Cruelty response

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Cruelty response

Acting fast to stop abuse

Animal Aid receives reports about mistreatment of animals in Udaipur that we respond to in a variety of ways depending on the severity, ranging from verbal warning and education to involving the police.

Stopping animal abuse

On a weekly and sometimes daily basis, we receive calls on our helpline informing us about an animal being intentionally mistreated or even killed. Our Cruelty Response team immediately investigates every cruelty report we receive with our first action being to take any animal out of immediate harm's way. If a law has been violated, we report it to the police.

Report a case of cruelty in Udaipur

The treatment of animals in India

Like most places in the world, the treatment of animals in India has incredible highs and terrible lows. For example, street dogs are given legal protection and unlike in much of the Western world it is illegal to kill or remove them (illegal displacement and killing is sadly common but it can be legally stopped). Cows, despite being considered holy in much of India, are often abandoned on the road when they no longer produce milk where the only food they can find is plastic and garbage. They are slaughtered for meat and leather in many many parts of India in horrifying conditions.

While there are many laws in place to protect animals from cruelty, and the Indian Constitution even states that one of the fundamental duties of every citizen is to have compassion for living creatures, lack of enforcement often means that animals go unprotected.

The most common cruelty reports we receive are about acts of violence against street dogs. This often stems from people who are afraid of dogs or simply don’t like them. We also receive reports about owned dogs kept tied all day. Pet ownership in general is rampant with neglect and abuse with dogs confined alone on scorching hot roof tops, not fed properly, and often abandoned on the road when they are old or in medical crisis.

Many of the injured animals we rescue were wounded by negligent cruelty, such as donkeys who have been used for labor with so little concern for their welfare that they often become disabled for life.

Meet Veeru: rescued from abuse

We got a call on our helpline that a donkey had been horribly beaten by another donkey's owner who was in a drunken rage. We rescued him just in time, reported to the police, and ensured the abuser's arrest. Veeru lost his eye-sight in one eye but is thriving in our sanctuary today.

Sponsor Veeru

Creating awareness

Our goal in cruelty response is not only to stop the abusers, but to raise awareness in the community about the laws that protect animals, and that by speaking out cruelty can be stopped. Newspaper coverage has been an effective way to increase awareness. It's very rare that someone reporting cruelty is willing to speak directly to the police, as they may be a neighbor or family member of the abuser and not feel comfortable, but with more awareness more people are willing to speak out.

Read about our outreach and education work

Lodging cruelty complaints with police

Reporting cruelty cases to the police can be a lengthy process. The police are often not familiar with animal protection laws and can be reluctant to take the report. However, with years of working with the local police stations and persistence, the police are more receptive and aware and the process of registering cruelty cases is more and more streamlined.

When street dogs are in imminent danger

If a street dog bites someone, the generally peaceful coexistence between street dogs and their human neighbors can suddenly turn. Fear of a dog can turn to anger that can lead to someone beating or poisoning dogs in the area. Our immediate intervention is essential in restoring the peace.

In these crises we conduct post-bite counseling to ensure proper medical attention for humans, on-site rabies vaccination to all dogs in the area, targeted spay and neuter and dog bite prevention education. We often bring the biting dog to Animal Aid for assessment as well as for their safety.

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