The Story of Tiger

Tiger is a friendly street dog whom we met in late November. He had gotten into a fight with some more aggressive dogs in his neighborhood, and ended up with a large and deep wound on top of his head. Tiger was so incredibly sweet and docile that he did not even struggle or whine when we were treating his wounds. He easily succeeded in melting all of our hearts.

Unfortunately, just a few days later, some neighbors decided that Tiger had rabies, although he showed no symptoms of the fatal disease. Some of them even considered poisoning him. As a result, the neighbor who had initially called us decided to take Tiger to the nearby city of Mathura and across the Yamuna River to a secluded forested area. The whole trip took about an hour each way by auto rickshaw.

After leaving Tiger in the forest, the man came back to Vrindavan and went to work. But by the time he returned that evening, he was shocked and deeply touched to see that Tiger was back. The man’s daughter said that Tiger even found his way into the house and tapped on her door with his paw! After this incident, the family decided to foster Tiger, and we hope the arrangement will become permanent for him. We continue to following up with Tiger’s medical care, deworming and vaccinations.

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Have Compassion, Not Hatred

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In the animal welfare field, you see horrible things regularly. Eventually, you start to wonder if your emotions have been permanently ground to a pulp, but last night I saw something that really hurt my heart.

Out of the five parvo puppies that we treated in Radharaman Ghera, only one is left. I saw him yesterday as I was leaving the temple and stopped to pet and play with him. He was chipper and active. Just as I was feeling this one might just make it, I caught a whiff of the strong, distinctive smell of parvo – the smell that hints his intestines might be melting inside - the smell of uncompromising death. But that's not what broke me.


It was after I left that I saw another tiny puppy near our favourite chai stall on the banks of Yamuna Maharani. He seemed to be lost - no mother around. Some big male dogs were trailing him as though they would soon make him a snack. I honked my motorbike's horn to keep them at bay.

I couldn't pick up the puppy as I was covered with parvo germs that would certainly infect him. As it was ekadashi, there were many people giving parikrama (the sacred walk around Vrindavan). The tiny puppy kept trying to follow different parikrama-goers as if one of them would pick him up and take him home. But instead, one man gave him a strong kick in the gut and the puppy went flying.

That kick is what really hurt. "What was that?!" I shouted to the man. But he barely looked back before continuing on his way.

I can understand this puppy doesn't have much chance without his mother, but why the hatred? Wouldn't it make more sense to do anything possible to make his difficult life better? I just can't understand.

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Early Intervention is Key . .

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As we mentioned in our last post, India is currently experiencing its monsoon (rainy season) and the Braj Animal Care team is seeing an increase in internal and external parasite cases.

Recently, we treated a cow in Mathura whose horn was infested with maggots. Maggots cause gruesome wounds and if left untreated can cause extreme deep tissue damage. In this particular case, when the doctor grabbed the cow’s horn to try and restrain her, the horn came off completely and we discovered that it was entirely rotten and worm-infested inside.

We were able to remove the remaining maggots from the cow’s head, which allowed the wound to heal nicely. Thankfully, our patient will be absolutely fine and most maggot cases can be treated with great success as long as we intervene early. 

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Hope

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Hope fell from a rooftop two months ago, but her problems were just beginning. Unfortunately, the fall left her paralysed. She was still able to get around by using her two front legs, but as she walked, her back legs dragged along the ground.

Eventually, this led to Hope’s legs becoming wounded down to the bone, leaving her extremely prone to infection and maggot infestation. We gave her medicine, dressed her wounds, and have been following up as best we can. However, she really needs a shelter space to recover properly.

Please watch the video to learn more about Hope.

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Monsoon Woes

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The monsoon is so beautiful in Vrindavan. Areas that looked brown and uncared for have exploded with abundant greenery. The summer heat is also somewhat soothed by the rains. But you wouldn’t believe what the animals endure in this season.

Flooding is just a small part of it. The real problem is the parasites that thrive during this period. The humidity is sky-high, and this creates an idea environment for maggots and other bugs to thrive. Maggots are the larvae of flies, who lay their eggs in animals’ wounds. These maggots can hatch within a day and burrow deep into an animal’s flesh, sometimes even reaching the brain. They can turn the smallest scratch into a life-threatening wound.

It is very tough to see many, many animals affected by maggot infestations; but thankfully, we know how to help!

Some Clarification on Private Cases

Braj Animal Care’s services are truly free for homeless animals. We may also sometimes grant free treatments to street animals who were recently adopted.

However, on the rare occasion we perform treatment for privately-owned animals, we accept fees. This also goes for animals who are already under the care of other charities. Those charities are accepting donations for the animals separately and this is the best way we have found to make sure all donor funds are used appropriately and to the animals’ maximum benefit.

Any time we charge for a service, that money goes back into our medical program to benefit animals who are truly homeless!

Another Acid Attack!

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Today, after helping a dog who got hit by a car in Radha Kund, our team attended an emergency call in Mathura. This bull was attacked with acid.

