Mr. Abodh Aras, Chief Executive Offcer of the Welfare of Stray Dogs (WSD), recipient of Rotary Club of Bombay’s Social Service Award

Mr. Abodh Aras, Chief Executive Offcer of the Welfare of Stray Dogs (WSD), recipient of Rotary Club of Bombay’s Social Service Award

I’m truly humbled, and I must say that this award is definitely not just mine, but for all the individuals who have contributed over the past 28 years. This includes, of course, all the 450 dedicated WSD sta we have, the veterinary surgeons, ward boys, animal nurses, managers, volunteers — so many volunteers. Many young people now come and volunteer with us. And, also, the community: the animal feeders, the boot polishwala, the panwala, the policeman, the security person at the Taj who looks aer Rambo, whom we just treated for a maggot wound.

All these people over the years have contributed, so this award is something I can’t really claim as mine. Also, my family: my father, who grew up with cats, my mother, who had an indie dog at that time — indie is the new woke word for a street dog. My late mother was a big support. And my wife, Maya Menezes, though she is petrified of animals, supports me in every way. Her resources and her car are used all the time. I remember we used to be very fond of desserts and would go to theobroma. In the night, suddenly you get a call saying there’s a dog injured, so we rush back, and the dog is sitting. We rescue it and take it to the centre. To show this support, poor Maya — we have named that dog Maya at the kennel because, like my wife, the dog is terrifed of humans.

I must also thank the Rotary Club of Bombay for all the support over the years. Your Club was actually the thrst to support animal welfare. A big hand to all of you for having the foresight to support animal welfare. I still remember how it all started: your first support was for a vaccination drive. We met nearby, Mr. Hiren and a few other members, and we went around vaccinating street dogs as part of our rabies vaccination programme. Over time, you helped with infrastructure support at our Mahalakshmi centre, refurbishing our operation theatre, donating an ambulance that ran until this year. It must have run thousands of kilometres, rescuing and treating hundreds of street dogs and cats. You also sponsored our sterilisation and vaccination programme and pet food distribution during COVID-19. ose were terrible times for street animals, with Mumbai looking like a ghost town. Sometimes mine was the only car on Marine Drive. It was very easy to go around but there were no people, and the animals were going hungry We realised that even many people who supported those animals on the street were going hungry, so we supported them too. WSD has come a long way since 1985 when the killing of street dogs was at its peak. this killing was a British legacy that started in the late 18th century. the Parsis actually rioted in 1832 to stop the killing of street dogs in the Fort area. the Panjra pole came up because of that. Jamshedji Jeejeebhoy made a Panjrapole for sheltering dogs. the reason why killing didn’t work for so many years was that dogs are territorial. When you remove dogs from an area, other dogs come in and multiply. In 1994, we convinced the municipal corporation that killing had not worked and we should sterilise the dogs through an animal birth control programme.

Over the years, we must have sterilised about 65,000 dogs, which has had an impact, especially in the island city which we covered. The dog population has gone down, leading to another issue: the cat population has exploded. This is what happens when one interferes with nature, but it was necessary to stop the killing of street dogs.

Overall, we have impacted the lives of about 300,000 street animals through our vaccination programmes, onsite first aid, OPD programmes, adoption programmes, and sterilisation and revaccination programmes. We do not charge for any of our services because the people on the street who look after the animals can’t afford to pay. they don’t hesitate to pick up the phone and call us. When we say there’s no charge, they can call without hesitation.

I joined WSD as a volunteer in 1996. I didn’t bring them back as a kid because of people around me who were animal lovers. I saw a puppy at Oval Maidan with a wound in 1996 while doing my MBA. I took it to the animal hospital in Parel and forgot about it. About 15-20 days later, my mother called saying the animal hospital sent the puppy home. It was in a very bad shape, pot-bellied and almost dying. I couldn’t blame the hospital; it must have caught an infection from other sick dogs. I was crying, calling a vet, knowing nothing about veterinary care. That’s when I decided something needed to be done. I trained under Dr. Silu Bhagwagar, who was an amazing veterinarian, and started India’s first onsite first aid programme, now replicated in various cities. This programme now reaches about 12,000+ animals every year in Bombay. We cover from Cuffe Parade to Mahim and Sion, the island city.

