TIRUVANANTHAPURAM : Three years ago, on May 15, Tuffy passed away. Life was never the same for Parvathy Krishnan, who feels as if she has lost a part of her very being. And last May, when the day presented itself, Parvathy decided the best way to keep alive her dog’s memory was to give a grand feast to the abandoned, handicapped and rescued dogs at a shelter in the city.“Most people in the city would be familiar with Tuffy as we would take him along wherever we went. Giving the feast was the ideal way to honour him,” says Parvathy even as she tried to stifle her tears in vain while recalling the sweet memories of Tuffy. Parvathy is not alone. Rina Suresh Nair celebrated her birthday last April by giving a feast to the animals. And ever since her birthday, she provides the ‘feast’ on the first of every month.
It is the ‘One Day Feast’ programme envisioned by the Thiruvananthapuram chapter of People for Animals. The organisation has come up with a novel way wherein anyone can sponsor a grand array of meals for the animals. It is a carnival of sorts at the shelter on that day, as the animals get to delight on a smorgasbord of dishes. The scheme launched three months back has found takers in the city.
“You can choose to celebrate your happy occasions or honour someone by giving the feast. One gets to offer a sumptuous meal to the animals at just Rs 3,750. The dream is to get sponsors for every day,” says Latha I, secretary, PFA. At present, the shelter houses two bulls, five birds which are recuperating, 125 dogs, 25 cats, 30 puppies and 12 kittens. During the feast, a banquet of sorts is arranged for all the animals and generous helpings are given. “The sponsors can spend time at the shelter. We share the videos and pictures of the ‘feast’ to the sponsors,” says Sumitha Suseelan, a core-committee volunteer.
“We are just trying to bring some excitement in the lives of the animals. Most of them have gone through an ordeal and this just brightens up their mundane lives. It is heartening to see the animals savour the dishes to their fill without fighting. It is the best way to mark any occasion in one’s life,” says Maria Jacob, a trustee of the organisation.