KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 13 — Dog lovers have rescued 97 strays that were being kept at the Kuala Langat Municipal Council (MPKL) pound in Selangor and found them a new home in Johor, The Star reported today.

Siti Fauziah Abdul Jabbar of Fauziah Paws Care and independent rescuers Belinda Yeap and Peter Hoo had leapt into action after seeing pictures of the emaciated dogs being caged up and sent them to a temple shelter in the southern peninsula state.

"We could not bear seeing the 97 dogs there in such a pitiful condition. The dogs are under quarantine and some are very sick,” Fauziah was quoted as saying.

She added that MPKL waived the pound fee for the dogs and also helped load the animals into lorries to be sent to Johor.

Furry Friends Farm president Myza Nordin said she believes the dogs at the shelter were not fed to prevent them from making a mess.

"That is why you can see in the videos that the place is quite clean. They were probably just given water until a vet comes to put them down.

"Furthermore, when dogs don’t eat, they become weak and this prevents them from fighting in the enclosures,” she was quoted as saying.

Following public outcry that the strays had been starved, MPKL said that the dogs are fed twice a day and cleaned their cages based on a schedule in order to prevent flea infestation.

But the council also said it will review the pound management procedures, the newspaper reported.

Several animal rights activists have urged local governments for more humane measures to control the population of stray dogs, mooting the Trap-Neuter-Release-Manage method.