Feeders are true leaders

 

Feeding at midnight

COVID-19 pandemic has impacted all the seven continents of the world. Each nation is struggling, in their own way, to fight against the deadly disease. Corona prevention protocols have been adopted by human population in order to prevent the spread the infection. Vaccines have been developed by the scientists to control the pandemic. Meanwhile, the virus is undergoing mutation and attacking human with vengeance.

Feeding irrespective of rain or shine

People are wearing masks, some even using double masks while venturing outside. Hand-wash and sanitizer containers are flying off the shelves from the shops, like never before. Social distancing protocol is being considered as an ultimate weapon to rupture the chain of transmission of the lethal virus.

An array of strategies, ranging from Corona curfew to weekend lockdown to regional / state wise / national lockdown are being implemented to win over the latest invisible microscopic enemy of mankind. Non-essential businesses were suspended during lockdown period.

Feeding in deserted parks

People have been barred to cross over the Laxman Rekha of their homes unless it is emergency. Households have built a formidable inventory of ration and consumables to fight a war of different kind. Markets, shops, bar and restaurants, hotels have downed their shutters during such curfews and lockdowns.

Feeding in lonely streets

Blacky, Kalu, Lalu, Lisa, Lusi and for thousands of nameless street babies initially it was pure joy on traffic free streets. But the joy of trouble-free roaming on the road (without automobiles) soon got replaced by the pain of hunger of stomach. These Indies who merely survive on the throwaway scrap from roadside eateries and dhabas, were in dire straights. 'Stay at home' order for humans turned out to be 'starve on streets' for such less fortunate canines of streets. The leftovers from these restaurants and hotels, which they would scavenge for survival, were no longer available. They lost their main source of survival.

 

A helping hand for the hungry

Forget about food to eat, not even a drop of drinking water was available for many of them. The situation started in early Mar 2020 when the whole country went for first phase of lockdown. The lockdown was subsequently extended and lifted later. A year later, with the emergence of double muted version of the virus, the corona curfews and state wise lockdowns are still creating havoc for these street babies. They include stray dogs, moholla cats, ownerless cows and ox, donkeys, monkeys, horses, asses, birds etc, the list is endless.

Reports of starvation death for such voiceless creatures are pouring in from all over the country. Helpless hungry dogs eating their own poops, soils etc as their last resort to survive in this cruel world. Even then, many of them could not escape from the jaws of certain starvation and death. Finding of carcasses of the street dogs from different corners of the country became common with the progress of days.

Perturbed by the pathetic situation, some people decided to do something for them. Certainly, on this earth, there is also no dearth of good Samaritans. Several kind heart souls came forward to reduce the sufferings of these voiceless creatures. They continued to venture on the roads in the middle of pandemic induced lockdowns with dog-feed. Incidentally, animal lovers and activists who ventured outside for feeding the dogs of the locality, during lockdown period, faced a lot of objections from different corners.

In urban areas, in some housing societies, there was sharp division among residents - dog-feeder and animal haters. In many places it resulted into disturbing  acrimonious situations. It ranged from abusing,  physical assault to police cases. Each tried to interpret the restriction as per own convenience.

On 24 Mar, 2020 Hon’ble Maneka Gandhi (Member of Indian Parliament, animal rights activist, and environmentalist) tweeted "Any dog feeder can go to their district office in delhi and get a feeder pass. Please start today as only 50 passes are being given per district."

Inspiration for many

Animal Welfare Board of India was also kind enough to bring the act of feeding street dogs as an essential service.

This tweet from Maneka Gandhi emboldened the volunteers and gave some authority. Though the tweet was pertaining to capital Delhi, it had ripple effect all over the country. Dog feeders started contacting respective district head quarters for such kind of authorization to feed the hungry street dogs.

A sample Pass

Actions were seen on the ground. At several places, concerned authorities started issuing ‘Hotspot Feeding Passes’. Though it was grossly inadequate in terms of number of requests received from the volunteers, it was a game changers. Till such time, volunteers who were feeding dogs on the road would face objections from law and order implementing authorities.  With this special hotspot passes they continued the voluntary task of feeding those unfortunate streeties.

