In a move to reduce accidents involving stray dogs and minimise animal casualty, PFA-Mysuru has partnered with Circle of Life, to provide reflective collars to the dogs in the city.
A release stated that about 1,000 community dogs fall victim to road accidents every year and despite treatment, most never recover, The reflective collars are expected to reduce animal casualty rates by 90% and the campaign entails fixing the reflective collars on nearly 8,500 dogs that are treated at the PFA clinic ever year.
“With large populations of street dogs roaming the streets of Mysuru and increased urban development, there has been a sharp uptick in the number of animal and driver casualty rates,” the release added.
It cited a study conducted by the Ministry of Urban Transport and Highways according to which most accidents involving stray dogs take place at night as speeding motorists are unable to see the animal in the nick of time owing to poor visibility. “There are 3-4 cases of stray dogs hit by vehicles each day and the actual number could be much more because many people don't bother informing the Mysuru City Corporation or the PFA. The campaign, launched by Deputy Commissioner D. Randeep on Saturday is to help reduce animal casualty rates,” the release added.
It took three months to develop the collars and it went through an initial pilot run of 100 reflective colour prototypes, quality, and usability testing. The team finally decided on the use of dual reflective material with an increased reflectivity index at night hence increasing the drivers’ visibility of an animal wearing the collar after dark, allowing motorists to navigate safely to avoid hitting the dog.
Given the rough conditions on Indian roads, they are water and mud resistant and will not fade under constant sunlight. Collar bands are durable and have sturdy buckle to avoid tearing and falling off. The campaign expects the number of road accidents to fall by 80% as a result of the dogs wearing dual reflective collars, according to Shehnaz, campaign head for Circle of Life campaign in Mysuru.
