We adopted a few months ago after spending ages trying to decide between several breeds. We were thinking about an Eurasier, a Husky, or a German Shepherd.
After chatting with a neighbour who has a dog from Reunion Island (dogs have a really tough time of it over there), I started looking into different rescue charities.
And then—it was love at first sight!!!!!
She’s been with us for 7 months now and it's been pure joy. We went through a rescue charity called Sauvade, but there are plenty of others out there.
These dogs aren't very well known; they're sometimes called 'Royal Bourbons' or 'Creole Shepherds', and there’s something for everyone (all sizes, coat colours, and eye colours).
She looks like a young German Shepherd crossed with a Husky and won't get any heavier than 35 lbs (around 16kg). She’s lovely with us and the kids, incredibly sociable, obedient, and playful—in short, she’s a total dream dog.
Even though we originally wanted a pedigree, in hindsight we’re so happy because these dogs don't have health issues, you’re saving a life, and they have such a fantastic temperament.
Translated from French
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How can anyone advocate for culling? Honestly, it’s completely beyond me. If this is what the human race has come to, well... it’s not a pretty sight at all.
Culling (and torture) like we’ve seen recently? (I’m thinking of Morocco, among other places, but it's not the only one...)
Absolutely not!
But what’s certain is that animal shelters back home are already overflowing with abandoned dogs. So, as one of you mentioned, relocating the local population is a necessity for their safety, but we absolutely have to find a local solution so they don’t just keep breeding uncontrollably.
As for the Creole Shepherds from the West Indies or the Royal Bourbon from Réunion, these are breeds that can now be considered native and should be protected. Maybe their numbers need managing, but we definitely shouldn't wipe them out; a huge part of history would go with them. The Royal Bourbon arrived with the very first people to inhabit the island. There’s no reason to relocate them, and even less to eliminate them, any more than you would with dingoes in Australia or pariah dogs in India.
My observations go back 25 years, so I don’t know what the situation is like currently, but from what I saw at the time, it’s not those dogs that are the problem in Réunion. It’s more the dogs that look like very common, recognisable breeds—like GSDs, Labs, or Griffons—that have been abandoned and have often been born and raised feral. They are seemingly impossible to rehome. I’m not sure what the best approach is for them, but I believe in sterilisation rather than culling. Letting the population die out naturally is more humane...
I've contacted the RSPCA and the local councillor in charge of animal welfare, and I've even phoned the regional animal welfare services. They keep telling me they need proof. I sent a video of a dog being hung by its lead—you can clearly see the owner in it—and they told me that if they used the footage, he could take legal action against me! I told them I didn't give a toss, and they just replied that there are more serious cases out there and that even if the situation is "not right", it doesn't count as "severe" cruelty. Honestly, this isn't the only case in my area and absolutely nothing is being done.
@Rinrin, get in touch with an animal welfare charity like the RSPCA, and they’ll definitely get things moving.
Personally, I was in a place where a woman who was really wound up was telling someone she’d had enough of her dog and was even thinking about putting rat poison in his bowl. My friend asked her straight out if she wanted to give the dog away, and she said yes then and there. Three days later, he was at mine.
He arrived crawling along with his back legs tucked under him. My Bichon took to him immediately, and my free-roaming house rabbit used to sleep right next to him.
It’s all down to general training. My kids have never been bitten by a dog, but I have – once when I was five and again in 2019. And it wasn't by any large, powerful breeds, either. The first was a friend’s dog who knew us well. The second was a Cavalier King Charles who had been mistreated and had an untreated slipped disc; no one had mentioned that he couldn’t stand wearing a jumper to go out. One hand wasn't too badly damaged, but the other was bitten right through to the tendon of my middle finger. Because of Covid, I had to wait seven months to finally have surgery. I was in so much pain that I was put on opioids. Despite everything, I still looked after the poor little thing, and we kept him for a year. When he started to suffer, I took him to the vet and was faced with a choice: another year of life on steroids, or euthanasia.
He was already 12 and his back legs were buckling when he walked; I don't call that a life. He had suffered enough already, so I had him put to sleep. One happy year isn't much, but he deserved it.
I agree that something needs to be done, but when you see that nothing is being achieved on the Continent – well, they’re good at putting on a bit of a show, but that’s as far as it goes... Expecting them to take action overseas 😒 I have very little faith in the authorities. I don’t know what it’s like in France, but here in Belgium, I’ve been fighting for a year to get a dog removed from its abusive owner, but I’m getting nowhere 😩.
So, can we really hope to apply these "gentle" methods when we already see how the local population (not everyone, I’m not generalising) treats these poor animals?
But the point is, the article I’ve shared clearly shows that attitudes are different. Yes, it’s technically France, but the culture isn't. The approach to animals is different there. I don’t mean that to be nasty, but we can’t just assume our culture is the norm everywhere. Just because Réunion is part of France, it doesn’t mean everything is the same.
Shooting them or offering bounties to those who go out hunting them causes so much suffering and will inevitably lead to abuses...
But why not catch them and humanely put them down on the spot, making sure they’re sedated first?
When you look at the choice between a life of suffering, stress, and cruelty from fed-up locals, or stray litters starving to death and so on, I think euthanasia is the lesser of two evils...
