Cover A dog in Paws Guardian Rescue Shelter, featured in ‘Paws Land’ (Image: courtesy of Au Cheuk Man)
A dog in Paws Guardian Rescue Shelter, featured in ‘Paws Land’ (Image: courtesy of Au Cheuk Man)
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‘Paws Land’ documents stray dogs that volunteers do not even want to rescue—and how two Hongkongers devote their lives to finding homes for them.
When Hong Kong filmmaker Au Cheuk Man released Paws-Men, a feature film about stray dogs, in 2018, its investors proposed a sequel given the movie’s success. However, Au had something else in mind. At one of the screenings, he was approached by volunteers from the civilian organisation Paws Guardian Rescue Shelter, who expressed that while they felt the story could catch viewers’ attention regarding animal rights issues, it did not fully reflect the real hardships faced by animal rescuers.
“I couldn’t agree more. No matter how much CGI or make-up I apply to the animals in the movie, I couldn’t accurately reflect the truth,” Au says. The volunteers invited him to shadow them on their rescue work a few times. He was shocked by what he observed: a dog with half its face hacked off, leaving festering wounds; others with injuries filled with maggots; and 13 cats suffering from flu and neck wounds, abandoned by a previous owner who was hospitalised. “I have to capture this,” he says. “A documentary has a far greater impact on my audience because it’s not fictional—it’s the brutal truth.”
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Above A rescue dog in ‘Paws Land’ by Au Cheuk Man (Image: courtesy of Au Cheuk Man)
A rescue dog in ‘Paws Land’ by Au Cheuk Man (Image: courtesy of Au Cheuk Man)
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Thus began the shooting of Paws Land. What was originally a six-month project stretched into four years. “I aimed to capture at least one dog’s journey from rescue to finding a home,” he recalls. “However, there were none, and it took eight times my original time, a total of four years, to finally achieve this goal.”
At one point, he followed the volunteers to Chi Kee Sawmill and Timber, a factory in the northern New Territories. This was one of the places that had to be demolished under the government’s land resumption plan that was implemented in 2019. As the factory owners moved out, they were worried about leaving behind the dogs in the neighbourhood to fend for themselves. These dogs were only the tip of the iceberg. The director revealed in a press screening that, based on a rough estimate, there are more than a thousand stray animals in the area. “And that is only the northern New Territories,” he says.
Above A rescue dog in ‘Paws Land’ by Au Cheuk Man (Image: courtesy of Au Cheuk Man)
A rescue dog in ‘Paws Land’ by Au Cheuk Man (Image: courtesy of Au Cheuk Man)
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The stray dogs that are captured will be kept in the Paws Guardian Rescue Shelter. They undergo medical treatment and training before being placed in foster homes—and hopefully, they will find forever homes thereafter. Costs and space present problems. For instance, the dog that had half its face hacked off required surgeries and had its eye removed, costing about HK$40,000 alone. This dog was one of the fortunate few that found a forever home; however, tragically, two years into its new life, it died. “It’s devastating,” says one of the volunteers featured in the film who identifies herself as Jinny. “You would have thought this would be a happy ending after all that effort.”
Sadly, this is a common scenario for the rescuers at the Paws Guardian Rescue Shelter, which consists of a small team. Alongside their exhausting rescue work, most of them have day jobs. Jinny, for instance, works in a bakery; the unpredictability of animal rescue means she often spends the night in her van parked on the streets before heading to work in the early morning.
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Above A film still from ‘Paws Land’ by Au Cheuk Man, featuring the dogs living in the area of the now demolished Chi Kee Sawmill and Timber factory (Image: courtesy of Au Cheuk Man)
A film still from ‘Paws Land’ by Au Cheuk Man, featuring the dogs living in the area of the now demolished Chi Kee Sawmill and Timber factory (Image: courtesy of Au Cheuk Man)
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During the time it took to make the film, only four dogs successfully found owners. Approximately 40 remain in the kennel, waiting for new homes. “These are the animals that people think are too ‘ugly’ to bring home,” Jinny says in the film. The common breed of stray dogs in Hong Kong is mongrels, which carry a negative stereotype as “mixed breeds”. Others may have physical defects or injuries, which deter potential adopters due to the long-term medical costs or the time required for caretaking.
Another volunteer, Kent Luk, likens their work to “clearing up the mess of sewage pipe bursts,” explaining that they can hardly keep up with the increasing number of stray animals.
“Stray animals mainly come from two major sources,” Au says. “The first type is naturally bred, living in the wild where they face challenges such as harsh weather and injury, but these issues can be addressed with resources dedicated to neutering. The second type consists of abandoned animals. Many people underestimate the responsibility of caring for pets, only to discover later that dogs require feeding, bathroom care and cleaning. When pets become ill, some owners may abandon them to avoid medical expenses, resulting in numerous sick cats and dogs being left by trash bins or at rescue organisations’ doors.” He asserts this is a pressing societal issue that cannot be solved by spaying alone; it necessitates thorough education, which cannot be accomplished by just a few groups promoting it.
Above A dog featured in ‘Paws Land’ by Au Cheuk Man (Image: courtesy of Au Cheuk Man)
A dog featured in ‘Paws Land’ by Au Cheuk Man (Image: courtesy of Au Cheuk Man)
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Adding to this, Au noted that the city is not particularly dog-friendly, recalling how dog owners, including himself, are often turned away from restaurants.
As a filmmaker, Au hopes the film will bring about change. In addition to donating proceeds from the box office to animal rescue organisations, he believes the “immersive experience in the cinema allows the audience to resonate emotionally and gain a deeper understanding of the plight of stray dogs.”
Ultimately, Paws Land serves as a poignant reminder of the urgent need for change in animal welfare.
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Zabrina is the Senior Editor, Arts and Culture of Tatler Hong Kong. She specialises in performing arts, visual art and film. Her wanderlust was first fuelled by the Mighty Rovers Antarctica Expedition 2010. Over the years, she has interviewed A-list artists and filmmakers, including Oscar winners Chlóe Zhao and Tim Yip, Golden Horse winner Sylvia Chang, In the Mood for Love cinematographer Christopher Doyle, Pachinko author Min Jin Lee, and Coachella’s first Chinese solo singer Jackson Wang. She won gold at the WAN-IFRA Asian Media Awards for her 2021 feature on the waves of hate crimes targeting Asian Americans.
