Angels That Roam Our Streets

One of the greatest undoings of man, one that brings him misery now and will befall terrible fate on him in the times to come, is his nature of being non-inclusive. Man continues to be one of the most self-seeking and self-gain minded species.

How man ill treats other living beings and animals, particularly dogs on the streets, leaves a lot to be desired and is a testimony to man’s most base and cruel nature. This, despite the fact that the dog has been given a special place of respect and recognition in the Hindu scriptures and mythology! Yama takes the form of a dog when he wishes to test the character of Yudhishthir in Mahabharata. Dogs have been the mounts of such fearsome gods as Kalbhairava. Dogs are also considered protectors of the gates of heaven and hell. In ancient Hindu religious symbolism, dogs are associated with different forms of Lord Shiva, the most powerful of Indian Gods.

The Parable

Once on the outskirts of Delhi, garlanded by the lush green farmlands, there were two villages; that existed next to each other. Called Shvetganga and Kalagaon respectively, they went about their daily lives harmoniously.

In Kalagaon, there were a group of rowdy children who would throw stones at the dogs living on the streets, just for fun. The dogs would scamper away and hide, escaping the ugly behavior of the unruly children. One pariah dog became a subject of barbaric mistreatment, with no provocation from the poor dog – and was particularly traumatized by the boorish boys. They would hit him, chase him with sticks and kick him. One afternoon the dog had endured enough of villainy at the hands of the boys and he could take it no more. Just as one boy tried to step on his tail, he mustered all the energy there was left in his feeble, emaciated body, and bit the boy in retaliation. The boy fell sick and came close to death. This enraged the villagers so much that they went about culling all the dogs there were in their village. The heartless mayhem stopped only when there was not a single dog left.

Shvetganga, though located next to Kalagaon, had people with an entirely different temperament. They taught their children compassion and concern for other living beings. The children would play along with the street dogs, feed them at regular intervals and the parents would nurse a dog or any other animal when they would fall ill or get an injury. It was a common sight to see happy, healthy dogs squatting satisfactorily in front of every hut. They lived amicably with the villagers like extended families.

One night on Amavasya, when the moon was in hiding and the sky was fiercely dark, a large group of bandits gathered at the edge of the villages. They decided to split up and invade the two villages.

The first group that came to Kalagaon had a free run. In the still of the night, they went about entering houses, marauding the residents of their belongings and murdering those that resisted. The bandits went about wildly, pillaging and plundering the village, as the villagers were deep in sleep and least expected any untoward incident to happen.

The second group that wished to enter Shvetganga faced problems from the start. As they tried to step in stealthily, the dogs on the street started barking. Some of them who managed to reach the huts near the periphery of the village had to contend with dogs sleeping outside the huts. The dogs, sensing danger and spotting strangers, got up and charged at them, ran after them to bite them and chased them out. The loud barking of the street dogs, that collectively reached a crescendo, woke up the villagers and they became alert and ready to face any attack.

The following day both villages had different tales to tell! One village had ill luck and death hit them the night before. The second village had saved itself from harm with the help of the dogs on the streets who had taken on the mantle of being guards to the folks who took care of them lovingly. Karma had paid back the two villages in the same coin they had thrown up into the Universe.

*****

The above looks like a story but similar acts get played out with all of us, no matter where we live – in metros, in big cities or in villages. Indians, believe in Karma and in good and bad energy. Societies that show kindness to all beings and live in harmony with them fare better than those that don’t. We reap more benefits from our little acts of kindness. It takes little effort to take care of other living beings, mostly dogs on the streets.

Be inclusive

We may be on top of the food chain, but every other being on that chain has a role to play, to keep up the balance of life as a whole.

Dogs have been domesticated by humans hundreds of years back. They have learned to live amidst us expecting a sense of peaceful coexistence. Even the dogs on the streets feel proximal to humans and will come and settle close to human habitation.

Humans must stop being self-centered and selfish as a species. We are already doing enough harm to ourselves and to our progeny with our greed and myopic thinking – causing distressing changes in the cycle of evolution, forcing the extinction of several other species, threatening to bring even our own end must faster than it would have been in the normal course.

Street dogs are an integral part of our lives and intrinsic to how we live as societies. We cannot wish them away, we should not attempt to restrain their presence and we should never try to persecute them.

The greatness of a society is reflected in how it treats those less privileged, and treatment of street dogs is a strong barometer.

Be kind

It is not really a monumental task.

In my family, we have been adopting street dogs, in spite of living with dog children at home. It is really not that taxing at all. Street dogs are very resilient and strong. They have steeled themselves admirably to face the storm on the streets they have to habitually grapple with.

We feed our “street babies” food at regular intervals; simple everyday fare. Sometimes, on special days, we will put pet food nuggets or chicken mince in their food preparation. Hardly something that would put a strain on any of us. In return, the love and gratitude and loyalty we get from these street babies are immeasurable.

We have also placed a big stone bowl outside our main gate and ensure that it is filled with clean water at all times. It is a common sight to see birds and squirrels and a host of street dogs quench their thirst at the bowl.

Be loving

Since street dogs are one of the lowest common denominators, how we treat them is a reflection of our own character.

Like Oprah Winfrey has famously said – it does not require you to be rich in order to be charitable. All you need is a kind heart and the right frame of mind.

When you visit some crowded markets in Delhi, you will find that the dogs are ill and infected and are seen mostly running for cover. Only a handful of people show them kindness and allow them adequate space to coexist. In a show of a poor way of living, they treat street dogs as unwanted creatures and deal with them in the most unkind manner.

