Dogs--the strays of Argentina and Chile

Comfy dog bed in Puerto Varas, Chile

Dogs are everywhere on the streets of Argentina and Chile.  Santiago alone is reported to have 400,000 stray dogs sleeping on the streets, wandering through parks and plowing through any garbage they find.  People feed the dogs, but we didn’t see anyone petting them.

Many of these dogs have been dumped by their former families, often if the family moved to a smaller home or another city.  So, these poor creatures are well-behaved and desperate for a kind word of a pet. 

dogs in Puerto Montt

Outside the airport at Puerto Montt, there was a large, pretty dog the porters called Juan.  Like most of the street dogs, he looked well fed, so I imagine the porters fed him.  But no one touched him.  When Don and I walked over to him, he promptly sat down facing us and wagged his tail.  We spent about 5 minutes petting him and stroking his head and ears.  He closed his eyes and sat absolutely still, loving every stroke.  Made me so sad.  Dogs need companions and kindness and pets.  We would have 3 dogs in residence if I could have brought Juan home.

Sweet dog in Santiago, Chile

Later while we strolled along an outdoor market in Puerto Varas, we saw 3 dogs playing in the street.  Suddenly, they stared down the street and then started jumping and yelping in great excitement.  A car pulled up to the curb and out jumped a man with a bag of dog food.  He fed one dog on the sidewalk and the other 2 a few feet away in the street.  Then he climbed back into the car and left.  Not a word or a pet, but food, at least.  And the dogs knew him well.

Bariloche dog waiting patiently in snow for worker to feed him

At Bariloche’s ski area, more dogs lay around the village or played in the few inches of new snow.  I don’t know where they go when it gets really cold, but they look healthy.  Our guide told us that there are sporadic efforts to spay or neuter the stray dogs, but there are never enough funds for that.

leashed dogs in Buenos Aires park

In Buenos Aires, a crowd of dogs, all on short leashes attached to a longer leash, are a common sight.  Dog walkers take them to the parks to play and poop (which doesn’t always get cleaned up).  Some are tied to separate trees—the less socialized I would guess—while others are allowed to play near the dog walker who snoozes nearby under a tree or on a bench.

The Buenos Aires dogs have families and care.  I hope they get lots of pets and kind words as well.  The strays have better lives than stray dogs in most of the world because at least someone feeds them.  Elsewhere their lives are a constant scrounge for food to fill their scrawny bodies.  Tough to take for dog lovers like me.

Barking dog in Bariloche park