Malaysian Veterinarian Gives Tips On How To Deal With Stray Dogs

Malaysian veterinarian shares tips on how to handle dogs

In Malaysia, stray dogs often become a topic of hot debate as more and more viral videos of people being chased by dogs are shared on social media. Though we do see a growing interest in the importance to adopt strays and feed them, there are many who still believe that dogs can generally be threatening to humans.

But a Malaysian veterinarian is determined to change people’s mindset on dogs as she shares tips on how to deal with them through a TikTok video which has now gone viral.

Dr Ima educates Malaysians on how to deal with stray dogs

Image credit: @drima_vet

On 4th September 2021, veterinarian Dr Ima who also goes by the name Salehatul Khuzaimah shared a video on her TikTok account educating people on how to deal with dogs if they come across one.

Knowing that a lot of Malaysians are afraid of approaching dogs, especially strays, she gave a step-by-step guide on how to interact with them to avoid unwanted conflict.

In the video, Dr Ima can be seen walking into a client’s housing compound with a lot of unchained dogs. Her video titled “What you should do if you come across a dog that you don’t know” has garnered 1.2 million views, 107,000 likes and more than 2,800 comments since its posting.

Malaysian animal doctor Ima shares tips on how to deal with stray dogs
Image credit: @drima_vet

First, she told people to remain calm and not be afraid if they see dogs. Then, she said people should study the body language of the dogs and avoid direct eye contact as they would consider this as a threatening move and start acting violently.

“If any of the dogs come near you, stay still or just ignore them. Let them come to you instead of suddenly walking into their territory, and don’t run! The dogs will slowly turn away as a sign of respect [if you do this]. [You can then] continue your journey. Peace!” she writes.

A lot of netizens who watched her videos left comments on how they would react instead if they saw a stray dog. Many said they would easily panic if they saw more than one, since Dr Ima was visiting a house with a lot of unchained dogs.

Shortly after going viral, Dr Ima was also interviewed by a local radio station called ERA FM to share further thoughts and answer common questions from people on the dos and don’ts with dogs.

Malaysian veterinary doctor on dealing with stray dogs

It’s great to see that Dr Ima is determined to change people’s mindset on dogs by sharing her daily encounters with them. We do hope Malaysians, regardless of race and religion, will watch this video and learn that it is not in dogs’ nature to just attack people they come across. Oftentimes, how we behave can determine the dogs’ responses to us too. So it’s important that we learn more about these creatures to understand their behaviour better so we can coexist harmoniously.