Stray Dog Threat: A National Problem

The threat of stray dogs has highlighted the need for concern now. Every day there are news of dog bites, children, old people not to mention young adults being bitten by them, even dog mutilation cases have become so common these days, that different portals of information are inundated with people complaining about the problems they face. I personally witnessed the incident where stray dogs almost attacked us as we were returning from a wedding ceremony late at night. The incident left me in utter despair and sadness and made me realize the plight of people maimed or bitten by stray dogs. Stray dogs are ownerless, loose and homeless dogs that live in parks, roadsides, restaurants, colleges, school premises in close contact with humans.
Thus, making humans more vulnerable to dog attack. The stray dog ​​problem is a national problem with many other states falling to deal with the growing threat. The situation in the valley grew darker day by day. While after every dog ​​bite there is always a huge public outcry, grand administration claims about preventive measures to control the growing population of stray dogs remain only on paper, many districts of Kashmir do not have no program to combat the growing dog population. According to a report by Department of Community Medicines, Government Medical College (GMC), Srinagar, around 58,869 people were bitten by dogs in the last ten years (2011 to 2021) in Kashmir alone. According to a survey, there are 91,000 dogs in the city of Srinagar alone, making it one dog for every 12 citizens of Srinagar. This really highlighted the need for various measures to prevent the numbers from skyrocketing.
It is evident that the sterilization program has not achieved its objective in any significant way anywhere in the country let alone in the valley. This is not surprising, as it also failed to perform well even in Western countries. Therefore, other very effective measures must be taken. High human deaths due to rabies and cases of dog bites have been reported in many Indian cities. It is proven that in some areas of cities, the threat of street dogs is great, leading to an atmosphere of tension and fear in people’s minds. In addition to causing physical harm, stray dogs continue to bark at people and stalk moving vehicles, causing fear psychosis in pedestrians.
Therefore, in such a situation, a multi-pronged strategy must be adopted. The first is a clear agreement that, for a host of reasons, it’s best if the city doesn’t have stray dogs on the streets. It is necessary to educate the public, young people and children about the cleanliness of the environment in order to provide a hygienic environment in the society. There should be proper management of kitchen waste dumping. Irrational disposal of food packaging waste in residential areas, near sheep shops and open hotels is common, resulting in legions of stray dogs around this area. Additionally, there should be collaborative planning of medical, veterinary and environmental specialists to tackle the problem. Recently, the Netherlands became the first country in the world to eradicate stray dogs. All of this has been achieved through the collective efforts of the government and the people of the country. The World Health Organization (WHO) has made it clear that spaying and vaccination program is the only effective method to control stray dog ​​populations. In its Technical Report Series 931, the WHO Expert Consultation on Rabies, held in Geneva from 5-8 October 2004, identified three practical methods of dog population management “restriction of movement, control of habitat and reproductive control”. effective garbage removal and management, for example, would eliminate an important source of food for stray dogs.
The guidelines further state that the only way to ensure breeding control is through serious, national implementation of the ABC program.
Thus, tackling the threat of street dogs requires a multifaceted approach. As a responsible citizen, we should first and foremost stop dumping garbage on the roads and streets, a robust collection mechanism and waste management should be in place by the municipal corporation. In addition, a policy should be developed by municipal corporations to check and control the growing number of stray dogs.