Askal (Street Dog)

Here is my share for #celestialchallenge by sirknight

Tuesday #AnimalKingdom

Askal is a word which is short for Asong Kalye (Street Dog). This is the local dog that we have in our country who roams around our streets. This breed of dog is also domesticated and is a very excellent guard dog. They are very smart, playful and their resilience is remarkable. Even the police and military train this breed as bomb sniffers and they are very effective. These are the...............................

Askal

These dogs has been with us for centuries and not much is know about their origin. Some say they were brought by foreigners possibly from Australia as they have similarities to the Dingo. As the years gone by thru cross breeding resulted in our native dog. They have different sizes, coat, and ears which is the result of the cross breeding.

This dog actually sat on this bench as I think he noticed that I took interest while taking photos. He sat there for a while letting me take some shots which is amazing as if he wanted me to take some photos. We have 4 shih tzu dogs and all the time I have been having a hard time taking photos of them. They always hid or walk away when I start shooting. Maybe we give them too much attention and even let them sleep on our beds. The spoiled little dogs which we adore.

This dog had no problems giving us a pose. They roam the streets, neglected scavenging for food to survive. No one really takes notice as they are a common sight in our country. So when I started taking shots some asked me why I was taking photos of the dog and kinda thought it was weird.

As we walked around more dogs can be seen wandering around. These two happens to take a rest on the sidewalk and I noticed the closeness of the two.

Looks like a vicious brawl between the two but actually this is a playful display that I witnessed. I looked for a good spot and they continued to play around not minding me taking some photos. I was a bit worried that I might get bitten in the process but the dogs didn't seem to care about me. Some domesticated ones are let loose on the streets but does not wander away too much and if it happens you pass by the house they are guarding they get really aggressive. So it is mandated by the local government to have the dogs on a leash to prevent unnecessary accidents as we cannot blame the dogs as they are only doing their job.

Notice the color of the coat of these dogs it is a mystery from which breed it may have resulted. Purebred dogs are also popular here and chosen as pets rather than the Askals. Some mix breed them with the native dogs and sold at a very low price but pure breed are more profitable.

Seems like these dogs are telling stories and you could see a lot just by observing each one. These dogs are survivors and it is good to know that there are some groups in our country who retrieves these dogs and set them up for adoption. Doing harm to these creatures are also lessened now as social media burns like wild fire if ever you harm an animal.

Now this fella we encountered while going home. I crouched to take a shot as he passed by and he approached me. Again a different dog allowed me to take some photos. I do not know why maybe they smelled dog lover all over me. First time I have done this going out and taking photos of dogs which no one here would actually think of doing.

I am planning to go back and give these doggies a treat or two and probably take some photos again as it was a fun experience.

Thanks again for joining me today and share with you the native dogs that we see everyday.

Cheers Steemians.