In direct contrast is Khan Market – the most expensive shopping area in the whole of India. Yet, when you step into the market you witness an altogether different scene. There are a large number of street dogs that reside in that area. You will find them curled up outside almost all the shops. In winter you see them with coats on their bodies, and in summer you find water bowls placed outside. There are feeding bowls too, in which the shopkeepers put food.

Even the shoppers, who arrive in the most expensive cars wearing high-priced clothes, have learned to mind their steps and be watchful of the dogs sitting or sleeping outside the shops or in the by lanes, as bonafide residents of the area and as a matter of their right. I have never seen anyone ill treat the dogs. I have also never heard of a single case, over so many years, when a street dog has bitten a human being, no matter how much of a stranger he or she has been.

Dogs respond to kindness with warmth and love. And they know how to mind their own business, which humans don’t.

Be mindful of the weather

India’s different seasons, in their extremities, play havoc as much on other animals, birds, and flora as on the humans. As a species on top of the food chain, it becomes our duty to take care of those beneath us; especially the lost, the luckless and those without a voice.

A handful of dog loving neighbours put coats on the babies in their area during Delhi’s sharp winter. I am happy to note that the number of these kind people is increasing every year. There are many people these days, who will place an old, used mattress in the outside area of their house for the dogs to sink into during the winter months. In fact, many companies have got into manufacturing low-cost cots and mattresses for dogs; that people can use for their dogs and street dogs and also donate to animal shelters.

A few days back, I chanced upon an appeal started by a Facebook friend. Richa, the FB friend, is calling it “JAL” and is urging people to join in, in order to combat the serious situation. She recently came across two tragic incidents, where street dogs had consumed water flowing in the sewer and the drains and died on account of the toxicity. One of the dogs was a street dog she used to take care of, so with a heavy heart, she buried the dog close to her house giving it a decent burial.

Take care of the medical needs

If you find an injured animal; you must act fast to bring it relief. As a species that draws out the most from nature, we must become its custodian too and bring benefit in return, even if it is in small measures.

Cookie, our hazel-eyed, sunshine brown street baby was brought to us by his father. We used to, intermittently, take care of the father, so when Cookie came along, the father brought him to our area. Cookie chose a place next to our house as his territory. Another neighbour from the top most floor of our building used to take care of Cookie along with us. We both would ply Cookie with food and water and take care of his other needs, including the medical ones.

Unfortunately, a few years back Cookie developed a severe case of mange and the problem kept on increasing, reaching up to infect his eyes, ears, and the face. Cookie would scratch so uncontrollably and cause wounds on his body. We began getting medicines from the Vet. When that didn’t help we started sending him to a Shelter. They would treat him for a few months; Cookie would respond well, get considerably better and would be sent back. Back on the street, Cookie would get infected again and the mange would return with a vengeance. In between, Cookie also met with an accident and injured one of his hind legs grievously. No amount of medicine helped his condition and no amount of food bettered his health.

We have now sent him to the Sanjay Gandhi Animal Shelter, in the hope that the resident doctor will continue to take care of him. Also, that Cookie’s life will be somewhat better as compared to the severity on the streets.

As and when we can afford we send a cheque for a small amount to the Shelter, in Cookie’s name. We owe at least this much to the Street baby, who brought a smile to our face each time we met him, who played with us and who felt it was his duty to bark at our gate at the slightest hint of noise or strange presence.

Be humane, curb the population

With an increase in awareness and levels of compassion, I hope the numbers of empaths will increase.

Meanwhile, to bring succor we must curb their population. A neighbour once undertook a sterilization drive for about 15 dogs from the Colony. The dogs were operated upon, allowed to convalesce and brought back to the colony.

As a result, three great things happened – dogs who were operated are much healthier than before. There are no litters that will increase the dog population or face human cruelty. It gives space and opportunity to other migratory population of dogs to come and find a more habitable and humane place to occupy and coexist in.

We were advised by our Vet to go for hysterectomy and vasectomy for our fur daughter and fur son; if we didn’t want to breed them. We did not, so we went ahead. It helped our pet children in several ways. It took care of the recurring anal infection in our pet daughter, kept our pet son healthy and brought in longevity to both our children. They both lived their full lives; our pet German Shepherd Daughter – Cinderella Dhir Upadhyay – lived to the age of almost 15 years; and our pet golden Labrador Son – Pasha Dhir Upadhyay – lived to the age of almost 16 years.

Show respect

As the only self-interested, self-centered and short-sighted species that God has created, we are annihilating our environment, destroying our surroundings, playing with the climate and strongly depleting the natural resources.

Some of the wise amongst us have been raising an alarm and thinking of ways and solutions to contain our collective menace. Even a microscopic virus is capable of wiping out large chunks of our population. Our playing around with the population of even the tiny bee is posing a deathly threat to our own existence. Therefore, for our own selfish reasons, we must learn to be kind, show respect to and live harmoniously with other living things.

Street dogs and cattle, with their proximity to us and on account of their domestication at our hands, become the most important. Dog lovers have given a new breed name to the street dogs. They are, now, proudly identified as ‘Roadesians,’ and have a significant role to play in our lives.

Go ahead and adopt a street dog, give him or her a name and give them a place they can call their own. In return, you will enjoy their loving presence, their warmth and most of all their loyalty. There are no better security guards than a loyal street dog.

Do your good karma via these gentle animals and the Universe will bless you in return.

So what’s your excuse?