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Mapping protests against dog culling in post‐communist R omania
Author(s) -
Creţan Remus
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
area
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.958
H-Index - 82
eISSN - 1475-4762
pISSN - 0004-0894
DOI - 10.1111/area.12155
Subject(s) - culling , animal welfare , government (linguistics) , public administration , political science , welfare , animal rights , public opinion , public relations , law , veterinary medicine , medicine , politics , biology , ecology , linguistics , philosophy , herd
This paper explores the spatial expressions and ethical implications of culling dogs. The harsh treatment of street dogs by the R omanian government's hired companies, following the mauling of a child, generated a divide in the opinions of those in authority, animal rights NGOs and the general public. Beyond the case study stands a wider geographical analysis of the media reporting of the protest events on culling dogs and a public opinion survey about the welfare of dogs in R omania. Basing on the theoretical framework of the literature on more‐than‐human geographies, this contribution presents a critical review of the public response to governmental measures to rapidly implement a street dog law. Different discourses and counter‐discourses are considered, from which a framework for improving the ethics of culling dogs could be built.