Rescue of emaciated Great Dane puts spotlight on new spot where heartless owners are abandoning their pets — right inside a forested area full of leopards near Palghar

The rescued dog with animal welfare activist Prashant Mankar

From the city’s streets to its outskirts, Mumbaikars have come a long way when it comes to abandoning their pets. Activists and animal lovers are fuming over the increasing number of cases of people discarding their pets to avoid caring for them. In the latest such instance, a Great Dane was found abandoned near Waghobha ghat in Palghar, which houses leopards and hyenas, last week.



Animal activist Vaishali Chawan has taken the dog in and is searching for its original owner

Snake rescuer Sagar Barot spotted the injured animal and rescued it with the help of animal welfare activist Vaishali Chawan.

Chawan said, “It has become a style statement to buy high breed dogs, and later, when they become old or injured and expensive to care for, the poor animals are abandoned by the owners near forest areas. How cruel can humans be!”

Also Read: Mumbaikars abandon pedigree pets on roads and animal hospitals



The injured Great Dane that was found abandoned in a forest area near Palghar

“Someone was seen leaving this poor speechless soul (Great Dane) and heading towards Palghar. If anyone knows its owner, please help us the person, so that we can take action against him/her,” she added.



Snake rescuer Sagar Barot who found the injured dog

The Aarey case

There have been many such cases. A few months back, animal lover Kaushal Dubey found a black Labrador abandoned in Aarey Colony forest area. “The dog had a wire around its neck and was in a bad condition. I thought someone might have lost him. Hence, we approached the local police station. But even after two months, no one came for it,” said Dubey, adding that Dr. Sunetra Wadke, a vet for SARRP NGO, said the dog had a skin infection, a mite infection and tick fever.

“The animal’s been staying with me. I have named him Jack, he’s obedient and adorable and is already attached to my family. How can anyone just leave their pet like this just because the animal is suffering from several diseases, which are easily curable?” he fumed.

“People are fond of buying high breeds, but when they can’t take care of the animals, they just abandon them without understanding how such behaviour impacts dogs. They are very sensitive and become aggressive if moved from one place to another; it takes them time to adapt to the new surroundings.”

Chawan said she’s spent more than R10,000 on the Great Dane’s treatment, including vaccines. “Highways and the forest patches along the Mumbai-Ahmedabad highway have a become hotspot for abandoning pets. There is no data as such, but in the last one year I have heard about over 15 such cases.”

Falling prey

RAWW’s Pawan Sharma said, “Pedigree dogs have always been a craze among urban citizens. However, it has been observed that this has boosted illegal pet trade. In the last six months, we have got more than 15 complaints from areas of Mumbai, Thane and Navi Mumbai of such incidents. The most common area where this is happening is the Mumbai-Ahmedabad highway stretch between Dahisar and Palghar.”

“People buy such animals as a status symbol and to keep up with the fad, but later are not able to meet the dogs’ basic needs. In such instances, they either surrender the canines to NGOs or put them up for adoptions; however, because that’s a lengthy process, many prefer to abandon the animals,” he added.

After being abandoned on highways and in forested areas, it is observed that the dogs are either killed under speeding wheels or bitten by dominant stray dogs. In forests, they either die due to starvation or become prey to leopards.

“Due to lack of regulations and weak laws, such cruel activities are on the rise. If regulated, with microchips put on the animals, such things can be monitored and controlled. This June, we rescued a two-year-old female boxer, which was used for breeding and later dumped by someone. In the last two-three years, we have rescued Labradors, Cocker Spaniels, German Shepherds, Splits, Dachshunds, Dobermans,” said Sharma.

A full house

Activists also said that at times many animals went missing before the NGOs could reach with help. Due to a rise in such cases, several NGOs have been left with a large number of rescued animals.

Pooja Sakpal from Yoda (Youth Organisation in Defence of Animals), who rescues exotic dogs from breeders and rehabilitates them, said that from 2009 to till date, her NGO has rescued more than 3,000 pedigree dogs from Mumbai and its neighbouring areas.

“In a majority of the cases, the dogs are abandoned when the owners find it difficult to meet their medical and food expenses. In many cases, even the breeders abandon the animals when they become old and are not able to mate.

There needs to be a stringent law in place to take strict legal action against those responsible for such acts,” she added.

mid-day tried to get in touch with Ganesh Nayak of NGO AMTM and Shirin Merchant, Canine Behaviourist and Trainer, but both remained unavailable for comment.