Just in time for Independence Day (15 August), People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India has placed a billboard in Delhi as well as in Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata, and Mumbai encouraging people to get patriotic by adopting a lovable Indian dog from the streets or an animal shelter, rather than adding to the homeless-animal crisis by patronising breeders and pet shops that sell foreign pedigrees.
The Delhi billboard is located at Minto Road Crossing, Connaught Place, towards New Delhi Railway Station.
PETA India Senior Campaigns Coordinator Radhika Suryavanshi, said, “It’s irresponsible for anyone to breed or buy animals when millions of homeless Indian dogs and cats are languishing on the streets and in shelters,”
“Every time someone buys a ‘foreign’ purebred puppy or kitten from a breeder or pet shop, a desi animal loses a chance at finding a loving home.”
Pedigree dogs sold in pet shops and by breeders are typically deprived of proper veterinary care, adequate food, exercise, affection, and socialisation. Meanwhile, community dogs and cats often starve or are injured, abused, or hit by vehicles. Countless others are left to languish in animal shelters because there aren’t enough good homes for them. That’s why PETA India advocates for adoption and urges guardians to have their dog and cat companions sterilised.
Celebrities Madhuri Dixit, Alia Bhatt, Sonakshi Sinha, Raveena Tandon, Trisha Krishnan, Dino Morea, and Imran Khan are among those who have urged their fans to choose adoption of community cats and dogs by working with PETA India.