Pitbulls, which were originally bred for bull-baiting where the dog fights bulls, are strong, high-energy dogs that have specific needs when it comes to care and training. (Representational)With recent incidents of pitbulls having attacked people, including children in Delhi-NCR, the breed is increasingly being abandoned by pet owners.
Geeta Seshamani, co-founder, Friendicoes, an organisation that helps find homes for abandoned pets, works with street dogs, and runs a shelter in Delhi, said, “We had a spate of abandonments, up to five a week, soon after the Lucknow episode. Even now, there’s a relentless flood of requests to take in pitbulls or Bully Kuttas rescued in bad shape.” In July, a pet American Pit Bull Terrier attacked an 82-year-old woman in Lucknow, and she eventually succumbed to her injuries.
Seshamani said that they had rescued two Bully Kuttas in two weeks and the dogs were injured. Some abandoned dogs have also come with skin problems and maggots, and are emaciated, she added.
Pitbulls, which were originally bred for bull-baiting where the dog fights bulls, are strong, high-energy dogs that have specific needs when it comes to care and training.
The recent abandonments have, in fact, been an eye-opener on how many homes had the breed as a pet, Seshamani said.
Tandrali Kuli, who also works with Friendicoes, said that with an increasing number of pitbulls being abandoned, the organisation now deals with around three such animals every week.
Kirtana, a rescuer working out of Delhi-NCR also said that there has been a clear, unprecedented increase in recent months of pitbulls being abandoned or needing rehoming due to the accidents. Kirtana said she knows of an average of around two to three abandoned pitbulls every week. The numbers were lower before the recent incidents – around one or two such cases a month – she added.
In March, Saniya, 18, rescued Maximus, an American pitbull terrier that was found abandoned, tied to a tree in Noida. The dog, around a year and a half old now, has not been adopted yet, and with the recent news, it is even more difficult to find a home for it, she said. The dog was anxious soon after its rescue and needed training and conditioning, said Nikita, who is fostering it.
Finding suitable homes for abandoned pitbulls has been difficult, Kirtana said. Since they are usually abandoned when they are no longer small, the abandoned dogs often develop separation anxiety and other behavioural disorders, she said. “People did not try to understand what may have triggered the pitbulls in question, that the animals in the news may not have been walked, or given breed appropriate mental or physical exercise. The pets they had at home then became a danger in their minds,” Kirtana said.