The ongoing lockdown is wreaking havoc on animals and birds that have come to depend on human activity for their subsistence.
Thousands of stray dogs and cattle in the city, as well as birds like sparrows, crows, pigeons and parrots, are struggling to find food as all of the city’s eateries, including roadside food stalls, have closed down in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak.
Exacerbating the lack of food is the onset of the summer, with the stifling heat driving animals and birds to the brink of exhaustion.
“I saw a parrot fall from the sky in my lawn. It must have suffered a sunstroke and was unable to move. I tried my best to revive the bird, but it died after a few hours,” said Hari, a resident.
“Some thousands of street dogs and stray cattle depend on hotels, fast food centres, fruit markets and push-carts for their food. With the city closing down completely for several days, many animals and birds are dying of hunger,” said P. Avinash, a student.
“There are around 200 push-cart vendors doing business in each town in the State. In the cities, there will be more than 5,000 push-cart vendors selling breakfast, snacks, non-vegetarian food, noodles, juice, fruits and other eatables. The stray dogs and cattle depend on the leftovers generated by these push-carts,” an officer of the Health Department said.
“Every year, during the summer, some people will provide water in tumblers on the terraces for birds. Due to the lockdown, residents are not coming out and many birds are dying,” a resident M. Vaishali of Poranki in Vijayawada said.
Meanwhile, animal lovers are worried about the health of their pet dogs, birds and other domestic animals as feed and medicines are unavailable due to the lockdown.
A resident, who was seen taking his dog on a two-wheeler to a veterinarian’s clinic, said his dog was suffering from ill-health and that he was unable to ensure immediate treatment due to the ongoing lockdown.
