Residents of Varanasivari Street in Seetharamapuram were a happy lot until two groups of stray dogs made it their home. The dogs have become so much part of the scenery that people now refer to it as “kukkalaveedhi” (dogs’ street).
Over a period of years, stray dogs from Arundelpet, Brahmanandha Reddy Nagar and Machavaram have slowly gravitated to this street with the love and food being bestowed on them by two sisters Vijayalakhmi and Padmavathi. They feed the dogs -- milk and rice – twice a day. The affection of the sisters does not stop with dogs – stray cats and other animals are also given food. Since the dogs are territorial they don’t stray. The dogs have, in fact, divided the street into two. While one group occupies the Puttaparti Saibaba temple gate, the larger one is in charge of their food distribution centre.
But the picture is not always so rosy on the street. The days the sisters go out of town, there is trouble. The hungry dogs chase pedestrians and cyclists. “I was bitten by one of these dogs. The sisters are kind, but let them keep the dogs in their house,” says a resident nearby. While the sisters love to feed them they cannot put them on a leash. The story of Varanasivari Street can be extended to the rest of the city. Animal lovers protect the dogs, but cannot prevent them from attacks. Animal Rights activists and kennel owner M. Venkateswarlu says that humans are often the cause for the aggressive behaviour of dogs.
Five-year-old Syam of Rotary Nagar was bitten on the neck when he went out to answer’s natures call in the morning.