People from all strata of society came forward for this noble cause. People with such soft-heart ranged from Chief Minister of a state to renowned celebrities to common men/women, spread across the nook and cranny of the country.

A 14-day Coronavirus lockdown in the state of Odisha was imposed effective 05 May, 2021 till 19 May, 2021. On 09 May, 2021, Naveen Patnaik, Hon’ble Chief Minister, Odisha sanctioned funds from Chief Minister’s Relief Fund (CMRF) for feeding stray animals in all urban pockets during the lockdown.  

The official announcement was -

"The lockdown is now underway across the state to control the pandemic. Therefore, stray dogs and cattle are deprived of food... The CM has approved sanction of Rs 60 lakh from his relief fund."

The daily amount earmarked for distribution through Municipal Corporations (Rs. 20,000 X 5), Municipalities (Rs. 5000 X 48) and NAC - Notified Area Council (Rs. 2000 X 61) are for feeding of stray dogs, cattle and birds as well.

However, since the administrative bodies may not have that kind of expertise or manpower to execute the work, it would ultimately rest on the shoulders of foot soldiers. The feeders would take the responsibility of ensuring that the feed reaches the mouths of those hungry creatures.

The size of the problem is gigantic in scale. Street dogs are suffering all over the country. There are several critical issues to feed them. Namely, the non-availability of volunteers in any particular locality zone or locality, lack of transport, fund crunch etc. However, there is a say ‘when there is will, there is a way’. This proverb was proved correct once again in this challenging time.

Dog lovers started networking through Whatsapp group. The existing Whatsapp groups are strengthen further with inclusion of more like minded persons. The demography of the groups is diverse. It ranged from housewives to office goers (working from home), college/University students and it is gender neutral. Every animal lover voluntarily shouldered the responsibility of feeding starving street dogs in their respective locality.

In some areas, where multi-storied residential complexes were sealed due to detected COVID-19 cases, volunteers from nearby areas would come in their own transport and carload of food for the street dogs. One dog feeder group would communicate and coordinate with other groups through whatsapp.

The feeding location would be some sort of battlefield. Every hungry dog would try to have his/her share first. Commotion and dogfight would ensued.  But the volunteers were skilled and experienced enough to handle those situations. With loads of love and strict discipline they would ensure that everyone would get some bite, till the next feed was made available.

The present situation is far from normal. There is urgent need to have a strong network, pan India basis, with adequate cash flow for taking care of the street dogs. The efforts being made by the feeders are appreciated but it is necessary to strengthen it with both financial support and spreading awareness among people. If every family of a locality can spare a few rotis daily, it will be a life savior for many street dogs. We can not expect many families to go for feeding but they can provide the support in various forms. The feeding part will be taken care by the feeders but a network is needed to collect the rotis and rations from the willing households. The present process of individual contribution and fund raising is  grossly inadequate, given the enormous size of the problem. Feeders will take the lead roles but an overall social awareness needs to be created for these street dogs. After all, at the end of the war of Mahabharata, when Yudhistir went to heaven, none but a faithful dog accompanied him all the way. This fight against COVID-19 is no less than epic war of Kurukshetra. Who knows that very street dog whom we would feed today, may be our guide in our journey to eternity.

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Disclaimer:

The information provided in the article is for general informational purposes only. All information is provided in good faith. This is only for the sharing of knowledge of Philately with philatelist fraternity. No commercial angle, whatsoever, is involved. Under no circumstances I shall have any liability for reliance on any information provided in the story.

This story was published in popular 'Buddy Life' Magazine (Volume 7, Issue 1, Oct - Dec 2021). Here are the related scanned pages:-

Cover page

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Love of a Lady

Lady in thinking mode

Past:

A few years back, I was posted at Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania, East Africa on an international assignment. There were several constraints to move my family abroad along with me; for example - education of kids, medical requirements of certain family member, four legged members etc. So, my wife stayed back in India to hold the fort with two adolescent sons and others.  I picked up my bag and baggage from India and left for a far-away continent. This type of re-locations, in a professional life, is considered more of a norm than necessity. Because of certain family commitments one has to move alone.

