MPSJ's decision to suspend the requirement for dog owners in their community to seek their neighbours' agreement in order to get a licence is a considerate and welcomed move for the dog lovers amongst our community. For a brief moment when the regulation was imposed, many dog owners I know contemplated leaving the community rather than abandon their canine friends. This was easier to achieve rather than having to bring up the subject matter with their neighbours.

We are living in a multiracial society where we treasure and respect the peace and harmony that our community enjoys and most of us would treat our neighbours as friendly and in the most civic way. No doubt there would be occasional periods when tensions may run high due to inconsiderate or inadvertent behaviour but judging by the community relations most of us enjoy, these acts are few and far between. There is a certain sense of underlying calmness about the way we live our daily lives here in Malaysia and that in my view should be preserved and defended strongly.

Requiring dog owners to seek agreement from their neighbours however could potentially destroy this underlying calmness which we must avoid at all costs. A situation whereby a dog owner did not get the necessary agreement from any of their neighbours would, as human nature dictates, create not only tension but a sense of revenge from the perceived aggrieved party. Especially since this could be an adjacent neighbour (in link houses sharing the same roof), the tension could be unbearabe and boil over into something uncalled for.

My call is to dog owners to be responsible for their canine friends under their care and be conscious always of their neighbours' needs and respect the prevailing peace. Dogs usually only create a fuss when they are unhappy and feel unloved and I am sure responsible dog owners always strive to prevent these two habits from forming. A dog is indeed 'a man's best friend' if it is happy, responsive and obedient.

I agree with previous writers on this subject that MPSJ can tighten their enforcement on dogs which create havoc through incessant barking and sinking their teeth into innocent flesh. Most our canine friends however bark when they sense an intruder in their protective area and this is good deterrent to any thievery.

Thank you MPSJ and you certainly deserve our Woof! Woof !