With his 13 multicolored dogs dressed in mini Christmas costumes and barking happily aboard his dapper motorized tuk-tuk, Nguyen Thi Kim Quy goes all but unnoticed in the middle of the bustling streets of Hanoi.
• Read also: A hotel stay for Félix and Fido
• Read also: The “barbecue bashing” of an environmental MP ignites the debates
• Read also: Religious funeral for a “divine” vegetarian crocodile
The 71-year-old retired hairdresser devotes her retirement to rescuing homeless dogs so that they do not end up on the plates or under the blows of the Vietnamese, devoting a large part of the monthly allowance paid to her by her relatives to this cause.
Five million canids are eaten each year across Vietnam, where dog meat is a delicacy. But the Southeast Asian country – which only China is ahead of in its consumption – is trying to gradually eliminate this practice.
“It would be dramatic if they were sent to the slaughterhouse. I really couldn’t bear it,” Nguyen Thi Kim Quy told AFP. “Eating dog or cat meat is a crime for me.”
According to her, the culture is slowly changing and more and more Vietnamese are adopting dogs as pets.
“I think people in Hanoi are becoming more and more sympathetic towards pets, and are turning away from their habit of treating dog meat as a delicacy,” she said.
The retiree gets up early to take the dogs out for walks in the morning, and sometimes she’s still out on the streets after dark looking for strays.
She dyes the dogs’ coats and dresses some of them in Santa Claus or reindeer costumes to instill a festive atmosphere as temperatures drop during the winter months.
His pooch-filled motor tricycle has become a popular attraction on the streets of Hanoi, leading passers-by to stop to take photos and post them on social media.
“They have bright smiles and sometimes they even give the dogs gifts […] they really like these dogs,” she explains.
According to the retiree, pets “bring peace, drive away sadness and difficulties”.
“To me, the dog is like a friend, a true friend […] If I could, I (would take care of) all the abandoned and abused dogs”.