Following the appeal of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, animal lovers lead by example and have set up shelters for stray dogs and continue to adopt and feed stray dogs in their locality. On Sunday, posts advocating adoption of local breeds over buying expensive ones were trending on all the portals.
Indoreans took the cue from PM to further motivate people to care for local breeds around them with heartfelt messages and pictures. Quoting the importance of adopting over shopping for breed dogs, animal activist leading MP police cell for cruelty against animals Priyanshu Jain said, “Buying foreign breed dogs who are accustomed to living in cold weather and bringing to live in hot climate is Indore is cruel and not really a true form of showing love towards animals.” She explained that caring for breeds that are naturally found in India is our prime responsibility.
“We are Indians because we are born in India and we love our country, so are Indie breeds, and to lead by example, I have my own little dog of Indie breed in my home,” Padma Shri Janak McGilligan Palta said.
Sharing the need for people to understand the importance of our local stray dogs, digital marketing expert Nakul Chaturvedi said, “There was a recent incident when people in my neighbourhood were attacking strays simply because they were stray dogs.” He added that the same stray dogs have protected the society from many crimes.
“We need to understand that animals are an essential part of our ecosystem and when we give love, we get love,” Neelam Chaturvedi, a homemaker, said. She regularly feeds over 15 dogs and provides temporary shelter in her home.
Another such lady running a free shelter for hundreds of dogs is Rupa.
A good example has been set by Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Indore where about 50 stray dogs are given shelter in the premises.
Monsoon shelters
Since monsoon has hit the city hard, many homes, shops and temple premises are providing temporary shelter and shade to stray dogs in Indore. It is a common sight to find dogs sleeping under sheds and even homes, as Indoreans empathise with them.