NEW DELHI: It is a move aimed to end dogfights or rather those that take place between humans because of dogs.
On October 19, 2014, a Saudi Arabian diplomat was allegedly roughed up by RWA members in South Delhi for taking his pet dog for a stroll to a park near his house in Safdarjung Enclave. The diplomat’s mistake was that he could read a signage in Hindi which prohibited visitors from bringing their pets into the park. Such cases of conflict over pet and street dogs, often erupting in violence, have been on the rise of late.
Flooded with complaints from pet owners and RWAs, the Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI) under the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) has now come up with a detailed list of etiquettes for pet owners and people who feed stray dogs. It includes dos and donts for the RWAs and housing societies to ensure pet lovers are not harassed and that pressure does not lead to abandonment of a pet.
One of the common reasons for such fights is dog poop. The new guidelines advise pet owners to ‘scoop the poop’. They are to either clean up the mess when the pet defecates in public, or participate in other solutions like setting up a ‘pet defecation corner’ for maintaining cleanliness. But it restricts RWAs from imposing fines and special charges of any kind on pet owners.
“For instance, pet corners can be designated, in which pets can be trained, encouraged to relieve themselves; and a corner of the complex, park can be designated as area where pet poop can be collected and deposited and composted, using sawdust. Such behavior may generate positivity and greater acceptability of pet dogs, and even street dogs,” states the five-page guidelines.
The guidelines were prepared by AWBI under chairmanship of Major General (retd) Dr R M Kharab after year-long deliberations with all stake holders. While it recognizes that pet owners consider their pets as family members, it also points out that pets should not be a source of nuisance for others.
Barking of pets was another cause of conflict and it is advised that pet owners should make every effort to keep their dogs quiet, particularly during night hours. The guidelines, however, say that barking is a natural form of expression for a dog, and a must and has to be tolerated. However, incessant barking can disturb neighbours and pet owners should keep that in mind.
The guidelines clearly restrict RWAs and housing associations from banning pets from elevators. Neither can they insist that ‘small-sized’ dogs are acceptable, and ‘large-sized’ are not.
“In fact, in trying to ban pets, or limit their number, residents’ welfare associations and apartment owners associations interfere with a fundamental freedom guaranteed to the citizens of India, the freedom to choose the life they wish to live, which includes facets such as living with or without companion animals,” it said.
The board also said that pets cannot be banned from gardens or parks. Pets that are not properly exercised may exhibit aggressive conduct in frustration; and that cannot contribute to the benefit of the residents. It may be better to arrive by consensus at timings acceptable to all residents, when pets can be walked without inconvenience to other residents, it said.
The board members recognized that any aggression or hostility that the dogs may be subjected to may render them aggressive and hostile to humans and they may then resort to snapping and biting in self-defence. If this happens, the human aggressors shall be the only ones to blame.
With a large number of people feeding street dogs, the board said those who feed street dogs are advised to participate in their sterilization, and yearly vaccination too, since they win the trust of the dogs by feeding them. It also advises not to feed street dogs adjacent to areas in which children play, or people take walks or that are otherwise crowded and are advised to clean up feeding sites after feeding.
These guidelines have been sent to all RWAs and are expected to be implemented on the ground.
Dog Days are Over
List of dos and donts issued by
the Animal Welfare Board of India:
■ Pet owners to clean dog poop
■ Designate pet defecation areas in societies
■ Dogs cannot be banned from societies
■ No fines on pet owners
■ Pets cannot be disallowed from using elevators in societies
■ These rules apply to small- as well as large-sized dogs
■ Pets owners cannot be prohibited from taking dogs into parks
■ Street dogs need to be fed away from crowded places