Abandoned By Rich Chinese Owners, Aggressive Tibetan Mastiffs Run Amok In Rural China & Tibet

Tibetan Mastiffs were once called the 'Dog of God' in China. But now, urbanization and uncontrolled breeding of mastiffs has led to a surge of dogs, posing a huge threat to locals.

Abandoned Tibetan Mastiffs/YouTube

About 10 years ago, a craze for owning a Tibetan Mastiff started to spread across China, especially among wealthy families in cities. The dogs were a sign of stature and some people went to the extent of shelling out up to 18 million yuan for the breed.

A documentary called Abandoned Tibetan Mastiffs, released in April, shows hundreds of black Tibetan mastiffs running amok on the streets.

But now, areas of the Tibetan plateau and rural China are crowded with the abandoned fluffy breeds, after the market started to plummet.

The falling market of this once-coveted breed forced breeders in the region to simply abandon their mastiffs.

According to local reports, the owners also cross breed a several Tibetan mastiffs, resulting in poor quality dogs that could not be sold to buyers.

The abandoned Tibetan Mastiffs not only grab food from other wild animals, they also attack livestock and even people on the road. Environmental experts also warn that the dog could also bring fatal infectious diseases to other animals, reports People's Daily China.

Since 2013, Gangri Neichog, a non-profit organization has been watching over the dogs that have left to fend for themselves.