We also have an adoption programme. As shown in the film, we educate people about the ills of breeding and puppy mills and urge them to adopt, not buy. We have OPD services at our centre in Sewri. Last year, we covered 13,725 cases for street animals. Now, the ratio of cats to dogs is inverted: 80% cats and 20% dogs come to our OPD. People come from Virar, Kalyan, and Mumbra, bringing cats in baskets on trains because they can’t afford to go to the nearest vet and pay Rs 1000. This has really helped. I urge you to come to our centre in Sewri and see our work. We have about 150 cats and dogs there at any time, with a lot of them being a floating population that comes for sterilisation and goes back. We recently doubled our capacity for cat sterilisation to meet the need.

We also have an education programme, reaching about 53,000 students last year, and aim to reach 100,000 students this year. This is very important as our research showed many dog bites occurred among underprivileged children. Education is crucial to understanding why dogs bite and what to do. We have been at the forefront of fighting court cases, including a Supreme Court case regarding the killing of street dogs. e Supreme Court sent it back to the high courts for a decision under the new Animal Birth Control Rules 2023. We will continue fighting this.

Regarding cruelty, the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act is archaic, with fines as low as 50 rupees. We need to pass the Animal Welfare Act, which has been pending in Parliament. The current Act is outdated, and people get away with injuring or maiming animals. We need to change that. I envision Mumbai where every animal is treated with dignity and respect, where cruelty is replaced with compassion. In the last 28 years, I’ve met many compassionate people looking after street animals despite having very little themselves. When 50% or more of Bombay’s population lives on the streets or in slums, they are the ones who look after the dogs.

My book for children, “My City, My Dogs,” captures this relationship, like a dog called Traffc, who lives at the fountain traffc signal and is looked after by the traffc policeman. This policeman used to say the dog acted as if he was on guard, and they joked he must have been a traffc policeman in his past life. There are hundreds of such real stories. We cannot achieve this vision alone. Your partnership can bring about transformative change, setting an example for other companies, communities, and individuals to follow.

In closing, I appeal to the members of the Rotary Club, an esteemed group of corporate leaders, who have the power to make a significant difference in animal welfare. Through CSR, some companies have started donating to animal welfare. It would be great to get support for WSD and animal welfare in general, in the various programmes I’ve mentioned. We need to raise about Rs 3 crores every year, and this is increasing. We are trying to set up smaller places because there is a huge lack of capacity for street animal welfare in terms of hospitalisation or sterilisation. Renting or buying anything in the city is diffcult, and public spaces for veterinary care are minimal.

Thank you so much once again. I’m sure together we can continue to work to ensure that every street animal in Mumbai can live a safe, healthy, and happy life. thanks a lot.

ROTARIANS ASK:

On behalf of our club, I applaud you. It’s remarkable that someone with your academic background has dedicated their life to this cause. On a lighter note, I think our wives share a love for cats, though mine sees me more as a dog. We’ve had eight dogs over the years. Given your efforts in sterilising dogs, why haven’t we seen a similar rise in the cat population?

Actually, now you do. If you go to different areas like Colaba Causeway or towards Kala Ghoda, there are about five or six cats. Earlier, the dogs kept the cats in check, or the cats were more invisible. Now they have become more visible. The only difference is that the dog-human relationship is very different to a cat-human relationship. A lot of us like dogs more than cats, so we may not notice them. I mean, like your wife will notice the cats, but maybe somebody else may not notice them. Also, people associate dogs as coming and jumping on you, or being loving, or even bites are associated with dogs. A cat is smaller, so it doesn’t become more visible. So maybe that’s the reason. But I’m sure that if there’s a count of cats in Bombay, it’ll be much, much more than the dogs on the streets. Please talk about the exhibition that you hold every few months; others may contribute towards that differently and look at different avenues. One of the things we do is garage sales. There’s a hall called Lakshmi Baug in Girgaon, a 100-plus-year-old hall, and they give it to us free for about four or five days. People donate whatever they don’t want, which is in good condition. It could be artefacts, clothes, books, sometimes furniture. Now, furniture, of course, is not sold physically there, but there’s a trustee and project manager called Lyla Bhavadam. She handles it and sends out these appeals on what is available. That is something we readily take in. A lot of times I tell people, please don’t give me anything for my birthday. If you do, it is going to go to the garage sale. So, if you want, just give me a cheque for WSD. I’m sure people get lots of gifts that they don’t want, and we’ll readily accept that. We also have products during the Kala Ghoda Festival or wherever we get free space. It could be companies, where we have products like t-shirts, jute bags, and mugs. Our WSD merchandise that we also sell to raise money. We also bring out a calendar every year and raise money through that.

