英語時差：時來運轉好“狗”運

No one really knows how many homeless canines roam the streets of Taiwan-some put the number of stray dogs at 500,000, while others estimate there are as many as two million.

Sadly, despite various governmental campaigns, little has improved for Taiwan's strays over the past 10 years, but the tide may be beginning to turn. Over the last four years, AnimalsTaiwan, a Taiwan animal rights group made up of expats and locals, has lobbied hard for the government to use more compassionate and scientific methods in dealing with stray animals.

AnimalsTaiwan has saved and helped over 400 animals since it began. The group uses the now globally accepted method of CNR, which stands for "Capture, Neuter and Return." CNR is an efficient way of controlling the stray population.

Government agencies, as well as the public, need to understand how the dog world works. If a group of dogs is successfully removed, another group of stray animals will move in to their former territory and start to breed.

However, if the animals are de-sexed, other dogs cannot move in, as dogs are extremely territorial. If 67 percent of the stray population were de-sexed, the problem would be stopped at its source. Such efforts in the next few years would help Taiwan become an animal-friendly country.