Animal Birth Control (ABC) programme has emerged as the only proven, long-term and sustainable way to prevent dog bites. Tirupati has a relatively less dog bite cases, which is attributed to the sterilisation programme conducted over the last decade.
A study on dog bite cases reported in the last fortnight at Ruia Government General Hospital found that most of them were from towns outside Tirupati. Animal Care Land, a voluntary organisation, has performed surgery on 936 female and 1,000 male dogs from April 2015 in the Municipal Corporation of Tirupati (MCT) limits.
“Our intervention prevented the birth of an additional 3,736 dogs, a figure that was arrived at after factoring in the mortality rate,” says N.V. Sreekanth Babu, founder of Animal Care Land. This apart, the NGO sterilised 200 dogs in Renigunta and 127 in Chandragiri, the eastern and western suburbs of the city in a span of 10 days.
While the current season is most suited for mating as well as breeding, dogs move around in packs during night, triggering panic among people. Provocative action like throwing stones and beating them with sticks invariably lead to retaliation in the form of dog bites. However, sterilised dogs remain docile and do not react in panic.
Many towns contemplate translocation of the dogs to the nearby forests, which is of no use. “Some municipalities and panchayats in Chittoor district have decided to leave dogs in Mamandur and Bhakarapet forest, but it will turn out to be a menace to villages skirting the forest. The vacuum will be filled up in no time with newborn dogs,” said Dr. Babu, adding that garbage on streets would certainly invite the dogs. The knee-jerk reaction by the government or the civic bodies by announcing sterilisation of thousands of dogs within a short span could prove unproductive. Similarly, postponement of the time-bound programme, citing ‘budget constraints’ might lead to proliferation of dogs and resurgence of the menace, he said.
