Bitten by dog, Spaniard to ask consulate to issue advisory on Goa stray menace

PANAJI: Spanish tourist Maria Zapata considers walking on the beach one of her favourite pastimes.
But on Sunday evening, while taking a leisurely stroll along the Rajbagh beach in Canacona, an unfortunate encounter with a pack of aggressive stray dogs left the 61-year-old shaken and scared.
"I was not running, I was just walking into the water when I saw four dogs running towards me. In no time, I was bitten on both knees," she said. "The ordeal continued for almost 20 minutes as the dogs refused to budge." She said she was able to escape and go home only after a local came to her aid and drove the dogs away with a stick.
The Spaniard said that she would write to her consulate asking it to issue an advisory or warning to tourists about the stray dog menace in Goa.
‘No end to stray dogs, we see more puppies daily’
On one side, there were four ferocious dogs, and on the other side, waves were crashing into me. Every time I tried to get out of the water, they would try to get to me,” said Zapata. “I panicked and didn’t know how to react. The only way I could protect myself was by getting deeper into the water, and that’s what I did until help came. ”
Zapata, who can’t say if she was bitten by one or more dogs, was later treated at the public health centre for free. “I wanted to pay, but they didn’t charge,” she said.
While Zapata is now healing, she no longer feels confident of walking without a stick in hand.
She said that in Goa, she has seen a lot of street dogs, and added that recently, a neighbour of hers was bitten by adog. “There is no end to the problem. We see more and more puppies every day. It is a huge problem, and people are scared to step out,” she said.
Zapata isn’t the only tourist concerned about the straydog menace. Mother-of-three Summer Preston was also bitten by a stray in Palolem a few months ago. The British national said the same dog recently attacked a young girl, and continues to roam the area. “In the UK, if such an incident were to happen, authorities would immediately lift the dog in question,” she said.
But it isn’t just the village but also the uber-popular Palolem beach which is full of dogs. “I was informed by friends that one child was bitten by a dog at Palolem beach yesterday,” she told TOI. “The parents were some distance away when the incident happened. ”
Preston and Zapata concur that authorities need to take urgent action to contain the stray dog population.
Meanwhile, Drishti Lifesaving, the state-appointing lifeguard agency, said that it occasionally gets complaints from visitors about stray dogs’ aggression, as well as injuries caused by their bites
“The stray dog menace is present on almost all beaches. On some beaches, they function in packs,” chief operating officer of Drishti Lifesaving, Navin Awasthi, told TOI.
He said that the problem is aggravated by both tourists and other beachgoers regularly feeding stray dogs.
Awasthi said that Drishti provides first-aid to dog bite victims and then refers them to the nearest public health centre for further examination. He also said that animal rights associations could be involved to play a larger role in tackling the issue of free-roaming dogs on beaches, as they are a threat to the public.
Sushma Naik, who goes for a walk along Arambol beach every day, said that some people walk on the beach with eatables to feed dogs. “If they are so concerned about stray dogs, they should sterilise them. ”