  For the most part, they just want to be left alone, unless you are providing food!

The darker side to the life as a Thai dog was highlighted in last Saturday's edition of the Bangkok Post.  The story stated that despite the social taboos against eating dog meat, there are still places in Thailand where this occurs.  Last September, Thai officials seized 120 dogs that were being illegally shipped over the boarder to a neighboring country, to be sold for human consumption.  Fortunately, today's Thai youth are now being educated to have zero tolerance for consuming pet animals.

Fireworks

Fireworks is one way that Thai people observe important events, they will fire them off for any and all special occasions.  The first time I observed this phenomenon was on December 5th, the King's Birthday.  His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej, celebrated his 84th birthday this year, and it was cause for much celebration, including many firework displays throughout Thailand.  The King is also the longest reigning monarch in the world and is much beloved by his people.  In celebration of his birthday, lighted displays went up the week before his birthday throughout the city, similar to American Christmas decorations - and the fireworks started around 8pm on the evening of the 5th.  Because we live on a hill overlooking Pattaya, Jomtien and the coastline, the fireworks were visible everywhere, popping up not only along the coast, but in backyards and city streets, everyone wants to explode fireworks, and not just little firecrackers, but giant, exploding and very loud fireworks, all to honor the King!

International Fireworks Contest, Dec. 16-17, 2011

The next opportunity to observe this love for fireworks was the weekend of the International Fireworks Competition, on December 16-17, held in honor of the King and Queen.  This was a competition between 10 countries, held over two nights, to determine which country had the best fireworks display.  Competing countries were: Australia, Chile, Denmark, Germany, Italy, Japan, Philippines, UAE, USA and Thailand - all competing to determine which country had the most beautiful, dynamic and colorful exhibition of fireworks.  It was an amazing two nights of fireworks, fired off from barges in the Pattaya Bay and visible for miles.  Imagine the Detroit Freedom Festival Fireworks times 10! 


The third opportunity to observe the fireworks fascination was from Christmas to New Year's.  Each evening, a different hotel would put on a fireworks display over the ocean, each trying to out-perform the other.  New Year's Eve fireworks started at 8pm, and with a massive crescendo at midnight.  It seemed as if everyone wanted to get in on the action, even our neighbors were blasting off fireworks.  The displays and the noise, continued through New Year's Day - noisy but very colorful!