(IN) No big names, no AWO - just compassion!

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A dogged pursuit

 

Neeta Bavdekar cares for 60 abandoned dogs in her small flat

 

Niharika Mandhana

Posted On Thursday, August 20, 2009 at 06:03:30 PM

 

�It�s a doggone life, but a blessed one!� exclaims Neeta Bavdekar with a

chortle and a twinkle in her eyes. Given that the backdrop of our conversation

is her house in Jalahalli West, which doubles as a shelter for nearly 60

abandoned and battered dogs. Manoeuvring through the shelter can be an

overwhelming experience - the entrance is flanked by numerous cage-like kennels;

the alley leading to the staircase is pinched to a narrow walkway by kennels

that occupy an entire wall; the washing area is crowded with tiny baskets

wobbling with the restless energy of the puppies inside; the stairway is lined

all the way to the top by dogs leashed to the railings; all other spaces look as

though tiled with dogs.

 

THE STARK REALITY

�If I had my way, there wouldn�t be so many of them here,� confesses

Neeta, as she extricates an adorable brown ball of fur from a basket to replace

the soiled newspaper bed. But when she walks out of her house to stumble on a

puppy wrapped in a gunny bag, she can�t get herself to leave it to its own

devices on the streets where she knows its chances of survival are poor. In

fact, owing to the stories of her shelter being well known in the neighbourhood,

most of its inmates are dogs that were surreptitiously abandoned at her doorstep

� dogs whose owners preferred to dump them rather than cure their minor

ailments, who were seen as a nuisance once they grew out of the puppy phase, who

were seen strolling dangerously on the road and brought in by well-meaning boys,

who were rescued from cruel owners or from accident spots.

 

�People see dogs as a dispensable commodity. At first, they find them lovable.

After a while, they consider them a headache and dump them in a dustbin or

gutter. Many leave them outside my house because they know I will take care of

them,� says Neeta, being privy to stories of dog abuse like few others.

 

Petting Ramu, she narrates the incident of the lady who came to her pleading to

take in Ramu who was regularly beaten up by her sons. �While I was trying to

convince her that I was strapped for resources, Ramu got on his hind legs and

put his arms around my neck. He made the decision!� she says.

 

THE DEVOTION

Neeta�s passion for dog-care began eight years ago when she took into her home

a litter of puppies lying forlorn in the gutter outside her house, the rain

beating down on them. Little did she know that years later, her B Sc. degree and

MA in literature would, as she says in jest, have gone to the dogs! Her days go

by in a swirl of cooking for her dogs, feeding them and tending to their medical

needs, rushing them to hospitals when they fall ill and cleaning their mess. Her

nights, till 5 am, are devoted to walking them and allowing them to play in the

open before people start coming out of their houses.

 

THE STRUGGLE

Neeta contributes the little money she makes on the stock market for the upkeep

of her dogs and has a small support system of donors who contribute in cash and

kind, benevolent veterinarians who assist her free of cost and sometimes

compassionate street vendors who provide her with eggs, coconuts and fruits at

subsidised rates. Here is a lady who, despite a severe financial crunch, cares

for dogs who have been discarded by society. She is doing everything in her

power, at the cost of her own meals sometimes, to take care of them, say donors

Jyothirmayee, Roland Gokuldas and Abhishek Nayak.

 

Pointing to the pictures of her dogs taken during their fit and healthy days,

Neeta recollects how, about a year ago, she could give them three full meals a

day and tend to all their medical needs. However, all her resources as they are

stacked up today are just about enough to provide for only one solid meal per

dog per day, she laments, explaining their emaciated structures, failing health

and desperate cries when she brings out a packet of buns.

 

She has found herself running to veterinary hospitals all the way in Vijaynagar,

RT Nagar and Hebbal, sometimes spending upto Rs 7,000 a month on rickshaw fares,

to attend to life threatening emergencies and requirements for drips,

vaccinations, sterilisations and medicines.

 

THE EARNEST APPEAL

�If 365 people from among the teeming millions donate 500 rupees a month, I

will be able to provide enough for these dogs,� says Neeta. She wants to treat

Savali and Sunny�s scabies, provide her dogs with at least one more meal a day

so that they are not dangerously malnourished, build more kennels on the terrace

so that the dogs can move around and get sunlight, hire help to clean the house

she describes as a kabadkhana.

 

Neeta is in dire need of donors who can contribute in cash or kind. Kindly

contact her on 28379156 to offer support.

 

Thank you for your compassion !

With best regards,

Debasis Chakrabarti

Compassionate Crusaders Trust

http://www.animalcrusaders.org