My Mommy loves chatting non-stop. Sometimes I wonder when she would keep her mouth shut so that I could go back to playing with my toys. All thanks to some fun twitter chats like the #SY5Chat she’s a bit held up on Tuesday nights. Shh… that’s when I chew on her stuff and tear off the newspapers. Anyway, this is how she became friends with Mehul who absolutely adores furry friends. Today she has invited him to grace this space. Time to get serious, you folks! I am so glad he decided to write on something really really important – Animal Welfare!
Over to you, Mehul…
I vividly reminisce Kalu Maharaj, Brownie and Billy making a dash to our building’s gate when I and Thakur would whistle out to them for feeding at night. Those were the days when neither Lalu, Goldy nor Misty Jr was around. The three would come scrambling down, wait with bated breath and gleaming eyes guessing what I had got for supper. I wouldn’t even know if anyone fed them in the day or not! Most probably not in this and every case out there. Back then I used to give milk and Parle G, but soon switched over to proper dog food once I learnt more about nutrition and the harmful effects of biscuits. And it also wasn’t a long while before I got all 3 of them their own bowls and ensured all food was always given either in these bowls OR on a paper. NOT on the bare ground. We took responsibility of all of them and took care like equals. A permanent water station was also installed in their building as well as mine.
Life trundled along and one major concern always used to be the premises they used to reside in. An old building replete with garbage and foliage in its verandah ensured Kalu Maharaj and Brownie always had ticks. In a metro like Mumbai, that building is a gross misfit. Careless, conservative and bickering residents added to the mix. Never gave a damn back then, now and the future. Then Lalu came along and all 4 were caught in territorial wars! Goldy was just a few months old then. I remember Kalu Maharaj and Lalu trying to woo her when she went in heat! Anyways, peace was made and the elder 3 were now restricted near the building premises. Also since they were growing old, they heard and saw less. And thus I began going into their building daily to feed.
The summer of ‘14 was when the moron ticks took a terrible toll on Kalu Maharaj. He had maggots in his ear(my first time with these slimy creatures) and we had to act quick. One of the many battles him and I emerged victorious from. Also, I was relatively new to animal welfare. So it was a learning curve in finding how animal welfare groups work, who are fellow volunteers in your area, are vets available, which medicines to give as the first point of action etc. We called a mobile vet but the job wasn’t great. At best, crude. Kalu Maharaj deserved better. Consulting a friend who runs a kennel in his building, got him to the BSPCA(Bombay Society Of Prevention Of Cruelty To Animals). Surprisingly, the ONLY animal hospital in India’s financial capital! Busted as many maggots we could, dressed him up and kept him there for a week before getting him back, fully recovered. BSPCA is notorious and you may have even heard that once you take your animal there, there’s no coming back. Along with Kalu Maharaj, I busted that notion. The indelible stench of maggot wounds was imprinted in my brain forever!
More attacks followed. Surrendering wasn’t in our blood. Kalu Maharaj cut through them with his sharp blades of herculean willpower and always came out on top. So much so that he even made the death look like a puppet in his hands!
Kalu Maharaj is the metaphor for the countless munchkins out there on our roads. For them, we are God. When you find any in distress, don’t rely on anyone. You are the one destined to ensure it gets help the fastest. Think of it as an opportunity in doing your bit for the planet. Give as much as you can and while at it, build knowledge about the same. Because in the end, its a win-win for all of us. Coming to think of it now, having seen, read and personally experienced umpteen experiences of residents or societies opposing animal feeding, trashing dead bodies in garbage, not bothering to pay medical attention when they see the poor things suffering etc, it’s no doubt a funny world we live in.
I fondly recollected more stories about him as I wrote this piece. Give me a shout if you want me to write them. One such tale was this one. Many of you will remember.
Kalu Maharaj isn’t gone. He lives on amongst all of us. And I hope wherever he is, if he’s reading this, must be vividly remembering us. An ode to the learning’s he left behind.
A paw5 to the clouds.
With a little gleam in the eyes.
A humble bow and gratitude to Shalini for giving me this opportunity and considering me worthy. A big hug to her and paw five to Muffy. 😀
Author’s Note:

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That’s all for now! Don’t forget to drop in tomorrow because…
This April I am taking over Mamma’s blog to share my pawsome puppy tales with you. You can expect helpful information, fun and interesting articles topped with a dollop of adorable pictures and videos of mine. I will also be calling some friends over. I hope you’ll join me on this journey for I promise to shower you with unconditional love and deliver a positive dose of dog everyday, this April.
Meanwhile, I also hang out on Instagram. Do follow me there.
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Alas Shalini, while I do love dogs, I’m afraid it doesn’t extend to strays. It’s all very well to look after stray animals but for God’s sake take them to YOUR HOME you animal lovers. Don’t feed them and leave them in front of OUR homes to bark all night long……
Oh, I don’t agree. While I know how “annoying” it is to find stray dogs in your street, howling all day and night and also that a few may be harmful even, I would definitely try to at least give them some food. Stray or not, I guess they deserve the same attention and care. If you cannot help them, and if it bothers too much, at least call an animal shelter to take them away from YOUR home.
I think our care of strays depends on where we live. I know in some countries there are way too many strays to gather up and house, so feeding, spaying and neutering, immunizing, if that, is the best that can be done. I’ve read articles and seen photos of “feeding stations” set up for cats and dogs in various cities, cities too poor to do more than feed. At least the animals eat. In an ideal world, all strays would be in homes, and in a less than ideal world, they’d be in shelters, but we don’t live in an ideal or less than ideal world, we live in one where the reality for many of the world’s strays is as written above. It’s not something I’m familiar with at all, but saw a bit of in Puerto Rico while on vacation. It breaks one’s heart.
The attitude of “don’t leave them in front of MY house…” is similar to the one many have towards homeless people, that of course they should be provided shelter, but “not in my neighborhood!”
Have some compassion! If a stray is barking in the night, find out why! Is it hungry? Injured? Lonely? Take it into your own house if you really love dogs!
Thank you, Lisa. Your compassion says a lot!
My dad used to look after a stray that wandered near where he used to go in the mornings. It started off as a light snack… Over years, that became daily meals from our house and then food for her pups later on too.
I’m not crying, you are!
Such a beautiful and heart warming post. We need more people like Mehul in today’s world. Dogs are the purest form of love and it would be our luck is we get a chance to spend some time with them. Strays or well bred pets, every dog deserves love, care and concern. Cal and I befriend every dog in our street and feed them regularly. If we see some maggots or bloating or anything out of the ordinary, we inform CUPA to come look at them.
Dogs deserve all the love and happiness in the world. I seriously don’t know what we humans have done to deserve them.
Such posts make me teary eyed…my heart goes out to the strays who get the worst deal in life. Thank god for the few kind souls who care for them and do the best they can. While we can not bring the strays into our homes, the least we can and should do, is feed them and care for them, for they too belong to our society. If we can feed and clothe the hungry street kids, we can do the same for the fur kids, too.
Pawsitively pawsome writeup Mehul. Paw5 to Kalu Maharaj!!! Your article made me remember all the roadies who have crossed the rainbow bridge.
We have a lot of stray dogs and cats on our streets. And there is this small group of animal lovers who feed them everyday, take care of them and keep a close watch on their health. I sometimes wonder what motivates them as animal lovers, and appreciate their dedication at the same time. Enjoyed the post.