We are not showing his wounds because they are too gruesome, but we can share on private message if you really want to see. His entire back side is a bloody mess. I cannot understand how anyone can do this to them.

The Street is No Place for a Baby

The street is no place for a baby.

Someone just informed us about this calf who died today lying in this pile of garbage. We are on our way to perform his last rites.

In our local dairy industry, baby bulls are not slaughtered but unfortunately, they are cast out into the street. Life is very hard for them: without access to food they eat garbage, and they are vulnerable to traffic, dog attack and a host of diseases.

We always try to feed and provide medical care for these little ones. Sadly, today fate was not in his favour.

Expanding Our Feeding Program

For more than a year, Braj Animal Care has been feeding approximately 400 stray animals across 20 feeding points on a daily basis, in and on the outskirts of Vrindavan. Our goal was to expand our program to cover more areas each day, so that we could serve more animals in need.

We are very pleased to announce that, with the help and support of our well-wishers, our new expanded feeding route was inaugurated on July 15th, 2021. Now we are able to cover 45 feeding points, serving about 850 homeless cows, bulls, dogs and monkeys each day.   

Ginger and the Need for a Shelter

Of the many patients we treated in June, one that required particularly close care was Ginger. Ginger was a dog that lived on the streets of Mathura. In a horrific accident, he was run over by a tractor and the tyre pulled off most of the skin from his back. Soon, maggots started growing in the space between his exposed muscle and the remaining skin. The Braj Animal Care team removed the maggots and cleaned the wound; we returned every day to repeat the treatment.

Just as the wound was becoming clean, a bad rainstorm in the area where Ginger lived caused the ground to be flooded with sewage and when he laid down in the mud, the wound became contaminated again. Our team continued to attend to Ginger on a daily basis but without a shelter where he could get 24-hour care and protection from the elements, we were not able to save Ginger’s life.

On a positive note, Braj Animal Care successfully facilitated the adoption of several puppies last month. When puppies are weened off their mother’s milk they become susceptible to parvovirus and once infected, they usually only have a few days to live. Upon adoption, Braj Animal Care provided the puppies with multi-vaccines which protect against many canine-specific diseases like canine influenza and most importantly, parvovirus. 

It’s evident to us that the work we do would make a much bigger difference to the lives of our patients if they were able to recover in a shelter with medical facilities. Some of Braj Animal Care’s June activities were captured on camera by our resident videographer, Siddhant Shekhar, for a new film highlighting the difference a shelter could make to our success rate. Stay in touch with us and receive regular updates on our work. 


A Heartbreaking Case . . .

Recently, a member of the public contacted us to report a family who were starving a calf, allowing him to drink only the bare minimum of his mother’s milk so that the rest could be used or sold for profit.

The calf had become extremely frail and thin and so the Braj Animal Care team rushed to give him treatment. Unfortunately, the neglect had gone on too long and the calf lost his life. We’ve been told that this is the third calf to die in this way and we are monitoring the situation to ensure that others are not mistreated in this manner.

This heartbreaking case shows us how sadly, many people place very little value on the lives and wellbeing of our local animals and consider them only to be means to make money. 

Like a Child

A child will always try to help an animal in distress, but somewhere along the way, we grow jaded. We can’t help them all, so we don’t help any. For me, Braj Animal Care is about going back to that innocence of a child, because the offering of care is sacred in itself: a flame unto the sunlight of endless love.

Expect the Unexpected!

Today was a bit of a departure from the usual cases involving bulls, cows and dogs. A friend of Braj Animal Care discovered an injured baby nilgai, which is a type of wild antelope found in India.

The nilgai had been attacked by dogs and was bleeding badly. The team rushed to his aid and once the nilgai’s condition was stable, used our new e-rickshaw for the first time to transport the animal to safety. The e-riskshaw was purchased with funds raised from a sponsored walk through London, organised by our longtime supporter, Asmini Mehta. We express our gratitude to the whole group that took part in the walk in London.

Usually, neelgai are very shy, but he this one is unusually sociable. We think that he may have been kept by someone as a pet before escaping. Because he is so accustomed to humans, we have great hope for his successful survival in captivity. We will update you about him as his case develops.

Fully Recovered!

Two little puppies near the Imlitala temple had their legs broken when vehicles recently ran over them. One had a fairly clean break, while the other had its leg broken in two places. Luckily, though, a local monk took it upon himself to feed them and shelter them in an outdoor shed area, which made it a lot easier for them to recover.

We patched up their legs with splints and came every day to monitor their progress, changing the dressing when necessary. Medicines for pain and so forth were also given. Now both of them have recovered completely and are running around happily with their siblings. How wonderful it feels to actually make an impact in the lives of those so innocent and helpless!

Above and Beyond

Caring for street animals often means going beyond food and medicine. Yesterday, someond called us about a sick cow, but unfortunately we found that she was infected with rabies, which is always fatal. After she passed away this morning, we arrived on the scene to assist with safe transportation of her body for burial.