Taiwan’s pangolins suffer surge in feral dog attacks

In good hands: A young pangolin receiving medical treatment on its tail, believed to have been injured during an attack by dogs at the Leofoo Village Zoo. — AFP

IN most of its habitats, the heavily trafficked pangolin’s biggest threat comes from humans. But in Taiwan, the scaly mammals brave a different danger: a surging feral dog population.

Veterinarian Tseng Shao-tung, 28, has seen firsthand what a dog can do to these gentle creatures during his shifts at a hospital in Hsinchu.