Tuesday, January 9, 2007
Saturday, January 27, 2007 at 06:22PM Today I attended the first half of the pre-conference Animal Birth Control/Anti-Rabies (ABC/AR) workshop. The event was kicked-off with a talk by Dr. Chinny Krishna of Blue Cross of India. Dr. Krishna was introduced as a “trailblazer”; in 1964 Blue Cross of India in Chennai (then Madras) introduced ABC/AR concept as the most effective way to reduce the stray dog population and the number of cases of rabies in humans. (see here for statistics showing the success of the ABC/AR program).
Next to speak was Maneka Gandhi, who urged people to get out of the habit of “disposing” of animals and open themselves up to the possibility of positively interacting with animals. She also requested that the Animal Welfare Board of India release funds to allow ABC/AR programs to expand into the smaller cities.
The rest of the morning included various experts offering points as to how to implement successful ABC/AR programs
I cut out after lunch, choosing to skip the talks of spay/neuter protocols and decided to head out to shop and check email. Later that day, I passed through a “walking and jogging” park. In most Indian cities, walking along city roads—which involves walking in city roads, as there are no sidewalks or they are filled with vendors, dogs, cows, and parked vehicles—is not a pleasant experience. So, it appears that this park is where one can go to do laps in a grassy, tree-filled environment.
I stopped to watch a middle-class, middle-aged man clad in bright white sneakers striding briskly along the path inside the park. Two dogs trotted alongside him. They were not on leashes, and they were not purebred dogs. They looked like typical Indian street dogs. I got the sense that they lived in the park and this man was a regular visitor, who perhaps gave them treats or attention. As they passed me, I moved my hands to get my camera out of my bag, attracting the attention of one of the dogs. He slowed down and looked at me with that typical expectant dog expression that says, “Do you have food for me?” When he saw that I didn’t, he ran to catch up with his friends.
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