Sri Lanka, July 24 -- Animal welfare organisations and activists across Sri Lanka strongly reject the recent statement made by the Director General of the Department of Animal Production and Health suggesting that feeding street dogs contributes to increasing dog populations and the spread of rabies.

Following widespread public concern, the Director General subsequently referred to the concept of "responsible feeding." However, this does not address the fundamental issue. Statements that portray feeding as a principal cause of street dog populations demonstrate a serious misunderstanding of the realities faced by Sri Lanka's community animals and the people who care for them every day.

For decades, thousands of ordinary Sri Lankans - n...