Dog Takes Out the Trash, Becomes a Hero

Thursday, June 14, 2001 - CHINA

KAOHSIUNG CITY, TAIWAN — Trash is the eternal enigma of the dog world.  It's food ...but if you eat it you get yelled at.  Now on the other hand, if you carry it down the hill to the dumpster, the Mayor names you 'Hero of the City'.

But you're still not allowed to eat it.

This mystery of life may never be solved, but nonetheless, there's a black dog named Kuro who continues to do what he's been doing since 1995: taking out the trash.

Kuro, the shorter half of a one-man, one-dog crew "The Green Team", has been sniffing out trash, picking it up and hauling it off Takao Hill, a natural park area that has become a favorite dumping spot of hikers, tourists and residents alike.

Mr. Wu Cheng-lu has taught his dog to perform these tasks almost entirely without supervision.  Kuro nearly never gets lost, boasts the 70something-year-old man who is both a hiker and a resident of the city.  The dog can carry up to three trash bags at once: two on his back and one in his mouth, as demonstrated below.

Kuro and bags.  Note the red bandana: international symbol that denotes 'dog'.
(Photo: Chang Chung-yi / Taipei Times)

Yesterday, Mayor Frank Hsieh of Kaohsiung City presented the government's "Heroes of the City" award to both Kuro and Wu Cheng-lu standing on Takao hill.  The Mayor also treated Kuro to a trip to the vet to have a mold infection taken care of.

The executive general for the Takao Hill Park Association, Yang Ping-yu, said that there are many hikers and volunteers who clean up the hill.  But unfortunately there are far more who sully it.  By Kuro's and Wu's example, it is hoped that more people (and dogs) will follow suit and preserve the beauty of the scenic hill.

In addition to rare species of plants, Takao Hill's main attraction is a clan of Formosan rock macaque monkeys whose silly antics are popular amongst visitors.

Yeah, but can they take out the trash?

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