A New Zealand animal health researcher says dogs in Samoa need to be better controlled to improve their lives.
Unitec senior lecturer, Mark Farnsworth, says data he's gathered shows the dog population is getting out of control as many dogs are not de-sexed.
He says lack of adequate canine welfare leads to problems with dogs being aggressive towards people, dogs being poorly controlled and puppies without homes being killed.
He says education is the key to boosting animal welfare.
"We're not saying that people in Samoa don't care about their dogs. All the data suggests that they do care. In general they care about their dogs and they see them as important parts of Samoan life."
Mark Farnsworth says fencing properties, making use of free de-sexing clinics and registering family pets are all steps people can take to improve the lives of their dogs.
