STRAY DOG

Stray Dogs attack – A major concern for Indians

Team Pashudhan Praharee

December 12, 2023

399

Stray Dogs attack – A major concern for Indians

Abhishek Chauhan

Intern, B.V.Sc.&A.H., Lala Lajpat Rai University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Hisar

Email – abhishekguja@gmail.com

Introduction

“Two-year-old mauled to death by stray dog in Gujarat ” reads the headline of a daily newspaper on 13th July 2023. This is just one incident, Indian daily newspapers cover such stories at an alarming frequency. Civilians being attacked by paw-friends of humans is a major issue prevalent in both urban and rural India. There are areas/streets which are usually warned against visiting alone or at night due to frequent attacks by dogs in the recent past.

The Big Issue

India has an alarmingly high street dog population of more than 60 million (End Pet Homelessness,2023). This has led to a cascade of problems arising and causing various health and safety issues to the humans and dogs as well. The majority of dog bites occur due to street dogs. They cause serious wounds to the victims and lead to hospitalisation of the common people adding burden to their financial resources and mental wellbeing. Sometimes the trauma becomes so serious that various bacterial infections develop and the victim consequently succumbs to the injury. This causes loss of our near and dear ones, especially the young toddlers and elderly who cannot escape the dogs in unfortunate times.

(LocalCircles,2023)

These dog bites lead to continuous transmission of ‘Rabies’ among animal populations and from animals to humans. In 2022, India accounted for 307 deaths due to Rabies(The Times of India,2023). According to WHO, India contributes to 36% of rabies deaths occurring globally(WHO,2023). Actual data may be high as many cases might not have been reported from rural regions of India where there are not sufficient health facilities. Children usually conceal dog bites from their parents in fear of being scolded by their parents. On one hand, India is making leaps in economic developments to beat the biggest economies of the world in terms of GDP, on the other hand we suffer hundreds of death due to a disease which is 100% preventable and many countries have set examples by being categorised as ‘Rabies Free’ by effective public health policies.

The Cause

No single organisation be it Government, Animal welfare organisation, local administration or the fellow countrymen can be held responsible for the cause and escalation of this problem. Government is unable to formulate fruitful policies to control the increasing population of stray dogs. Local administration is unable to implement Animal Birth Control (ABC) programs. These half hearted attempts to sterilise male dogs and spay she dogs will never yield expected results because the population will continue to grow exponentially considering the large litter size and small gestation length of she dog. There are a few people who adopt the orphaned street dogs instead of buying an exotic bred dog from a registered kennel; they help the speechless by providing them a home but don’t immunise them against the various infectious diseases which can affect them and can be transmitted by them and thus a risk of rabies and other diseases stands undiminished. A large chunk of the dog owners are not aware about the need and proper protocol of the vaccination. Many even report that they do not find a skilled person who can provide them the knowledge and their companions the required shot of the vaccine. This is an unmistaken sign of the failure of animal welfare organisations and veterinary health care system to provide sound knowledge in the public interest.

The lactating she dogs often attack when she perceives some danger to her puppies. This sense of fear implies the prevailing condition of animal welfare in the area.

Residential societies fail to check the vaccination status of the pets of its residents, this frequently leads to quarrels among the residents as many see these unvaccinated dogs as a risk to their little children and themselves. Resident associations often ignore the opt to spay and neuter the dogs present in their areas. The so called ‘cooperative societies’ choose to ignore the collective health of its residents including animals.

We continue to suffer collectively but fail to respond collectively. The administration has failed to give the due importance to this aspect of their responsibility towards society. The animal activists lack the necessary liasoning with the officials to take solid steps towards improving the scenario. But things are never too late.

The fighting strategy

The best and obvious option to reduce the number of attacks by street dogs is to reduce their population. Depopulation of dogs is the most cruel, unethical and morally wrong way. Therefore animal birth control strategy is the best option.

Governments at centre and state must provide enough financial, infrastructural and technical resources to local bodies to carry out ABC programs. Municipal officials must efficiently execute these programs adhering to the guidelines of Animal Welfare Board of India(AWBI). The fatal Rabies will be controlled only when the street dogs population will be under control. Only then an effective active immunisation program of stray dogs against rabies will yield positive results, otherwise the birth of thousands of new dogs on Indian streets will make any program futile and there will be no net progress towards elimination of this managemental problem of street dog attacks.

Government should see many European countries as role models who eradicated Rabies in the past and maintain rabies free status through strict quarantine and vaccination of animals.

For effective implementation of ABC programs, the role of animal welfare organisations and animal activists also come into play. They should spread awareness among the residential societies about the ongoing programs of their local administrative bodies and encourage the locals to support them in capturing dogs, and any hindrance in their work should be discouraged by seeing this as a collective responsibility. Animal welfare enthusiasts should reach out to locals and teach them the importance of animals’ freedom from fear and distress, because animals attack when they fear someone.

Big cooperative societies should fund surgical sterilisation of dogs in their area and should vaccinate the dogs regularly and must make rules that their residents do not harm any dog or cause any hindrance in the work of ABC organisations. They must ensure that every pet housed there should be vaccinated regularly by their pet parent and any violation should be seriously looked after.

The biggest responsibility lies on each and every individual. Pet parents are deeply attached to their companion but they should not forget their responsibility towards other people of the society. Whenever they are on a walk with their pet, they should properly leash them.

Whenever someone thinks about adopting a pet, they should adopt one from the street. This gives these speechless innocents a home and the human a paw friend. They must look into every aspect of being a pet parent and the attached responsibilities. Else this will consequently lead to dogs being abandoned on the street, which will then breed freely and increase the street dog population.

Every revolution starts from the street, individuals suffering should take responsibility for the dogs in their street, their vaccination, sterilisation and treatment when ill.

Conclusion

Increasing population and attacks by stray dogs is a big issue pan India. The governments at various levels need to formulate strategies to counter this menace. Every agency involved must work diligently towards making a better life for street dogs existing, checking their unwanted breeding and promoting human health by preventing dog bites and attacks.

References