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This is a photo of one of Guatemala's many stray dogs. This dog here is being cared for by an Australian waitress in town with very long braids who has become a bit of a mama to many of the strays in town. (The photo of the kitten is there because it's cute.)

What to do with the dogs has polarized the villages surrounding Lago de Atitlan. Those who hate the perros complain that they are too numerous, that they climb onto restaurant tables to eat leftovers and that they hump each other in broad daylight.

But the dog haters don't just complain - they kill the dogs. Every three months, locals and a handful of gringos place poisoned meat in the streets. It takes about eight hours for the dogs to die, during which they vomit up their stomachs and intestines.

A few careful sniffers have figured out they shouldn't eat the meat. They include Missy, a black and white half Husky who won't be claimed and Perro, a boxer-pitbull mix who attached himself to Levi and me in San Marcos.

(Levi ineffectively tried to push Perro away by petting him and saying, 'Perro, shoo, shoo.' Perro, sensing a dog lover in Levi, stayed close, and Levi was positively thrilled.)

A few people have rebelled against the practice of dog poisoning. A veterinarian in San Marcos La Laguna offers free sterilization and free rabies shots to dog owners. Dog lovers in San Pedro are trying to offer similar services.

When I found out about this , I was appalled. But a wandering Quebecoise named Maxine told me that it could be worse - in a coastal Mexican village, locals gather one day a year to shoot the dogs on the beach. And Levi reminded me that without animal control in the United States, we would have a similar problem.

A dog poisoning is scheduled in coming days in San Pedro. As Levi and I walked to the market this morning, we wondered if the poisoning was today, as many dogs were laying about lethargically.