Domestics & Strays
Animals in Timor Leste
Timor Leste is a zoo full of animals running around freely. Not only in the rural districts, but also in the main city Dili. If you are afraid of cows, dogs, cats, chicken, goats or pigs you should take that into consideration before coming here. The next few paragraphs will give a quick overview of each of those animals and explain the timorese relationship between human and animal.
Meooooww!
The cats like to hide, but if you look closer, they are everywhere. 99% of cats here are strays without or only a loose owner who just feeds them occasionally. Often they are meager and also full of wounds, as they like to quarrel. Another feature of a typical Timorese cat is a missing or deformed tail, probably due to genetic mutation. That doesn’t make them less cute though. You might even come across some squeal-inducing kittens.
Woof Woooof!
Dogs can be seen everywhere. Many are also strays, but they are also often used as guard dogs. I have written an extra post about my encounters with them: https://www.streetcat.life/blog/timorese-dogs, check it out if you want to. The dogs like to relax. In fact, they like it so much that even if you come at them with a car they won’t move until you are about two meters in front of them. Nonetheless, they also fight and there is little food available, resulting in their poor health condition. But of course, cute puppies exist. I also noticed that dogs up in the Timorese mountains have fluffier fur, as it is a lot colder up there.
Oink Oink!
Pigs are more heard than seen, they don’t really move around in the streets much. My impression is that they are also less popular to keep as they seem to require more care.
Mooooo!
Cows usually have some kind of designated area where they stay. There are no fences, most cows are tied to something with a long rope. However, they often break loose of this rope and the “designated area” can be very large. They still have their horns as removing them is too expensive. The cows are used to trespassers, so don’t worry, they won’t harm you as long as you don’t harm them.
Maaaaa!
Goats are treated very similar to cows, only they are more active and wander around more. Be extra careful not to hit them with a car. Additionally to the fact that this harms the animal, you are likely to have to pay the owner the price of it. This also makes me wonder how Timorese livestock owners manage to keep track of their animals, because they really just go wherever they want to.
Squeak Squeak!
Rats are very much like ghosts here. You might catch a glimpse of them outside, but they move away so quickly you aren’t even sure if you actually saw one. At least where I live, they also don’t touch the food. I have never seen one inside, so don’t worry too much about your snacks.
Cluck Cluck Bah-Gawk!
Poultry is a popular food in Timor Leste, so a lot of people keep chicken at home for some extra income and obviously also to eat them themselves. Roosters are sometimes also kept for rooster fights. Just like the other animals they go wherever they want. They are jumpy and run away quickly as soon as you approach them.
Annoying things that can be found inside are cockroaches. An insect spray is part of every Timorese household, including one against the mosquitoes. There are geckos as well, they are super cute and make a sound a bit like CHEE-chak. Also, they eat insects, which is good to keep a house free of them.
Concerning the animal-human relationship, animals are usually kept for their practical use, and not seldom in a bad condition. This goes espeacially for transportation. I once saw a goat tied to the roof of a bus. I understand that there was probably no affordable alternative to this, but the goat was definitely not happy. This probably also goes for the pig that was driven on a motorbike inside a bag. To have a pet, just for the cuteness of it, is unusual and too expensive most people.
