The topic of stray dogs in the colony is a very sensitive subject and evokes mixed opinions and views. A few days back, I saw the owner of the Mother Dairy Safal in D Block sleeping till late in the morning inside the shop. I asked him the reason as I have never found him sleeping till so late before. He explained that he slept very late as he was out late in the night looking for the stray dog which used to sleep in his milk booth. The booth owner was threatened to go looking for the dog and be brought back, else he will lose his booth. I prodded further and he spilled out the background of the incident which led to him keeping the stray dog in his booth. One night, he closed down the shop without noticing that this stary was inside. The next morning, the dog had destroyed food items, chewed cables, broke open some oil containers and had created havoc in the night. In the morning, finding the shop ruined, he took the stray dog to a friend’s booth in R. K. Puram and left it there. After 3-4 days, when the stray dog lovers got to know of the missing stray, they raided the booth. He was forced to shut down his shop and get the stray back and was compelled to keep it there.
How privileged are the strays in India!!! There are lots of incidents where some elderly or kids are bitten, sometimes unprovoked. The residents and the dog lovers have to find an amiable solution because the subject of stray dogs in a residential colony demands attention and compassion both. Most of the dogs are abandoned, some are not vaccinated and not looked after and therefore cause nuisance. But let us think of solutions where the dogs do not disturb our peace of mind and a harmonius co-existence can be achieved.
