Saturday, 30 March 2019

Humane treatment of dogs by Muslims -Philip Mansel

In his book, "Constantinople: City of the World's Desire, 1453-1924", we read an interesting paragraph.:

Another population, shorter, hairier and uglier than Constantinople's human inhabitants, also lived there. Since the sixteenth century, thousands of dogs had divided the city into districts, each controlled by one pack under a leader. Living street-sweepers, they scoured the streets for food and offal. Like birds and cats, they were fed by the inhabitants, particularly the Muslims, who gave them bread, meat (liver or spleen sold by itinerant Albanians) and water. A large soft loaf resembling a thick pancake was baked on purpose to fling to them. In Pera and Galata, however, they feared the sticks and poison of Christians. 
Philip Mansel

Another population, shorter, hairier and uglier than Constantinople's human inhabitants, also lived there. Since the sixteenth century, thousands of dogs had divided the city into districts, each controlled by one pack under a leader. Living street-sweepers, they scoured the streets for food and offal. Like birds and cats, they were fed by the inhabitants, particularly the Muslims, who gave them bread, meat (liver or spleen sold by itinerant Albanians) and water. A large soft loaf resembling a thick pancake was baked on purpose to fling to them. In Pera and Galata, however, they feared the sticks and poison of Christians.
Not only he shed light on the good treatment of animals by Muslims, but he also compare the violence of Christians to the mercy of Muslims !
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