GUANGZHOU, China – Mrs. Chen can't imagine abandoning one of her two best friends: her scruffy terrier mutt and a white, fluffy Pekingese mix with buggy eyes.

The Associated Press

Beginning July 1, each household in Guangzhou, China, can raise only one dog. The regulation won't be grandfathered in, so families with two or more dogs will have to decide which one gets to stay.

But that's what the government in this southern Chinese city wants the middle-aged homemaker to do when a one-dog policy takes effect in Guangzhou.

Beginning July 1, each household can raise only one dog. The regulation won't be grandfathered in, so families with two or more dogs will apparently have to decide which one gets to stay.

"It's a cruel regulation. These dogs are like family. How can you keep one and get rid of the others?" said Chen, who declined to give her full name because she feared the police would track her down and seize the dogs.

Such dog controls have touched off resentment among urban Chinese in other cities.

Police and city government officials appear to be aware of the issue's sensitivity. The Associated Press spent three weeks making calls and sending faxes to officials requesting an interview about the policy. But after the requests were passed back and forth between the police and city government, neither agreed to discuss it.

The regulation appears to be part of an effort to control stray dogs in Guangzhou, once known as Canton. An hour north of Hong Kong by train, it is one of the richest cities in China and has a rapidly growing middle class that can afford to own dogs.

Dog owners in Guangzhou aren't sure if the one-dog policy will be strictly enforced. Often Chinese authorities announce a tough new law, launch a crackdown, then ignore the measure.

Mrs. Chen said her plan was to register one of her dogs with her parents. She said the Chinese are masters at finding loopholes around laws.

"In China, we have a saying," she said. "When the people at the top make a policy, the people at the bottom find a way to get around it."

The Associated Press