KOLKATA: Three years ago when five-year-old Thumri fell ill, Dum Dum resident Irani had a hard time finding a cab to take the Great Dane to hospital. Despite offering double the fare, neither app cabs nor yellow taxi drivers agreed to help. Irani had helplessly watched Thumri collapse to death.However, in the last two years, as many as five pet-cab services have come up in Kolkata, four of them operated by women. Having faced trouble taking their pets for check-up, vaccination or hospitalization, these women came up with this idea to help others like them.“Our city transport options are inadequate when it comes to pets. If you don’t own a car, you have no one to turn to. I have noticed a lot of pet owners face difficulty commuting with their wards. They have to coax cab drivers to accommodate the animals. So I decided to start this much-needed service,” said Payal Gupta Chowdhury.Having started the services for their pet crèche, Gupta Chowdhury has subsequently added other utility services. “My cab is available for taking pets around town for vet appointments, salons, hospitals and even ferrying dead pets to the cemetery,” the 21-year-old said.The cabs are air-conditioned and come with a pet handler. “We have snacks, medicine, water and clean bedsheets for the pets to have a comfortable ride. During long drives, we ensure the pet is given water and bio-breaks,” she added.While Gupta Chowdhury is a newcomer, Sucheta Sinha was the first from the city to start a pet cab service in 2016. “My dog Bushy met with an accident and was paralysed. I had to take her for treatment and had to plead with cabbies. It was a daily hassle. That’s when I decided to start this service,” said Sinha, who runs K9 Pet Cab.School teacher Manisha Chaudhury and her husband Nitesh, too faced similar issues before starting Pet-Cab Go.The charges for the cabs vary from Rs 12/km to Rs 30/km and have to be booked a day in advance through Facebook or phone. While Dogs On Wheels charges Rs 12/km for indigenous dogs and Rs 13/km for pedigree dogs, Sinha’s service charges Rs 30/km.Uber driver Bappa Pakhira, too, is available for pets. “People can book my cab through the app. As soon as I buy my own car, I will offer a free ride for the first 20km on Sundays,” the Bally resident said.Bhowanipore resident Debjani Roy feels there is no harm in shelling out a little more to give pets a comfortable ride. “I don’t own a car so it was a hassle taking my dog for check-ups. Payals cab services solved my problem,” said Roy, the owner of a Labrador called Sweety.