Free-ranging dogs have become a public health issue in the state of Kerala in India. Two persons died from dog attacks in 2016, and many persons were injured. Efforts to control the population have created conflicts between Indian advocates of public safety and opponents of animal cruelty, and caused international backlash including calls for a boycott of tourism to Kerala.
A large number of women and children have been attacked by stray dogs in the coastal belts of Kerala.[ citation needed ] According to a report submitted in the Supreme Court of India, more than hundred thousand people were attacked by stray dogs in the year of 2015-16[ citation needed ]. The stray dog population of Kerala is estimated to be about two hundred and fifty thousand[ citation needed ].The growth in the number of free-ranging dogs is because of chicken waste dumped from restaurants all over the state without cleanliness[ citation needed ]. 5,948 people were bitten by street dogs in Thiruvananthapuram district last year and 4,916 people were affected in Palakkad district. The statistics are similar in the other 12 districts of Kerala. [1]
In 2016, a social worker from Cochin called Jose Maveli was arrested for killing street dogs in large number. [2] It was reported that Maveli killed about 25 stray dogs in Chengamanad panchayath of Ernakulam district. [3] In December 2016, Jose Maveli was asked by the Supreme Court of India to appear before it.
In October, 2016, a 90-year-old man was killed in Varkala by the attack from a pack of street dogs. The old man was sleeping on the veranda of his house when a group of dogs attacked him. [4] The angry people killed more than 90 dogs in the locality on the following day of the old man's death. [5]
Kochouseph Chittilappilly is the chairman of the Stray Dog Free movement, which advocates action against the risks allegedly posed by stray dogs in Kerala, including the amendment of legislation forbidding the killing of these dogs. [6] The movement has pointed to the danger of rabies and referred to stray dogs as a "menace". [7] Chittilappilly has staged hunger strikes to protest this legislation, and what he claims is governmental failure to address this issue. [8] [9] He has stated that the government's actions amount to valuing stray dogs over human lives and property. [10] He has encouraged citizens to pressure the government to amend these laws, and to kill stray dogs themselves despite the accompanying 50-rupee fine. [7] [11] Chittilappilly has been arrested under statutes preventing cruelty to animals after tying four stray dogs in front of a police station. [12]
Governmental plans to cull stray dogs have prompted an international campaign to "Boycott Kerala Tourism" in protest. [6] [13] [14] Opponents of the Stray Dog Free movement have argued that vaccination and spay/neuter campaigns are a more effective and humane method of controlling the stray dog population. Members of the Stray Dog Free movement have alleged that opposition is being funded by rabies vaccine manufacturers. [15]
Union minister Menaka Gandhi has criticized the state government of Kerala for trying to kill stray dogs illegally. [16]
Kerala's minister K.T. Jaleel stated that the government will cull all the stray dogs before 2019 with the help of the local bodies. The chief minister of Kerala, however, did not support such a mass level of culling. [17] [18]
An animal shelter or pound is a place where stray, lost, abandoned or surrendered animals – mostly dogs and cats – are housed. The word "pound" has its origins in the animal pounds of agricultural communities, where stray livestock would be penned or impounded until they were claimed by their owners.
A dog bite is a bite upon a person or other animal by a dog, including from a rabid dog. More than one successive bite is often called a dog attack, although dog attacks can include knock-downs and scratches. Though some dog bites do not result in injury, they can result in infection, disfigurement, temporary or permanent disability, or death. Puppies will chew and softly bite a lot of things during development, including people. Dog bites can occur during dog fighting, as a response to mistreatment, by trained dogs working as guard, police or military animals, or during a random encounter.
A dog licence is required in some jurisdictions to be the keeper of a dog. Usually a dog-licence identifying number is issued to the owner, along with a dog tag bearing the identifier and a contact number for the registering organization. If a stray pet is found with the tag, a rescuer can call the registering organization to get current contact information for the animal.