A beach of Indian Ocean in Tanzania

Though we stayed at distant countries, due to advancement of technology, it was easy to remain in touch with each other, from the other side of the globe. Phone calls through ISD were the last option. On real time basis we were in touch with each other through email, Whatsapp messages and calling. Skype sessions were held at night and for longer duration on weekends. So, distance was not an issue to maintain constant connectivity in any part of the day, even though there was a time zone difference of two and half hours. Since on the globe, India is positioned eastwards compared to Africa, Indian time zone was in advance setting. New Delhi was two and half hours ahead of Tanzania. But that was no hindrance in communicating during any part of the day and night.

One day while talking to my wife, she conveyed

- “A lady has come”.

- “Fine” was my simple answer over phone presuming that there might be some neighbor or some guest who might have dropped in for some chit-chat.

- “She is beautiful and nice”.

I preferred to remain quiet and refrain from making any remark about any beautiful lady.

Not getting my response over phone across Indian Ocean, she again told me

- “A beautiful lady has come to our house”.

This time I had to react. I, being cautious not to show any interest about that fine looking woman (whosoever she was) I replied over mobile phone

- “Well. Is she visiting from our locality”?

There was a little pause over phone, from her side. After a while, she responded

- “Yes, she is from our close by area”.

My sixth sense cautioned me not to exhibit any interest about any hitherto unknown lady, that too, to my wife. So I simply said “Ok”.

This time she dropped the bomb.

- “Lady is going to stay with us”.

Before I could react, she hung up the phone!

That was the end of the conversation at that point of time. I was puzzled.

My brain got occupied in connecting the dots.

“A lady has come to our house.

She is beautiful.

She is from vicinity.

She is going to live in our house”.

It was a puzzle without any clue to solve it.

During the course of the day, I remained busy with my official work. However, that mysterious lady kept on peeping into my thoughts from time to time. Though I tried to concentrate in my work and divert my mind from the subject, I could not. I wondered who that lady could be from our neighborhood. Why she has visited us? What prompted her to stay with us?

The curtain over my curiosity was raised at night when we sat for a Skype session. Unfortunately, on that particular night signal of internet was weak. So, in the Skype session we could only talk and video chat was not possible.

I asked - “Who is that lady”?

She chuckled over phone and put a counter question - “So you are interested to know about the lady”?

- “Of course I want to know as you have not told the full story”.

There was some restlessness in my own voice which I also realized.

She told the story in brief which was even more perplexing.

‘The other day, at night someone had called up us. He intimated that she was loitering on a busy road junction. It alerted us. Our sons drove away immediately at the given coordinates of the location. It was found that she was recklessly and aimlessly running on the road of heavy traffic. With zooming past high speed vehicles, she was risking her life. It was indeed a scary situation.

With great difficulty and lot of persuasion, our sons were able to get her boarded into our car. Subsequently, she came to our house.’

This much of story was fair enough to puzzle me. Though, since beginning, I was suspecting something fishy in the story, I was wondering who could be the lady.

Why she was running helter-skelter at night on a busy road?

Once she has come to our house, how long she would stay?

Where would the lady go from our house?

Won’t the members of her family come searching for her?

There was lot many questions and very little answers from my wife. She laughed and enjoyed my predicament.

She evaded my direct questions with mischievous giggles and relished my helplessness. At the end of the Skype session, which was interrupted several times due to poor internet connectivity, she assured me

- “Hakuna Matata. I am here to take care of her”.

Because I have picked up little bit of local Kiswahili (the national language of Tanzania)

Dialect, I would often use the term ‘Hakuna Matata’ which means ‘No worries’ during our telephonic talks. She returned my words to me.

In the subsequent night, we joined again on a Skype session. Internet was working fine and the signal was strong. We switched over to video session.

There I asked my wife, “What is today’s update on the mysterious lady?”

