review and update ABC Kandy, Sri Lanka

[Guest guest]

DOG-POPULATION-CONTROL-PROGRAMME KANDY

 

 

 

A REVIEW AND UPDATE

22.3.2006

 

 

 

Today we met in courts again with the very person, with whom we started the

Kandy Dog-Population-Control-Programme three and half years ago. In those days

the MunicipalVet Surgeon Dr.Sarath Jayasinghe agreed with us, that killing dogs

does not eradicate rabies while sterilization will definitely curb the

stray-population and therefore make it easier to immunize all the dogs in Kandy

regularly. The Kandy Mayor too agreed and so we started with the help of a Swiss

donor, who has been active in animal-welfare in Kandy earlier too and who raised

the funds to start this programme. We faced many obstacles from the beginning,

but anyhow managed to sterilize and vaccinate more than 7500 animals since then.

Nobody has died of rabies in Kandy since this programme started and the

post-exposure-vaccinations supplied by the two big hospitals of Kandy and

Peradeniya have gone down by 50%. It is easy to see on the streets of Kandy,

that the dog-population is much less than few years back, when killing dogs was

still the rule of the day. Nobody ever took a count of the dogs in Kandy, so we

cannot proof the success of the programme, neither can Dr.Jayasinghe proof his

claim, that the population has increased since we had come to an agreement with

him, that the killing of dogs will be stopped. What we can proof is, that we

have spent one and half million rupees on vet-charges for sterilizations alone

from October 2002 to October 2005 and approximately another four lakhs in the

last five months. Often we did not even know whether we will have any funds for

the coming month to feed the dogs in the transit-home, where the ownerless dogs

recover from the surgery, but we never refused any sterilization-camp requested

from us. One needs not to know much mathematics to calculate how many unwanted

pups and kittens would have been on the streets if those 7500 sterilizations had

not been performed.

 

 

 

How long this court-case will still continue is unclear. Today also the case was

only postponed again because the lawyer of the Municipal Council has still not

filed his answer to our appeal. The pending of the case has not stopped

Dr.Jayasinghe from killing dogs once again, not in a big way, as it happened in

August, when hundreds of dogs were killed within few days, but on and off we

heard, that the Municipal dog catchers were seen throwing poisoned meat to the

dogs at the market, the bus-stand and near a Hotel. This is repeated contempt of

court because in May it has been decided, that the Programme should no be

obstructed, but contempt of court is not treated as an urgent matter it seems

and the case is being dragged along since 7 months now.

 

 

 

However we are keeping our vets very busy with sterilization-camps and with a

continuous flow of dogs passing through the transit-home and occasionally with

accident-cases. At times we almost ran out of funds, but two groups, which are

supporting us, promised, that in future, if there is an emergency-case, we can

call upon their help. not only for the continuation of the neutering-programme,

but also for the maintenance of the transit-home, which has at any given time

more than 100 dogs to be fed. We do not get many people coming to adopt dogs and

if someone comes, he takes a puppy, rarely a grown-up dog. In those areas, where

we have sterilization-programmes regularly, the demand for pups is increasing

and we can re-home many of our puppies there.

 

 

 

We are still a small group of few dedicated volunteers and have not yet the

resources to give high priority to publicity and awareness, even though this

should be the most important aspect of animal-welfare. However, Kandy is a small

town and so slowly the word spreads, that we have an ongoing free

sterilization-programme at the University-Vet-Clinic and carry out field-clinics

wherever someone is ready to provide a site. Still most calls we receive is

about dumped puppies to be picked up, rarely from someone, who wants to adopt a

pup, but at least we can sometimes trace the mother of those pups and get her

sterilized, so that this tragedy won't happen in future. It's a slow process, to

trace and sterilize all the female dogs in Kandy and there are some, who have

been beaten and chased away so much, that they have become very frightened and

it is almost impossible to catch them, but even then we keep trying and we are

not giving up the task because it is difficult.

 

 

 

We are grateful to all the kind people, who have helped so far to work towards a

healthy, happy, stabilized dog-population in Kandy.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

There's not much to say, dear friends. Know just that: The thought of

many people around the world who share your feelings for our four-legged

friends is always with you. I wish I hear from you soon, hopefully to be

informed that the killers are finally punished and their appaling work

is stopped once and for all.

