NGO Launches Sterilization Campaign for Stray Dogs in Delhi

A non-government animal welfare organisation, based in Delhi, has initiated a sterilization and vaccination campaign to protect stray dogs from rabies and to control their growing population.

Volunteers of Sonadi Animal Care Hospital in collaboration with city's civic body are scouting the streets for stray dogs, which they bring to the organisation's animal health care centre, for treatment.

Doctors of the hospital maintain that the sterilization and vaccination of dogs is a more humane way of combating the menace as compared to killing them.

'Sonadi Animal Care Hospital and Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) are working in tandem to vaccinate the street dogs against rabies. We want to spread the message that dogs need to be saved from this deadly disease and we need not kill them,' said Vijay Kumar, the Secretary of the Sonadi Charitable Trust.

Thousands of street dogs are routinely killed by city corporations across the country to prevent the spread of rabies, traffic and sanitation related-problems.

Rajesh Gahlot, Councillor, Delhi Development Authority (DDA), said: 'The camp is basically for indigenous stray dogs that are increasing in number day by day. This drive will vaccinate the dogs and also sterilize them, thus controlling their population. And many street dogs are not healthy and medical help is provided to them.'

The MCD is providing the organisation with infrastructural facilities like transportation.

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Stray dogs are a regular sight on the streets of many cities and in rural areas, often seen chasing pedestrians, cyclists and vehicles.

India is home to around 20 million dogs of different breeds.

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Recently, the country has witnessed an increasing number of cases in which people, especially children, have been attacked by stray dogs, calling for an urgent solution to the menace.

An estimated 56,000 stray dogs were killed in southern India, after canines killed two small children.

Source-ANI
LIN/C