She asked, “Would you like to meet her? Or at least want to say hello to her?”

- “Certainly.”

I was not prepared for what was next beamed within a few minutes when she tilted the camera of her laptop.

Lo and behold.

I saw the image of a white German Spitz on my computer screen!

“She is Lady” the voice of my wife announced from the speaker of my laptop.

The whole story was repeated, this time without any gap or dot, by my wife.

-‘One late evening, while we were getting ready for dinner, someone called up. The caller informed that one white Spitz was found at the crossing of roads near our locality. It appeared to be a lost child. He also gave us the precise position of the traffic junction.

Our sons rushed immediately in our car to the spot. Though it was dark at night, through the street light, the white Spitz was located.  It had a rope tied around its neck and was found almost at the middle of the busy road. It was tricky to catch the dog as it was running on the road oblivious of the high speed traffic. Somehow with great difficulty, they were able to catch hold of the rope and ultimately dragged her inside the car.

On her arrival, we checked her, wherein it appeared that she either might have been thrown on the street or might have run away from the house of a careless owner.

However, since she has landed at our home, she would stay with us for the time being. Our sons have christened her as Lady’.

One of the early shots at home

 

 That was my virtual introduction with Lady through a Skype session.

My face to face meet with Lady occurred when I returned home on completion of my assignment in Africa.

Ah! That was an encounter of some sort.

She barked, howled and threatened me as if I was a trespasser in the house. She never liked my entry in my own house. She considered me as an intruder.

That was indeed a difficult time for me to live with Lady under the same roof. We decided that Lady and I would live in separate rooms. Our movements, inside the house were strategically chalked out so that we do not cross the path of each other, literally. When Lady sat and watched TV in the drawing room I remained confined in the bedroom. On the other hand, she would be kept locked in one of the rooms while I could relax in the sofa of living area.

Though her movement was free, without leash, inside the house, she would be put under leash whenever she and I happened to be face to face. On seeing me, she would turn ferocious and had to be leashed. She did not accept me as a member of this house. So, she would always try to ‘protect’ her home from an invader like me.

Months passed by and Lady settled herself well in our house. With lots of apprehension, I started taking her out for morning and evening walks. Though she didn’t like me, she began enjoying those strolls on the road and nearby park. Sometime we would go for a joy ride in the car which was enjoyed by her very much. A sort of understanding began to develop between us. Still it was far from any sort of bonding. However, it could be termed as ‘hate and love’ kind of situation. With passage of time her aggression against me began to mellow down.

Present:

Lady in winter

Today, at our home, she is neither in need of any collar nor any leash. She roams freely and has become friendly with our other four-legged furry children. Among all of them, she is most protective about her home. Visitors, ranging from vendor to delivery boy, from milkman to maid etc. are scared about her. She scares away anyone who dares to press the doorbell.

In the Hamam (Bath)

With passing of time, somehow a relationship developed between me and Lady. ‘Inseparable’ word does not apply to our relation but we miss each other when I go out of station for an official trip.

Upon return from a tour, as soon as I enter home, she will come running and wagging her tail vigorously. She will circle me, kiss me and what not. She will sniff me from head to toe, sniff my suitcase and my laptop bag etc. Once done with her inspections, with excitement she will sit by my side on the sofa as if asking for my travel details.

At home, when I work on my laptop at the table, she will be relaxing on the floor somewhere close by. When I sit for dinner, she will be there beneath the dining table. But the most interesting part is our sleep time. 

Center of the bed postion

In spite of adequate space available on the bed, invariably she will be positioning herself on the bed in such a fashion that I won’t be able to stretch my legs. She will alter her sleep position as per her choice, but I shall have to be restricted within limited boundaries.

The Sleeping Beauty err Sleeping Lady

To cut a long story short, today Lady is my lady love.

 

Postscript:

8^th Aug 2018: (08.08.2018 - Nane Nane: Stands "eight and eight" in Swahili)

We took Lady to a vet for consultation. The doctor asked the usual question, before writing the diagnosis and prescription

- ‘What’s her name?’