I am petrified of dogs after being bitten as a child, so I always avoid them. How many rabies injections have you had, given your work with strays? Also, you’ve mentioned that removing territorial dogs leads to others filling the space. Yet, when travelling abroad, there are no stray dogs. Why is it different here?

So, the second question is why there are no dogs abroad. I don’t know which countries you’re talking about but even in, say, America or New York, in poor neighbourhoods, I have seen street dogs. But like I said, it clearly pertains to the number of people that live on the streets or in slums. In India or in Mumbai, about 50% plus live on the streets or in slums. I’m sure many of you have dogs or cats at home. We live in our apartments or houses and want a pet. Similarly, the man on the street wants a pet. So, very frankly, what we call stray dogs or street dogs are pets of the underprivileged, the Rajus, Kalus, Tommies, Aishwarya, Salman, Shahrukhs, all named by these guys after their favourite film stars. Until people stop living on the streets and slums, and there is no garbage, there are going to be street dogs. If somebody asks me if the vision or mission is to see that it comes to zero, theoretically yes, but practically it may not be possible until these variables don’t exist. So, that is the bigger picture.

As for the first question, I’ve only been bitten three times, despite treating thousands of dogs. We say dogs don’t attack unless provoked. In school sessions, we ask kids if they’ve been bitten. In a class of 60, five or six usually have. Unlike parents, children admit if they provoked the dog. Once, while treating a run-over dog at Willingdon Club, I was petting it as I waited for an ambulance. The dog, in pain, bit me badly. Another time, while vaccinating dogs, a friend’s dog bit me, thinking I was harming the other dog.

We take prophylactic shots every year and advise anyone working with animals to do the same. The WHO recommends three shots if you’re working with animals. If you just have a pet or volunteer at a centre, it’s fine. But if you’re handling unknown animals, take three shots. If bitten, wash the wound with soap and water for 15 minutes, as it removes 94.4% of the virus if the animal was rabid. Use antiseptic like iodine and then take the post-bite shots — generally, five shots, as rabies is preventable but not curable.

In my 28 years, I’ve been bitten only a few times. I have two questions. First, have you noticed a trend where in the Western world, people acquired pets post-COVID, while in India, about 50% of the population is relinquishing them? Have you observed this trend in India? Second, regarding pet-friendly restaurants, we know they are common in the Western world. I have a friend who won’t dine out unless his dog, Teddy, is allowed in. What are your views on pet-friendly restaurants, hotels, and resorts in India?

Yes, during the lockdown, we noticed a lot of people abandoning pets. We found a family of Mudhol hounds, very thin and long, abandoned at Worli. However, many people also started adopting pets because they were lonely and couldn’t go out. I hope these adoptions weren’t just temporary solutions. Owning a pet is a big responsibility, even cats, which are easier than dogs. Children and grandchildren oen want pets, but they need to understand the long-term commitment. I advise young adults that if they plan to study abroad, their parents will have to look after the pet. Despite this, people remain committed. I’m not dissuading adoption — please adopt, don’t buy dogs, especially breeds like huskies that aren’t suited for our climate. This year has been extremely hot, making it even harder for such breeds.

In terms of restaurants, things have improved. Over the last 10-15 years, more places now allow pets. When I trained at the Taj during my internship in hotel management (1989-1991), there were no petfriendly places. Today, places like Moshe’s Knead allow pets. It’s getting better, although public transport is still a challenge. Now, there are even dog parks. There’s always some confiict between pet owners and non-pet owners or those who feed street animals and those who don’t want them around. However, I’m optimistic. The pet industry has grown tremendously with more groomers, pet shops, spas, and boarding facilities. Earlier, you couldn’t go on vacation without worrying about your pets. Now, you can Find people who will care for them at a fee, either in their homes or by visiting yours. So, things are changing and improving. In Delhi, we witnessed disturbing videos of dogs being picked up inhumanely during a presentation for the G20. Street dogs from Connaught Place were relocated to areas like Karol Bagh. Despite the outcry, it’s unclear if any laws changed.

Political pressure often hinders enforcement. Existing laws, such as the Animal Birth Control Rules of 2023, prohibit relocation. Yet, many ignore these regulations. For instance, a prestigious club in Bombay once removed sterilised dogs, only to face a surge in their population later. This demonstrates that removal is not a solution. Sterilisation and vaccination efforts have shown success, as seen in areas like Peddar Road, where the dog population significantly decreased. Failure to adhere to the law leads to unintended consequences, exemplified by the resurgence of street dogs wherever they were relocated.