It was during a casual evening stroll with their grandfather a few weeks ago that sisters 10-year-old Anna and 8-year-old Marina spotted an injured black Labrador dog lying on the roadside barely a few metres away from their house in Anayara. A single glance at the teary-eyed dog was enough for the children to realise the pain the canine was suffering from, as it lay abandoned, uncared for.
The children ran back home to call their father Bobby Abraham, who rushed to the spot to see the dog, which was too weak to even stand up. They fed the dog two packets of biscuits and gave it water, after which the canine mustered the energy to stand up.
The dog was a collared, pedigree one, around 8-years-old with deep bruises on its back and genitals, suspected to have been inflicted by someone.
“The sad look that the dog gave us was enough to melt our hearts,” said Anna who, along with her sister, persuaded their father to take care of the dog. Abraham made inquires to find out the dog’s owner, but all his efforts were in vain.
“We took the dog to the Pettah Veterinary Hospital. Since there was no facility to get the dog admitted, we had to pay daily visits to the hospital. So we entrusted its care with Satheesh, a dog catcher with Thiruvananthapuram Corporation, while agreeing to meet the entire treatment expenses,” said Bobby Abraham.
“The dog was in a very miserable condition and writhing in pain due to the infection in its wounds. If it was left uncared for a few more days, it would have died,” said Satheesh.
Within a few weeks, the dog regained health under the treatment of veterinary surgeon Dr Sabu S M. The children, who had by then named the dog ‘Blackie’ did not have much difficulty in persuading their parents to keep the dog home.
The children have brought out a poster detailing their experience, with a photograph of the now beaming and healthy ‘Blackie’ posing with them. “Those who abandoned the dog will do the same to their parents if they are sick. Let us not be like them,” the poster reads. The sisters presented the poster to school authorities to spread the message among their schoolmates.
“This noble gesture by these children is truly inspiring. There is a need to create awareness among children about being kind to animals. After all, they are also God’s creation. I am planning to publish this poster in the school magazine and put it up on the notice board so that other children become aware of the need to care for animals and emulate these acts of kindness,” said Sister Mary Adelaide, principal, Holy Angels’ Convent.
“Though Blackie has now become an integral part of our family, we know that he was once a darling of another family. We hope the injuries he sustained were not inflicted by its master or that he was abandoned. So if Blackie’s master is somewhere out there on his lookout, he is welcome to approach us,” said Anna and Marina.