Calling your pet dogs ‘Chang-Khyi’ in anger is common among Bhutanese dog owners. It literally means stray dog. Chang-Khyi is believed to be native to Bhutan and an initiative is underway in Yuesipang, Thimphu to conserve this breed.
The Chang-Khyi conservation is a part of the Nationwide Accelerated Dog Population Management and Rabies Control Programme (NADPM&RCP).
The team from project caught 20 female dogs and eight male dogs suspected to be of the local breed from the interior districts in the country. The districts include Paro, Thimphu, Wangdue, Punakha, Trongsa and Bumthang among others. The dogs are however not brought from the bordering districts so as to avoid an outbreak of rabies.
“We will find out how close they are to our Bjob-Khyi, how close they are to dogs which are imported from abroad, like German Shepherd, Labrador, etc. After that, we will choose only those dogs which are actually not related to those pedigree dogs,” said Dr Kinley Dorji, the Team Leader of the NADPM&RCP.
He said the ultimate goal will be coming out with the pure typical Bhutanese Chang-Khyi.
While there are many breeds of dogs in the country, he said the Chang-Khyi breed will be identified based on its unique characteristics. He said they will be looking for dogs with broad muzzles, erect ears and tugged abdomen.
For now, the project aims to collect as many dogs as possible and do genetic studies in collaboration with the National Biodiversity Centre.
As per the project, the dog farm is mainly initiated for rural people for whom the dogs make a great livestock guardian.
“The farm which we are going to establish will be in a position to supply pure breed dogs to the people who want the dog. However, the dog should be registered, microchipped, and sterilized before taking so that it will not breed unnecessarily,” Dr Kinley added.
The construction of the dog farm is expected to complete in eight months. It will be constructed on about an acre of land with a budget estimation of more than Nu 13.5 M.
Meanwhile, the nationwide programme to manage the dog population has so far sterilized more than 39 thousand free-roaming dogs since it began in March.
Samten Dolkar
Edited by Sonam
