Wild dogs threaten world leaders

Creative Commons photo via Flick user oceanhug

Kiev may have greeted U.S. President George W. Bush with several thousand “Net-NATO” (No to NATO) Ukrainian protesters, but NATO member Romania offered a far scarier welcome committee: thousands and thousands of feral dogs, running rampant in its capital city.

The NATO summit convened in Bucharest today, and while Bush was calling on transatlantic leaders to strengthen military resolve in Afghanistan inside the meeting, outside, his security detail was busy protecting nearby streets from roaming canines.

Bucharest’s wild dog problem is no laughing matter, nor is it new. It began in the 1980s when Romania’s brutal, inept dictator Nicolae CeauÅŸescu displaced thousands of city residents in his decision to flatten almost a fifth of the center city and build the People’s House (picture the Pentagon being built on top of Georgetown). Today the monstrosity — though an ideal spot for a NATO summit — stands surrounded by desolate blocks, the perfect terrain for wild dogs.

In 2000, Bucharest‘s Mayor Traian Basescu (now Romania‘s president) launched a massive euthanasia campaign against what was then hundreds of thousands of wild, disease-carrying dogs. But aging French actress Brigitte Bardot staged an international hissy fit, forcing the city to turn to sterilization. Bad move. Today, the city still reports 9,000 dog bites a year. In 2006, a Japanese businessman actually died after taking one to the femoral artery.

But let’s just hope security can keep the dogs in check for the summit –- President Bush has enough to worry about in the coming days as is.