At over ten years of age, Sheru is one of Braj Animal Care’s oldest friends. Due to the harshness of life on India’s streets, the average stray only lives for two to three years. This makes Sheru a true senior member of the community! Sheru lives in the Radharaman Temple compound in Vrindavan, as have several generations of his family. When Sheru’s mother, Jimmy, was attacked by another dog and lost her life, Sheru was left all alone. However, the people who frequent the temple love him very much and keep an eye on him.
However, over all those years, Sheru had never had a rabies vaccination. This posed a risk not only to Sheru but also to the templegoers and nearby residents, as humans can contract rabies from being bitten by infected animals. The number of rabies deaths in India is disproportionately large compared to the rest of the world. The World Health organisation estimates that at least 18,000-20,000 people in India die of rabies every year, and most of them are children under the age of fifteen. Due to the large number of unvaccinated street animals across the country, India accounts for at least one third of total rabies deaths worldwide each year.
Trusting as he is, Sheru remained calm during the vaccination process – he didn’t struggle or even flinch! Sheru’s friend Fluffy also got his rabies shot that day, and he, too was a good patient. Incredibly, each rabies vaccination only cost about two US dollars. Now all Sheru and Fluffy will need is their yearly booster shot!