My brother said that the Iraqis he met when he was over there for active duty hated dogs. They thought dogs were filthy, and the strays over there probably really are more dirty than what we are accustomed to. It was a cultural disconnect, definitely, when they saw Americans go out of their way to help dogs and do things like flying them back to America. It made them sick to see dogs being pampered when there were children in real need who could have used the attention and assistance.
Very true.. will agree with his assessment. Iraqis think of dogs like cockroaches :^(