Dogs in Peru

 Before I came to Peru, the doctor had warned me about not getting close to any dogs, and to assume that they all had rabies. Not saying that they don’t have rabies, but I was actually really surprised by how much of a community responsibility these dogs seemed to be, and how relatively well taken care of they were. In other cities, I’ve seen any number of animals living on the streets and mildly feral, but the dogs in Peru stayed out of people’s way. I don't think I had a day during this trip (except for in Lima) where I didn't see at least 15 street dogs, all minding their own business or walking around. I saw restaurants at night setting out a plate or tossing out scraps, same thing with people leaving with to-go boxes, and the dogs were pretty gentle about approaching or taking the food from people. I found it really endearing that the whole community subconsciously came together to take care of these dogs, and that it was just a nice thing to do, without any reward. In all honesty, I think that is one of the things that warmed me up to Cusco the most, seeing that people seemed nice, and one of those nice things was their causal caring for the dogs that roamed the streets.

I don’t know much about dogs or if this would be possible, but it almost seems like a case of community domestication; the dogs throughout the entire city are a more mild and nice version of the street dog because they receive food. Then there’s the case of teriyaki, the dog that led us down Machu Picchu and met us on the other side of a river we were crazy enough to cross. I don’t know if he is a house dog, but seeing as he ran off with another dog once we reached the city, I am inclined to believe that he is a street dog. This dog from the street was more well behaved than my dog I have at home, and this is something that shocked me as I thought about it more, because you might think it impossible that a dog off of the street would be so well treated that they behave better than a pet dog.