Residents of Muyumbu, a town in Rwamagana district in the Eastern province have raised concerns over stray and ‘dangerous’ dogs that kill livestock like goats, sheep and chickens, and attack people.
"They have eaten one of our goats,” Claudine Niyomwungeri, a resident in Ryabahejwe village, said.
"We hear that it is people from Kigali who come to throw them here, and these dogs run freely out here. Dogs should be put on a leash and not be allowed to roam about,” she suggested.
Celestin Sebahire, 51, who lives in Gahengeri Sector but works in Muyumbu Sector, said: "Because these dogs have no owners, sometimes children come to us and say, ‘we have seen dogs eat goats,’ and when we try to intervene or hunt them, we cannot find them anywhere because they are gone.”
Rwamagana District Vice Mayor for Economic Affairs, Regis Mudaheranwa said the problem will be solved soon. / Courtesy Judith Mukamuhoza, 41, mother of five in Ntebe Cell, Muyumbu Sector, warned that keeping a dog is fine but the problem lies with people who let them roam in neighborhoods.
In June, Janvière Mukankurahije, a resident of Gasave Village, in Muyumbu had her goat seriously wounded by stray dogs while it was grazing yet she had planned to sell it and pay health insurance for her family.
Her ordeal wasn’t over as recently another stray dog bit her eight year old son Patrick.
Rwamagana District Vice Mayor for Economic Affairs, Regis Mudaheranwa hinted that the district is planning to kill all stray dogs in Muyumbu.
"We talked to Rwanda Agriculture Board (RAB) who gave us medicine that will kill all the dogs that have caused havoc in the area,” he stated.
He said the plan to kill the dogs will be carried out in partnership with Veterinary doctors and police, and stressed that they have notified parents to keep children at home.
The official also pointed out that dogs should be owned by someone who has capacity to look after them by not only feeding them but also training and vaccinating them.
"If they cannot do it, they should leave it to those who can,” he underscored.
editor@newtimesrwanda.com