Dog-friendly capital city

FIAPO, People For Animal (PFA) and Kudumbashree will be part of the drive. There will be one vet and a dog catcher in the team.
Dog-friendly capital city

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: On World Rabies Day, the city corporation along with organisations involved in animal care are planning to allay the concerns raised by residents over street dogs in some parts of the city. They have identified nine locations in the city where people had complained of street dogs creating scare among public. The locations are: Vazhuthacaud, Public office, Kattachal road, Thirumala, Karamana, Chengalchoola, KIMS, PTP Nagar and Vanchiyoor bridge.

“The street dogs which have been sterilised in the area will be vaccinated on Saturday,” said Parvathy Mohan, Trivandrum campaign coordinator, Federation Of Indian Animal Protection Organisation (FIAPO). The unsterilised dogs will be taken to the veterinary facility either at Pettah or at Thiruvallom for sterilisation.

FIAPO, People For Animal (PFA) and Kudumbashree will be part of the drive. There will be one vet and a dog catcher in the team. Corporation will provide the vehicle to transport the dogs. Besides this, anti-rabies vaccination will be provided to all the 15 veterinary hospitals under the corporation.

Awareness drive

Contrary to public perception about street dogs, a FIAPO survey had found that pet dogs bit the most. Street dogs were involved in only two out of the 10 dog-bite cases reported at the General Hospital, said Parvathy.

FIAPO has been conducting awareness session on dogs among the public in general, dog-bite patients and school children. According to Parvathy, lack of awareness about dog’s behaviour had led to an increase in number of dog-bite cases. The practice of killing dogs as a reaction for biting is not helpful for anti-rabies treatment. “The dog involved in biting should be observed for 10 days to find if it is rabid or not,” said Parvathy. She said people were receptive to suggestion during the counselling session. According to Parvathy, students have come forward to volunteer for the cause of street dogs after awareness campaigns in schools.

STERILE AND SAFE
Thiruvananthapuram corporation is one of the few urban bodies in the state that has a continuous programme for animal birth control. It sterilises around 450 street dogs in a month at its facilities in Pettah and Thiruvallom. “We will be able to meet the target of sterilising 5,000 dogs if we go at this rate,” said Dr Sreerag, a veterinary doctor with the corporation. Kudumbashree has undertaken the animal birth control (ABC) programme for corporation at the Pettah centre. It gets I2,100 for a dog under the project.

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