In response, I took out the copy of latest issue of Buddy Life magazine (July-Sept’2018) from the rack, situated behind the table.

Cover page of the magazine

I opened the concerned page and showed her the photograph of sleeping beauty Lady.

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The amused vet smiled and quipped

- ‘Oh! She is a celebrity.’

 

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The Eternal Bonding

The story of Badal as told by Sonali Sen Biswas and scripted by the author.

Badal, the Badshah

Daily feeding of the streeties (the four-legged friendly furry creatures living on the streets of our locality) was one of my regular tasks. I would go to feed them every night. Earlier I would go to the park of the locality in the morning as well as in the evening to feed them. However, there was much of opposition and resistance from the ‘educated’ and well to do people (both genders inclusive), towards my feeding those strays. There were several incidents of heated arguments with them as they were against the feeding of dogs in the park. According to them the parks were meant for humans and not for ‘dogs’, that too street dog. These dogs might carry infections, they might bite them, they might cause injury, they might spoil the park with their poops etc., and many more imaginative arguments. Though I would fight back with logic, there was hardly any taker for my points as they would quarrel with pre-conceived notions. Gradually it became difficult for me to feed them in the park.

I had to change my strategy or rather change my time for feeding them. I switched over to late at night when those morning or evening walkers who were only concerned about their own health and wealth would retreat to their cozy drawing room or to bedroom, to be precise. While they would enjoy the cool breeze of air conditioners at home in the sultry summer, these poor creatures were left on the road to bear the hot and dusty weather. Not to mention that most of the time and many of them would struggle on the road in empty stomach.

At night, whenever I would go to feed them they would greet me by jumping and licking around. There would be commotion associated with barking and fighting of course among themselves for food. I had to distribute the daily ration with utmost care and strictness so that all of them would get their equal shares. I had to keep an eye to see that the strong ones do not bully others.

 In this process, one day I noticed him. He was a strongly built male with very thick black and white furry coat. The outer coat was long and coarse while the undercoat was thick. In the intense heat of summer, his bulky coat would make him pant heavily. Though his head was of medium size which was flat at the top, it was bigger than any of other dog on the road. He had distinct black nose over a pointed muzzle and a pair of triangular ears, drooping at the ends.  His majestic bushy tail was little curled upward. His muscular chest and well laid back shoulder could easily command respect from other fellows. Clearly, he was out of the place and no way appeared to be a dog born on the nearby footpath. After returning home I could not forget the gaze of his rimmed and dark luminous pair of eyes. It was inviting, loving and full of affection.

Badal in the park

Later I came to know about him from the security guards of the close-by housing societies. He was the alpha male of the locality who ruled the street with iron fists. He had imposed his supremacy by his power, strength and non-compromising aggressiveness. To those guards he was known as ‘Suresh’. At this point I thought ‘Badal’ would be ideal name for him because of his gorgeous black and white robe.

An appeal

Since then I would meet Badal more than often during feeding time and beyond. However, he would maintain distance from me. He would not jump straight way on the feeding bowl and would observe me from a respectable gap. I had to give him feed separately from the others. He would eat and then would look at me through his impressive eyes till the time I would stand there. Gradually, he started occupying a space in my heart. I didn’t realize that he had already placed himself at the core of my heart.

In a playful mood

This feeding routine was going on and one day I noticed that Badal was conspicuously absent. For next couple of days he remained absent. I became really worried as meanwhile I had developed certain special attraction for him. Every night I would expect him to turn up but in vain. It rang an alarm bell within me.

After homework is done!

After a few days I thought of looking out for him. One night, equipped with a powerful torch and a mobile phone I went out around the locality to search for him. I looked out at every garbage dump I could access, each possible corner of the park, housing societies but no luck. An effort of more than an hour was wasted with no trace of him. I started walking back towards home.  While walking down the footpath, this time I was focusing the light of my torch in the wide drain by the footpath. It was a matter of chance that I could locate him inside the drain at an obscure location.

