JAMAICA My Way!

Unless you’ve traveled to other developing countries you might not know about some of the animals there. I hate to post about anything negative but there’s a harsh reality about dogs in Jamaica that probably won’t sit well with you, especially if you’re a dog-lover.

Picture of a dog in Jamaica

All the dogs I’m picturing in this post are pets of people in Jamaica, but the sad truth is that the mass majority of dogs there are stray and no one owns them. They are not healthy and its not a good idea to pet the ones in the street due to their poor health and whatever they might be infested with.

Its also not a good idea to approach the street dogs since you don’t know what their temperament will be like. Its not like a stray dog you might find at home, who’s probably used to humans and at one time had a home. There’s not much for pet population control in Jamaica and most of the dogs are born in the streets and stay there until …… I don’t even want to say it.

Jamaicans think its weird that us foreigners keep dogs in our homes and sometimes in our beds and on our furniture. IF a Jamaican happens to own a dog, its a yard dog and it never enters the house. It gets fed table scraps, and in rare cases it actually gets dog food. And they can be friendly and affectionate like any other pet dog. But still they probably don’t have veterinary care and it just remains a yard dog.

I have my own dog back home and she’s treated like one of the family, spoiled to death as one would expect. That’s why it breaks my heart to see all the street dogs in Jamaica, hanging around garbages and supermarkets to catch a scrap of food for the day. My first instinct is to throw it some food but they advise against it or the dog won’t stop following you. Another heart breaker is occassionally you’ll see one dead in the street, most likely hit by a car.

Like I said, I HATE to post something negative and sad but its a reality in Jamaica and it’s good to be prepared. Its hard to ignore the street dogs because we know them as good natured, loyal and affectionate animals.