World Animal Protection, formerly The World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA) is an international non-profit animal welfare organization that has been in operation since 1981. The charity's mission is to create a better world for animals by protecting them.
The Blue Cross of India (BCI) is an animal welfare charity based in Chennai, India. It was established in 1959 by Captain V. Sundaram, his wife Usha and their three children, in Chennai. The society was formally registered in 1964 under the Societies Registration Act. The nine signatories to the Articles and Memorandum of Association were Captain V. Sundaram, Usha Sundaram, S. Chinny Krishna, Suresh Sundaram, S. Vijayalakshmi, D. Daivasigamony, Kamakshi Krishnamoorthi, Sundari Nataraj and T. V. Chandrasekhar. It is now one of the country's largest animal welfare organisations. It runs several animal welfare programs including animal rights awareness.
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Karumkulam is a village in Thiruvananthapuram district in the state of Kerala, India.
Street dogs, known in scientific literature as free-ranging urban dogs, are unconfined dogs that live in cities. They live virtually everywhere cities exist and the local human population allows, especially in the developing world. Street dogs may be stray dogs, pets which have strayed from or are abandoned by their owners, or may be feral animals that have never been owned. Street dogs may be stray purebreds, true mixed-breed dogs, or unbred landraces such as the Indian pariah dog. Street dog overpopulation can cause problems for the societies in which they live, so campaigns to spay and neuter them are sometimes implemented. They tend to differ from rural free-ranging dogs in their skill sets, socialization, and ecological effects.
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Kochouseph Thomas Chittilappilly is an Indian business magnate, writer, investor and philanthropist. He is the founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of V-Guard Industries and a chain of amusement parks called Wonderla. K. Chittilappilly Foundation, a non profit organization founded by him is engaged in charitable and philanthropic activities. Chittilappilly is a recipient of the Rashtriya Samman award from the Government of India for being among the highest taxpayers and the Newsmaker of the Year 2011 award from Malayala Manorama.
The Indian pariah dog, also known as the Indian native dog, INDog, Nadan,South Asian pye dog, Desi Kutta, and Neri Kutta, is a landrace of dog native to the Indian subcontinent. They have erect ears, a wedge-shaped head, and a curved tail. It is easily trainable and often used as a guard dog and police dog. This dog is an example of an ancient group of dog known as pye-dogs. There is archaeological evidence that the dog was present in Indian villages as early as 4,500 years ago.
The KAT Centre Nepal is a nonprofit organization in Nepal. The KAT Centre Nepal’s goals are to create a healthy, sustainable street dog population, reduce animal cruelty, and eliminate rabies, around Kathmandu, Nepal.
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The Bombay Dog Riots, also known as the 1832 Bombay Riots, were a series of protest actions that devolved into rioting in the city of Mumbai, India. The riots were sparked by an attempt by the British government to exterminate the city's stray dogs, controversial for Parsis due to dogs being considered sacred in the Zoroastrian religion. The event was the first instance of rioting in the modern history of Mumbai.
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India has the highest number of attacks by stray dogs in the world. In Indian cities, stray dog attacks are considered a danger to children and old people. India has 36% of all rabies deaths in the world. India also has the largest number of stray dogs in the world, along with the highest cases of rabies deaths. Most rabies deaths are unreported. In compliance with Animal Birth Control rules, 2001, stray dogs may not be killed, only sterilized. Municipalities lack the money to sterilize stray dogs. Most Indians believe that stray dog attacks are common in their area and that the municipality does not take the necessary steps to reduce dog bites. Uttar Pradesh, Odisha, Maharashtra has the highest number of stray dogs. Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, West Bengal has the highest number of dog bites. A law created in 2001 to save stray dogs has resulted in an increase in stray dogs, as the law prevents the killing of any stray dog. Small babies are mauled to death by stray dogs in India. The Bihar government found that stray dog bites are the third largest cause of disease in the state.