The other issue we see is animals having food that’s not good for their health. They feed on garbage or leftovers from households and shops, which have chicken or fish bones. They often choke on the bones and suffer from internal injuries. Sometimes, they ingest plastics, nails, coins, and metal objects while searching for food in garbage piles. Around five years back, we removed 17 kilograms of these materials from the stomach of a calf. Also, since most of them are exposed to extreme weather conditions, they suffer from many other health complications.
How is the state of strays in Kathmandu? It’s terrible. There are many hit-and-run cases. People leave the animal they hit on the street to suffer. Open wounds often get infected, and many animals don’t survive. The other problem we find in dogs is health issues like scabies and cancer. There are also dogs suffering from distemper and parvovirus. There are some areas near jungles where many dogs suffer from rabies. In city areas, it’s not that common since most of them get vaccinated, although we do come across a few. But the problem with rabies is mostly seen in the outskirts of Kathmandu. Governmental and non-governmental organizations have been neutering dogs. Has that brought about any substantial change in the number of stray dogs found in Kathmandu? To some extent, it has. But when it comes to neutering dogs, a lot of wards in Kathmandu don’t do it regularly. Dogs get neutered for a certain period and then the work stops. The same happened when Kathmandu Metropolitan City started neutering dogs. So the female dogs that haven’t been neutered reproduce and the numbers keep multiplying. Wards that have taken the job of neutering dogs seriously have fewer puppies. But, at the same time, some wards have been neutering dogs just for the sake of showing their work on paper. They don’t follow through and the outcome isn’t as fruitful as it could have been. If we were to neuter dogs systematically in each ward without leaving a single dog behind, the result would be visible within a year or two. I think organizations like ours have to put a little more effort into it. There are laws on animal rights but are they being properly implemented? There are laws backing up animal rights, but the implementation is quite weak. One of the reasons behind that is even police officers are reluctant to file complaints or take action. There is a lack of sensitivity towards animals. I believe that even animal welfare groups have not put in much effort to change that. We could do so much more in terms of awareness, but I believe that maybe we have been slacking off a little on that front. I think those working for animal welfare should focus a little more on awareness campaigns or any other method/programs that will let people know that there are consequences of harming animals. We need to start from the police station itself since even authorities are unwilling to take action when an animal is hurt. There are only a few who care. What do you think is the reason behind peoples’ insensitivity towards animals? Firstly, people think of animals as more of an object than a living being. They aren’t empathetic of their pain and suffering, which is why many don’t refrain from abusing them time and again. They don’t want to accept the fact that stray animals are also part of a community. For instance, recently in Budhanilkantha-6, where our shelter for animals is located, around 200 hundred people gathered to chase the dogs out. They didn’t want to consider the fact that most of them were sick. They were bothered by the constant barking. Secondly, these people are also not aware of the legal aspect that backs up animal rights. It’s mostly because the laws that exist are barely implemented. Even during the incident I mentioned, it took the police an hour to arrive at the location, and that too after I made some phone calls asking for favors. Before that, no one had come. The public has no fear of any consequences, and that gives them the confidence to do whatever they want.
