We are planning on going to Aruba in January, and staying at Bucuti Beach Hotel. Now I have been reading a lot about a stray dog problem on Aruba on another forum. Does anybody know how bad this situation really is? We tend to stay mainly near the hotel, the beach and occasionally go into town for some shopping. The reason I am asking is that I am really scared of dogs - I know this is an irrational fear but I can't seem to control it. So if anybody has some recent experience on Aruba

Sorry - pressed the 'post' button by mistake before finishing my post! What I want to say is, if anybody has been to Aruba recently I would like to know if they did notice any stray dogs, particularly on or near the beaches and hotels.

Did not see any dogs on the beach. Most of them are in town and in the foothills, but I never saw them near the beach. Trip report posted at:<BR>http://www.visitaruba.com/guestarea/...s/trip374.html

We just returned from a week in Aruba, didn't notice any stray dogs. We traveled much of the island, stayed in Palm Beach area.

I've worked and played on Aruba. It's an unusually clean island. There are some dogs around. However, they are so feeble that they wouldn't hurt anyone. Any dog you approach will more than likely scatter as he is probably more afraid of you than you are of it. What there are plenty of is goats. Little pigmy goats roam the foothills and are kind of fun to watch. Don't worry about the dogs. Have fun.

I was in Aruba a few months ago (May) did see a few dogs but basically they wouldn't come up to you unless you approched them. Mostly the dogs were in town. The few I saw on the beaches moved away once people were coming near. Don't worry, enjoy Aruba, it's beautiful.

Another thing, the stray dog problem is a Caribbean problem. You will find that on every Caribbean island one more so than the other.

I have spent many many weks in Aruba. We encountered a pack of stray dogs on the far side of the island near the old ruins by Boca Grande (on the way to the natural bridge. We couldn't get out of the car to see the ruins - they were barking and threatening. I too am petrified of dogs. Other than that - -the only place I have ever seen strays is downtown near El Gaucho restaurant. The dogs there are very sickly and weak. They are used to tourist coming out of the restauarnt with "doggie" bags and feeding them scraps. Everyone feels sorry for them. These dogs are not dangerous - they will meekly followyou a few blocks and then give up.<BR> There is some kind of community group on Aruba that is atempting to do something about eliminating the problem - -findthem homes, etc.<BR>I have NEVER seen strays on the beach or in the shopping areas. As far as the are by the ruins.........that whole part of the island is very flat and wide open. You could spot them from quite a distance - - not much chance they would sneak up on you. Go to Aruba and enjoy - - you will love it!

THANKS everybody, for all your reassurances - I'm looking forward to my trip!!