Bhutan becomes first country to sterilize all stray dogs after 14-year-long project
International
After a 14-year dog population control programme, Bhutan has declared itself the first country in the world to completely sterilize and vaccinate its entire stray dog population. Humane Society International (HSI), a global animal charity that helped implement the program, made the announcement. The project, which began in 2009, included microchipping 32,000 pet dogs. An HSI press statement said there are approximately 300 million stray dogs across Asia suffering from starvation, parasite infections, untreated diseases, injuries from road traffic accidents and infectious cancers. These dogs are often victims of severe abuse and inhumane killing. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that approximately 59,000 people die from rabies each year globally, and most cases of rabies in humans are the result of dog bites.
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