Man & his best friend! Volunteers taking care of dogs out on streets
2 min read
Mysuru: Covid-19 induced lockdown has not only hit the mankind, but strays which were largely dependent on the leftover food at hotels, restaurants and roadside eateries.
If not for the animal lovers, these stray animals, mainly dogs would have been left craving for food to satiate their hunger.
Shilpashree a guest lecturer at criminology department, Maharaja’s College in the city joins the list of animal lovers, who along with her dedicated team of friends has been feeding stray dogs out on the streets for the past two months. Till date, they have fed more than 500 dogs and the numbers will add up till the situation eases for good.
A 10-15 member team of volunteers cook 20 kg of rice and nearly 20 kg of chicken at Ramakrishnagar and feed dogs at nearly 10 hubs, which has become a routine for them in lockdown period. Beginning from the first wave of lockdown in 2020, the volunteers are doing their bit for the cause of stray animals, in the second wave too.
They can be seen feeding the mongrels at Silk factory surroundings, Dasara Exhibition ground, DC office surroundings, Gangotri campus road and Maharaja’s and Yuvaraja’s College campus, hostel surroundings, NIE hostel, near St Thomas school and also different parts of the city. Once in every two days, the dogs will be given chicken topped with turmeric.
Shilpashree told Mysoorunews.com “earlier we tried to feed the dogs with curd rice and pedigree. But it didn’t find taste with many dogs which turned their back, wagging the tail before sprinting away. Moreover, in terms of money also, it was also expensive. So we team members and family members mobilised money along with the donations raised from some donors and started feeding them with cooked rice. The terrace of our houses was converted into makeshift kitchen. We spent more than Rs 18,000 for 30 days to feed the dogs. We also gave medicine prescribed by vets to some,” Shilpashree said narrating her call for dogs, known as ‘Man’s best friend.’
Sudarshan and Stephen cook, while Shilpashree and her husband Prem Mackson help them.
The volunteers include- Advith, Adarsh, Alwyn, Chethan, Darshan Kumar, Darshan, Harsha, James, Kavya, Naveen, Phani, Pallavi, Prem Mackson, Rohith, Shishirath, Stephen and Shilpa.
They all deserve a pat. Good job!
– Team Mysoorunews
Mysooru News
