BENGALURU: Days after a domestic worker was booked for murdering a pet dog and later disavowing responsibility, a lingering question remains: how is it to be ensured that this is not repeated? What can pet owners do to allay their worst fears? As animal rights workers in the city believe, properly vetting the worker or caretaker is a necessary first step, but the answer does not stop there.
“Compassion cannot be taught. For a caretaker, it is important to see the pet owner treating the pet as a child; this is an important aspect of sensitisation,” says Kamini Nanda, who takes care of rescue dogs. “Someone who loses their temper easily, lashes out at community animals, is rough with children or people physically weaker than them in general are more likely to extend that to a household pet. I’d advise anyone hiring domestic staff to do due diligence equivalent to what they would do if hiring a nanny for their child,” adds Sanjana Madappa, Trustee at Second Chance Sanctuary.
Irrespective of the heinous and irredeemable nature of the crime, it is important to look outside of it as well. A wider conversation is incumbent on pet owners and the cruelty they often enact at home, ranging from being apathetic and treating their pets as accessory, to deliberately abusing them, further aggravating their tempers. It is also important to note that while frustration is an unacceptable excuse for the crime (the accused alleged that the dog had been incessantly barking), domestic workers are stretched thin with a litany of household chores, and pet owners entrusting the pets’ care onto the former and washing their hands off of responsibility is a familiar sight.
Co-founder of Citizens for Animal Birth Control (ABC) Harini Raghavan opines, “There is a distinction to be made between pet owners and pet parents. The latter need to assume responsibility. Domestic workers come with their own baggage; many of them are abused at home.” All of the three stress that a pet is a being with needs, and if one is incapable of making the time or effort for them, it is better not to own one at all.
Raghavan also urges the Karnataka Animal Welfare Board (KAWB) and the Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) to take cognisance and intervene. “Around 20–30% of reported dog bites come from pets. Many don’t vaccinate their dogs, which leads to rabies. The authorities need to set a strict precedent,” she says.