Honduran Street Dogs….pobrecitos!

I have heard that pets are often a reflection of the economic status of the place they live, and I think there is a lot of truth in that. For instance – American dogs are generally a happy, healthy bunch. I’ve seen quite a few overweight dogs and some get the royal treatment in many ways. There are dogs who get better health care than some Hondurans do! I even read the other day that some rich lady in Connecticut recently bequeathed to her dog her entire fortune of $12 million.

Well, no such luck would fall on a dog here in Honduras. I’ve seen some that seem to live in a pretty good situation, but I’ve seen MANY that have it pretty rough.

Take this guy for instance…..

I know what you are thinking. Is this even a dog? This guy has no hair and barely enough energy to drag his bony body around the block that he lives on. While I was taking his picture, I was warned to stay away due to all his diseases from a man sitting nearby in a wheel chair. But when I was talking to him, his wrinkled ears perked up and he did a little head tilt. Poor, poor dog. We walk past him everyday on the way to work so I’ve decided I will bring him scraps when I can.

There are lots of dogs always digging in the trash, trying to find a bite to eat. Some are mama dogs who look so malnourished you wonder what kind of milk they are giving to their pups. (…with what appears to be "utters" practically dragging on the ground.) Others are very scraggly beasts with so many fleas, you can see them swarming from a distance.

They almost always run at a "trot" around town, always seeming to go in a particular direction. I always think that is interesting and wonder where they are going with such purpose.

Sometimes you will see a female in heat running away from a pack of 2 – 10 dogs on her tail. In some of the poorer, smaller towns around here, you will often see two dogs "stuck together" (if you get my drift)….which is a very disturbing sight all in its own.

Here are two dogs, "after the fact" (note tongues hanging low). No one wants to see the actual act so and I was fortuante to have missed it myself, so I'm glad we were all spared that!

Here is your usual subject. He exemplifies the classic street dog look - long ears, skinny body, ratty hair.

And here is one lucky dog who happened to be adopted by a dog loving peace corps volunteer!

She is sweet but how quickly they get spoiled!