CHENNAI: Petting a tiny calf Nelson, Sai Vignesh, recalls how the calf’s mother ‘spoke’ to him in a distinct way. After receiving the news that a pregnant cow was going to be illegally slaughtered, the animal activist had rushed to her rescue after informing the police. However, she was nowhere to be found. Tired of searching, they were about to leave when the cow mooed from a pit behind the bushes where it had hidden.
“I believe that she cried out to me, to save her unborn calf. She passed away recently due to plastic in her rumen. My mission has been stronger ever since,” says Sai. The 23-year-old cattle whisperer, who is also preparing for the UPSC exam, is the founder of Almighty Animal Care Trust and Animal Sanctuary in Senranyanpalayam in Tiruvallur which houses 138 cattle, including cows, calves, buffalo, and bulls, alongside 37 goats, 112 dogs, eight hens and roosters, three pigs, horses, three rabbits, and a donkey.
His first rescue was during the 2015 Chennai floods when he scooped up two pups that were drowning and brought them home. “Soon, I rescued a few more dogs and sheltered them in my home in Chennai,” he said. “I had lost my pet dog to cancer. So, I could not be a mute spectator to their suffering,” he said.
“Along with my parents, my grandfather, Alagu Sundaram, was supportive of my endeavour. Till his death, he used to give me his monthly pension of Rs 30,000 for rescuing animals,” Sai said. As he started posting about his rescues online, many people reached out to him with information about injured and sick animals. “Soon, we had 20 rescued dogs at my home, which created issues with my landlords and neighbours.” As a result, his family had to shift eight houses between 2015 and 2019.
Sai realised that if he had a shelter for the animals, he would be able to do more. He approached animal lover Sivamani, a former employee of Coal India who is no more, for help. The animal lover donated eight acres of land free of cost for an animal shelter in Senranyanpalayam, where the Trust stands. Sivamani’s wife Valarmathi said her husband used to feed more than 70 dogs regularly. “His legacy lives on through Sai Vignesh’s dedication.” As he enters his shelter home, dozens of dogs circle him wagging their tails, a few sniffing his legs while jumping up, their paws on his chest. “This shelter was built by the parents of Anu Vidhya, also an animal lover and trekker. She died in the 2018 Kurangani. It was her dream to build a shelter for dogs. So, her parents came forward to help,” Sai added.
Sai says that until 2020 he had only been rescuing dogs. But that would change when he came across an illegal slaughterhouse, where a pregnant cow had been killed by extricating the unborn foetus from her womb in Tiruvallur. At that time, he realised that there were no proper shelter homes for cattle in the state. While feeding calf Kumaresan, Sai Vignesh’s voice breaks as he explains how the calf’s mother Sivagami, who was eight months pregnant was hacked on her spine and legs for strolling into a compound to eat banana leaves. “Her wounds were infested with maggots and she couldn’t stand up. She was rescued and admitted to the sanctuary’s ICU. Kumaresan is a miracle child. The labour was challenging due to dystocia. Sivagami died shortly after,” he said. Kumaresan trots to his playmate Nelson, an acid attack victim, with scars on his head and neck, his ears having fallen apart in the attack. Like Nelson, Sai had also rescued many cattle after filing cases. “The law clearly says that the animals need not be returned to the offenders unless they are proven innocent. I have rescued more than 150 cattle in the last four years, keeping them in the shelter while some were handed over to different shelters due to space crunch.” He also started fighting against wild animal trade when he was 17, leading to almost 10 death threats. In November 2023, a man tried to attack him with a machete. The Madras High Court has granted him police protection since.
“I have 22 donors who give me around Rs 4 lakh every month. Moreover, I earn around Rs 1 lakh per month from web designing. This is not enough. At times, I have had to borrow money from my relatives, friends, and some lenders with interest. I am almost Rs 35 lakh in debt now,” Sai said. However, with an unwavering determination, he hopes to keep saving more animals and build a veterinary hospital with free facilities. “We believe that only God can save a life. Without being able to voice a word about the injustice and horror they face, the animals suffer every day. The ones who save them are their gods. That’s the only one difference between animals and humans, they chose to love us a little more.”
(Edited by Mary Catherene)