Mass scale abandonment of puppies raises concerns
Animal Rights Activist ( ARA) organisations are perplexed over the sudden appearance of dogs and puppies abandoned in paddy fields and bushes in remote parts of the country.
Recently members of the organisations received calls within a span of a week from Anuradhapura and Panagoda informing them that several puppies and adult dogs had been dumped in those areas.
ARA members who rushed to Anuradhapura found 94 dogs abandoned in front of a military camp in the area. Among them were 70 puppies around three weeks old, and 15 adults. Nine puppies were found dead due to starvation.
At Panagoda, 20 puppies were found close to the military camp.
Animal Activist and Adviser to the Association of Veterinarians for Humane Management of Animal Po p u l a t i o n , D r. Chamith Nanayakkara said that it was a mystery how so many dogs came into one place over night. He suspected that it was a planned exercise by people who dislike dogs.
Recently, the ambitious Megapolis project, in an attempt to clear the Western province and Colombo city of stray dogs and cattle, saw several dogs disappearing from the roads. A protest launched by ARA brought a stop to this. "Now they want to show there is a large population of dogs that cannot be managed," Dr. Nanayakkara said.
In Padaviya, around 30 puppies were found homes in households of the area. Another 33 puppies were transported to Gampaha, leaving behind a female dog and some weak puppies that needed weaning. Out of the 33 puppies Dr. Nanayakkara has found homes for 9 puppies in the Gampaha area. The other 28 puppies have been accommodated in a dog home run by Dr. Nanayakkara.
Public Health Inspector (PHI) in Padaviya D. M. C. Abeyratne who played a major role in finding homes for the puppies said that the police are investigating the case.
The puppies found at Panagoda were transported to Colombo by the ARA which is in the process of finding homes for them. The ARA requested people to be humane and not dump dogs haphazardly in the wilderness. ‘Anyone who has puppies that they want to dispose of can inform us and we will find homes for them,’ Dr. Nanayakkara said.