Winter is here

I was astonished to see his condition. There was an injury on his neck which was full with maggots. In the light of the torch I could see that flies have laid eggs on that injury. Over last couple of days those eggs have turned into maggots (larvae). Hundreds of larvae were feeding on his live flesh. He was writhing in acute pain. What an awful scene and disgusting smell!

Sleep time

His expressions had more of helplessness than aggression. It was difficult for me to retrieve him from that drain. Through my mobile phone I sought help from my son. He came running from home. With great difficulty, we mother-son duo retrieved him from the drain. Now, what next?

There were only two alternatives – just leave him like that at the mercy of God. Another option though sounded impractical but the only way to ensure his cure – take him along to our home for treatment. We discussed and debated for a while and ultimately returned home carrying him.

 

Badal entered our home or hearts

That’s how Badal first entered my heart and subsequently to my home. It was a very difficult task to remove the maggots from the injury while bearing the emanating stench. He underwent prolonged treatment. Vet would visit our home at regular intervals. Para-vets would do daily round for dressing the injured part. Gradually healing process started and over a period of time he became fit and fine. He occupied the couch in the drawing room as his permanent seat.

 

The King on his throne

His background was shrouded in mystery and was limited by our imaginations. His body contour and behavior clearly indicated that he was a mighty Himalayan sheep dog which was found in the Himalayan region (Eastern Nepal to Ladak, Jammu and Kashmir). This breed may be distant cousin of Kinnaur Sheep dog of Tibet. Locally they are known as Bhotia Kukur. The breed is known for loyalty and aggressiveness.

From the tree laden Himalayan slopes how he landed in the concrete jungle remained an unsolved puzzle. To our utter surprise, we found him to be perfectly toilet trained. He would wait for hours together without making any noise till we would take him out for relieving. There was no need for lease training. From all these observations we came to a conclusion that someone might have brought him from his original place at a tender age. He definitely might have been cuddly and cute as a puppy. However, as he grew old the cuteness of puppy had vanished and Badal had grown into a self-asserting male. Gradually, it became difficult for the owner to handle him. So they had deserted him on the road, and forever.

Coming out from the comfort of the house and surviving on road was definitely not easy for Badal. He had to fight with local Indies who were ruling the area. Probably his power packed muscular body had come to his rescue.  Over the years he had established himself as uncrowned king of the street. Don was born.

 

Badal, the don

By the time we met him, his prime years were over and his physical strengths were declining. He gradually developed hip dysplasia and faced difficulty in getting up on his throne. Many a times we would help him to climb the sofa. The black color on his coat started greying. White patches, all over body, legs, face and ears started spreading. Simultaneously, possibly he developed glaucoma as he would walk inside the house with the guidance of his olfactory glands and audiometric nerves. His teeth started falling off one after another. I would hand feed him otherwise he was not able to eat and swallow himself.

Moods of Maharaja

One fine morning, in a failed attempt to get on to the sofa he fell down. Though there was no visible injury outside, his condition started deteriorating very fast. It was difficult for him to breadth. He began gasping for air. Without wasting time we rushed him to the vet. Doctor put Badal on the table and examined. Vet immediately gave a couple of injections to Badal. It appeared that Badal was not responding to the medicines. The team of the assistants of the doctor swung into action. He was put on drip. Glucose water flowed drop by drop into his veins. Though he was breathing, he laid motionless. I could see the signs of frown on the forehead of the Vet. I shuddered inside.

Expecting the worse to come, I moved close to the table on which Badal was lying. The steel table was cold as ice. I took his head on my palms. I wanted that all warmth of my body be transferred to him. I prayed that coldness of the steel table should not be able to reach his body. He stared at me and I would not ever forget that look. We kept on looking at each other. Really I don’t know when my Badal budda (old fellow) actually stopped seeing me.

Badal remaining in our hearts

A glance of Badal in a documentary. Here is the link:

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The story was published in  popular dog lovers' magazine 'Buddy Life', Apr-June 2018 issue. Relevant pages are reproduced here for the benefit of readers.

Cover of the magazine

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A Big Thank from Badal to you for reading