Asked to vacate her rented house near Chottanikara in less than a month, 43-year-old Manjusha has no clue what to do with her 40 stray dogs, half of them puppies.
Reluctant to dump them back in the streets, her desperation to find takers for her dogs, many of them badly injured, has borne little result so far. “I am planning to ask for an additional month’s time to vacate,” said Manjusha though that looks far-fetched since by her own admission, there is a backlog of rent.
She brought home the first stray four years ago estranging her own family, forcing her into the rented house. Having started feeding dogs seven years ago, she still continues the work across Chottanikkara, Thripunithura, and Mulanthuruthy, thanks to the benevolence of traders at the Thripunithura market who give her leftover chicken, and the community of similarly passionate feeders.
Prasanna Kakkassery, a resident of Kadavanthra, feeds around 80 strays a day notwithstanding the financial constraints of retired life. “These dogs have become so friendly and keep waiting for me at the feeding points at regular hours without fail,” said Ms. Kakkassery who has hired an autorickshaw for her two-hour-long feeding spree across the city.
Mohana Nandakumar from Thripunithura has been into it for 14 years and cooks 4 kg of rice daily and splits it into 30 packs for as many strays at different feeding points across the temple town. Notwithstanding the rigours of advancing age, the 56-year-old could not resist the urge to return to strays in the company of her husband.
“Their excitement on seeing us and their chase after our scooter is a sight to behold. Even when we go to visit our son in Chennai, we make sure that they are fed by someone else,” she said.
All these feeders bemoaned in unison the hostility of the community towards strays and to the ones feeding them. “These dogs are by nature not aggressive but are made so by the cruelty of society towards them. Even cops stopped me from feeding a few hungry stays near the railway station in violation of the Constitutional provision professing compassion for all living creatures,” said Ashwini Prem, another avid feeder.
