Stinky Dog Arrested for Blocking Bridge

Tuesday, August 14, 2001 - THAILAND

" '...I'm not the type you'd like to eat,
I've got bad breath and smelly feet.
If you will just hang on a mo,
Behind me is my larger bro.
His breath's not bad, his feet don't smell,
You'll find he's jolly fat as well.'
The Troll being of little brain
Said 'OK, OK, it's all the same...' "

(An interesting rendition of The Three Billy Goats Gruff, Oliver Tostevin)

BANGKOK — Pick up a copy of just about any Thai newspaper, and you may find splayed across the front page the picture of "Men", the famous begging dog.  Men (which roughly translates as "Stinky") was among 17 beggars picked up by Bangkok police for blocking the pedestrian bridge outside Mah Boonkrong shopping center in the heart of the city.

The three-year-old female mutt reportedly sits quietly for hours each day in front of a begging cup, earning more than 1000 Thai baht ($22 USD or £15) each day.

Perhaps it was in the interest of fostering human-canine amity (in light of the Governor's new dog-friendly policy—read "Governor Halts Slaughter of 100,000 Dogs"), or perhaps Men, like the Billy Goat in the fable, was able to stink her way out of a jam, but authorities decided to release the perplexed pooch after charging her owner with a small fine.

Since then, Men has gone on to appear in newspapers and on local TV programs as the poster-pup for Bangkok's begging scene.

It is not I you must arrest,
With smelly paw I'm four times bless'd!
But if you wish to clean the streets,
Go start with them; they really reek!

(Scoop Senior Editor Wags takes a crack at poetry.  Stick to tennis balls, Wags.)

News Source:
Independent Online News

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