Animal People

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Important Message for Street Animal Caretakers in light of Covid 19 related Complete Lockdown across many Indian States

Important message for stray animal feeders/caregivers in the light of complete lockdown announced by state governments of Maharashtra, Delhi and several other states to prevent further spread of COVID-19:

Please understand that there is a difference between lockdown and curfew.

Lockdown means that offices, shops, malls, certain government offices, public transport etc shall remain shut, emergency services will function and essential commodities will continue to be available.

During curfew, it is advised that people shouldn’t step out unless there’s an emergency.

However, during a lockdown, you may do what is essential and unavoidable, for instance – feed strays that you have been tending to. Nobody can stop you from feeding strays responsibly. Remember, you are merely discharging your constitutional duty of being a responsible citizen as mandated by Article 51(A)(g) of the Constitution of India by looking after animals and showing compassion towards them. Imposition of Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code means gathering of more than 5 people is prohibited. For feeding/medicating, it’s generally only one person and probably one more to help/assist. You are not in violation of any law if you do it responsibly.

Please do not panic, there is no reason to.

If any police officer or civic body official approaches, questions or asks you not to feed animals, to begin with, POLITELY explain to them what the law says, that you do it responsibly without causing nuisance to anybody, and that it is not illegal to feed strays, on the other hand it is illegal to prevent people from responsibly feed stray.

If that doesn’t work, only then get an animal activist, NGO or an Animal Welfare Officer involved.

First you should do the talking by trying to reason out, explaining common sense stuff like animals cannot survive on the roads without food, especially when they are used to getting fed by you.

Please stay safe and indoors as much as possible!

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Credits for this Informative Text: Meet Ashar
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Catch them young!

Last week, thanks to the initiative of the Principal of D.A.V Public School, RK Puram, Mrs. Sanjana Dutta, we were invited to conduct an Awareness Workshop on ‘Compassionate Citizenship’ for students of Class 4th and 5th. Our objective while conducting such awareness workshops is to inculcate within these young students, who are at such an impressionable age, empathy and respect for all living beings and the resources, Mother Earth offers us. These kids, learnt how they could go about caring for animals on the street, in the wild, about being sensitive towards our lifestyle choices and the Environment we co-inhabit with all other species, in our day to day lives.

One student, stood up at the end and asked me, “Mam, we will do all this but how will other understand it?”, my answer was, “They will understand it through YOU. This wave of compassion will spread through all of you.

That’s how this works. That’s how kindness spreads”.If you want such workshops to be conducted in your School, kindly email us at contact@jaagruti.org.

Love and light, to all for the New Year 2020

Vasudha Mehta & Team JAAGRUTI

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The Dog Care Field Manual by Harrell Graham (Kind Courtesy: Mr. Merrit Clifton at ANIMAL PEOPLE)

We at ‘Jaagruti’ think that this manual serves as a handy asset for all of us who look after our neighborhood street dogs in India and often find ourselves stuck! 

Download The Dog Care Field Manual by Harrell Graham by clicking here 

All text below by Mr. Merrit Clifton from ANIMAL PEOPLE:

This Dog Care Field Manual, by Harrell Graham,  covers wound treatment;  treatment of both internal parasites such as worms and external parasites such as mange;  emergency response to poisoning;  and avoidance of rabies.  Each topic is reviewed in depth and detail,  recommending crisis care that almost anyone can give when the nearest veterinarian is many miles and hours away. 

Graham,   who recently returned to the U.S. after five years in rural Thailand, compiled The Dog Care Field Manual from his own rescue experience,  in consultation with sympathetic veterinarians from around the world.  Asks Graham, “Have you ever seen a sick or mangy dog and found yourself saying, ‘I wish there was something I could do to help that poor creature?’  Are you an expatriate living in a second or third world country where these sick and wounded animals are everywhere?

“This manual will show you how you can spend some time outside helping man’s best friend and at the same time get to know your community, meet people, and make your life more interesting and meaningful.  It doesn’t require a lot:  a handful of readily available medicines, plus some dry dog food.

“The satisfaction that comes from watching a mite-infected, sick and possibly hairless dog gain his strength and beauty back over a period of just a few weeks is hard to beat.”

Much of Graham’s advice will help rescuers anywhere.  Even where veterinarians are plentiful and accessible during business hours, there is not always a clinic open all night when one finds a dog in distress, and even if such a clinic exists, emergency treatment may be necessary before the dog is moved.

“I read it and found it to be very useful,” C.P. Ramaswamy Institute president Nanditha Krishna e-mailed from Chennai, India, less than 24 hours after ANIMAL PEOPLE posted The Dog Care Field Manual for downloading from our web site.  “Since I run a mini shelter with 15 dogs at home, I constantly need help.  I have downloaded the manual to my desktop.”

The Dog Care Field Manual is not meant to substitute for veterinary care, even in remote regions of the developing world.

“I am a big believer in working with a local vet,” Graham told ANIMAL PEOPLE.  In particular,  an experienced local vet “can better diagnose certain cases,”  Graham explained,  where the dog suffers from a condition known in the community,  but not common elsewhere. However, Graham found that the nearest capable veterinary diagnostician was often far distant.  In Thailand, Graham recalls,  “My vet asked me to bring him pictures––rather than haul all the dogs from the temples 30 miles away––and he could tell me what to do if I didn’t already know.  There were only a handful of times I had to do this because, usually,  Ivermectin and some worm pills,  plus maybe some antibiotics,  are all that most dogs need.

“On those occasions where the dog had problems I couldn’t deal with,”  Graham added,  “I took the dog to the vet.”  Examples included “a broken leg with bloody sharp bones protruding;  liver disease with great ascites (belly distention);   and red cauliflower-like transmissible venereal tumors growing on the genitals,  where the dog needed intervenous chemotherapy.  I did administer intervenous vincristine at night once, on the side of the road, with a head lamp,  and no one to assist me,  but a vet can do it much more easily and quickly.”

Graham acknowledges that some of his advice may be controversial.  “Regarding my suggestion of ‘throwing’ multiple drugs such as antibiotics,  antifungals,  and antiparasitics at an animal who has no hair and is sick,”  Graham recalls grilling experts by e-mail,  reminding them that “stray dogs will not have access to multiple tests in a vet’s office.”  Most conceded that “Under those circumstances the ‘shotgun approach’ was okay.”

But Graham prefers to take a more cautious approach.  For example,   “I prefer to not give antifungals,” Graham says,  “until I’ve first dewormed the dog,  and have given the dog Ivermectin for mites,  and antibiotics.”

Adds Graham,  “I’ve treated more dogs with more severe skin infections than most western vets will see in a lifetime of treating ‘yuppy’ dogs.  I know the approach I outline in the Dog Care Field Manual works because it has been ‘battle tested.’  That doesn’t mean it can’t be improved.”

Graham is continuing to research possible additions and amendments.