 

With best wishes to your work,

Maria Nika,

Greece

 

Padma wrote:

 

> DOG-POPULATION-CONTROL-PROGRAMME KANDY

>

>

>

> A REVIEW AND UPDATE

> 22.3.2006

>

>

>

> Today we met in courts again with the very person, with whom we

> started the Kandy Dog-Population-Control-Programme three and half

> years ago. In those days the MunicipalVet Surgeon Dr.Sarath Jayasinghe

> agreed with us, that killing dogs does not eradicate rabies while

> sterilization will definitely curb the stray-population and therefore

> make it easier to immunize all the dogs in Kandy regularly. The Kandy

> Mayor too agreed and so we started with the help of a Swiss donor, who

> has been active in animal-welfare in Kandy earlier too and who raised

> the funds to start this programme. We faced many obstacles from the

> beginning, but anyhow managed to sterilize and vaccinate more than

> 7500 animals since then. Nobody has died of rabies in Kandy since this

> programme started and the post-exposure-vaccinations supplied by the

> two big hospitals of Kandy and Peradeniya have gone down by 50%. It is

> easy to see on the streets of Kandy, that the dog-population is much

> less than few years back, when killing dogs was still the rule of the

> day. Nobody ever took a count of the dogs in Kandy, so we cannot proof

> the success of the programme, neither can Dr.Jayasinghe proof his

> claim, that the population has increased since we had come to an

> agreement with him, that the killing of dogs will be stopped. What we

> can proof is, that we have spent one and half million rupees on

> vet-charges for sterilizations alone from October 2002 to October 2005

> and approximately another four lakhs in the last five months. Often we

> did not even know whether we will have any funds for the coming month

> to feed the dogs in the transit-home, where the ownerless dogs recover

> from the surgery, but we never refused any sterilization-camp

> requested from us. One needs not to know much mathematics to calculate

> how many unwanted pups and kittens would have been on the streets if

> those 7500 sterilizations had not been performed.

>

>

>

> How long this court-case will still continue is unclear. Today also

> the case was only postponed again because the lawyer of the Municipal

> Council has still not filed his answer to our appeal. The pending of

> the case has not stopped Dr.Jayasinghe from killing dogs once again,

> not in a big way, as it happened in August, when hundreds of dogs were

> killed within few days, but on and off we heard, that the Municipal

> dog catchers were seen throwing poisoned meat to the dogs at the

> market, the bus-stand and near a Hotel. This is repeated contempt of

> court because in May it has been decided, that the Programme should no

> be obstructed, but contempt of court is not treated as an urgent

> matter it seems and the case is being dragged along since 7 months now.

>

>

>

> However we are keeping our vets very busy with sterilization-camps and

> with a continuous flow of dogs passing through the transit-home and

> occasionally with accident-cases. At times we almost ran out of funds,

> but two groups, which are supporting us, promised, that in future, if

> there is an emergency-case, we can call upon their help... not only

> for the continuation of the neutering-programme, but also for the

> maintenance of the transit-home, which has at any given time more than

> 100 dogs to be fed. We do not get many people coming to adopt dogs and

> if someone comes, he takes a puppy, rarely a grown-up dog. In those

> areas, where we have sterilization-programmes regularly, the demand

> for pups is increasing and we can re-home many of our puppies there.

>

>

>

> We are still a small group of few dedicated volunteers and have not

> yet the resources to give high priority to publicity and awareness,

> even though this should be the most important aspect of

> animal-welfare. However, Kandy is a small town and so slowly the word

> spreads, that we have an ongoing free sterilization-programme at the

> University-Vet-Clinic and carry out field-clinics wherever someone is

> ready to provide a site. Still most calls we receive is about dumped

> puppies to be picked up, rarely from someone, who wants to adopt a

> pup, but at least we can sometimes trace the mother of those pups and

> get her sterilized, so that this tragedy won't happen in future. It's

> a slow process, to trace and sterilize all the female dogs in Kandy

> and there are some, who have been beaten and chased away so much, that

> they have become very frightened and it is almost impossible to catch

> them, but even then we keep trying and we are not giving up the task

> because it is difficult.

>

>

>

> We are grateful to all the kind people, who have helped so far to work

> towards a healthy, happy, stabilized dog-population in Kandy.

>

>

>

>

>

>

>

>

>

>

>

>

>

>

>

>

>

>

>