‘Systematic spay, neuter model can give results’

Dogs have been companions of humans since ages but how and why the dogs in Sitapur turned violent and started attacking people is a matter of deep concern, requiring urgent attention and deep analysis. India has around 30 million stray dogs which comes to 1 dog per 42 people. There are more dogs in India than in any other country. The common characteristics of Indian cities encourage stray dogs as they have a lot of waste, on which scavenger stray dogs rely for feeding.

It is seen that in areas where waste animal meat is readily available, dogs are more aggressive. If we control the open garbage, we can control the dog menace to a great extent.

In many countries, strays are spayed and neutered to slow population growth. But India has few agencies and NGOs that deal with stray dogs. The spay and neuter model has given overwhelming results in countries where it is carried out systematically and on a large scale. This needs huge manpower as both the male and female dogs are taken from the streets, sterilised, vaccinated and returned to the places where they were caught. This model gives results only when there are enough resources and it is performed in a systematic way.

Stray dogs can also be used by police by training them as guard dogs. Individuals and NGOs should also adopt street dogs. This will not only provide the strays a home but also lead to a decline in stray population.

All these models will play their part in changing public idea of stray dogs. Because of the number of dog attacks, strays are seen as dangerous, but killing the dogs is not the solution of the problem. If the dogs are permanently removed from an area or killed , other stray dogs will move into the space to eat the now abundant garbage. These dogs end up fighting which leads to attacks on human bystanders. (The writer is animal rights activist from PFA (People for Animals).