Meet Charlie. This gentle, intelligent, three legged Indian dog has been used for Animal Assisted Therapy since 2005, giving support and encouragement to specially abled children. It is therefore only fitting that the half acre plot in Jakkur that tries to make life a little easier for our city’s animals is named after him.
Sudha Narayanan of the Charlie’s Animal Rescue Centre—CARE agrees, “Charlie is and always has been our inspiration. He is the common thread that binds all of us at CARE together—we have all interacted with him at some point. His sheer resilience, courage and goodness despite his adversity are truly inspirational. He is missing a limb so he can’t run as fast as he wants to, he can’t climb stairs like a normal dog. But despite it all—he chooses to help special children, offering them that little nudge they need to get their self confidence back.”
Indeed the CARE centre is a reflection of the Charlie himself—though plagued by the usual problems of any animal welfare enterprise, including lack of funds and day-to-day operational issues the hope, positivity and compassion you find there makes up for it.
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Undiluted love and a warm welcome is given to you everywhere you go. From the reception where Hero, a black and white Indian dog offers a wag and a gentle lick to Sudha’s office where three-legged Bana and beautiful little Twinkle rain a thousand kisses to your feet, to the adoption centre where three adorable puppies bound all over you greeting you like a long-lost lover, the space for cats where get a low purr and a stately rub and the guinea-pig hutch where you can cuddle a warm, little bundle of fur against your heart.
The centre, which started in January last year by a group of animal lovers who realized that the city was in dire need of an enterprise like this which could offer stray, abused and abandoned animals a chance of survival.
“I have worked with animals for almost 23 years now and was trustee at CUPA( Compassion Unlimited Plus Action) for 17 years. When the CUPA centre closed down last year, I realized that I wanted to do something of my own for animals and along with the other trustees of CARE, Wg.Cdr. Lingaraj and Megha Vijay decided to start this organization,” she says.
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The centre which is tucked away in a quiet, picturesque corner of the city, overlooking the Jakkur lake offers a 9-5 ambulance service and animal helpline, has a holiday boarding facility for cats and dogs, offers 24 hr veterinary care, ensures housing rehabilitation and rehoming of abandoned animals, boasts of a well-equipped in patient facility and enables puppy and kitten adoption.
The centre is also the home to 20 dogs with serious ailments including blindness, missing limbs and degenerative diseases who require constant love and care and three well-nourished, stately cats who have now where else to go.
But there is more planned says Sudha, “ We are in the process of constructing a Medical Centre in the same premises which will consist of an OPD, Operation Theatre, X Ray and Scanning facility for street animals. Bangalore is such a large city but our street animals often have now where to go. It is a tough life but it is the only one they know and to lead it they need to be healthy and strong. I want to help them with that,” says Sudha.
It isn’t easy, she admits. People are capable of immense cruelty she says, pointing to Hero who is sleeping peacefully at her feet, “Hero is a case of extreme animal cruelty. He was tied to a speeding van and dragged on the streets till his underbelly ripped open, his paw pads bled and his nails fell out. Yet his spirit didn’t die—he recovered and now lives a life of dignity here.
It constantly surprises me how cruel people can be to animals. But thankfully there are good people too—our donors, volunteers, passive adopters and staff are wonderful. And I’m happy about that. Animals have as much right to the world we live in as human beings do.”