India: Save or Kill Stray Dogs?

What should be done when there are many stray dogs and at the same time a great deal of compassion for animals within society?

The animals tug at clothing, biting the boy on his arms, legs and face. The five-year-old later dies. According to media reports, this occurred, for example, in March in the Indian city of Hyderabad. Similar reports appear in Indian media every few days. As a result, advisory articles have also emerged. “How do you protect yourself when a stray dog attacks? Here are 5 tips,” the Hindustan Times recently wrote. It advised, for example: avoid direct eye contact, keep your distance, do not run away.

The Indian constitution in principle emphasises the coexistence of humans and other living beings, as well as compassion towards them. Stray dogs, cats, cows and monkeys are regularly seen on the streets of Indian cities. But the numerous attacks by stray dogs have repeatedly led to criticism of the government’s sterilisation programme for stray dogs, with some calling for more drastic measures such as the targeted killing of dogs in order to bring the problem under control.

Those in favour of killing stray dogs argue that this does not take place in a brutal manner and is also practised, for example, in the United States. A dog needs an owner to care for it. If that is not the case, it must be taken to a shelter. From there it can either be adopted or possibly euthanised. Last year, the state of Kerala sought to obtain permission from the Supreme Court to kill certain dogs — but the request was rejected.

“When violence the mistreatment of animals cannot be condoned, that does not mean one must allow dogs free passage on the streets», writes urbanization expert Ramanath Jha of the think tank Observer Research Foundation in the capital New Delhi on his organization's website: «There are constant reports from many cities about deaths, bites and vicious street dogs. This makes life dangerous and difficult – especially for children and the elderly.»

More than 1.9 million dog bites

Jha argues that the government's dog sterilization program has so far failed to achieve its goal of reducing the number of street dogs. The costs of the program are high and there is too little funding available.

The sterilization program is financed by local governments and private donations. It is carried out primarily by non-governmental organizations. They sterilize street dogs and vaccinate them against rabies.

The non-governmental organizations, as well as dog lovers and animal welfare advocates, are angered by the circulating proposals for culling. Ayesha Christina of the non-governmental organization Neighbourhood Woof in New Delhi says, for example: «It is a good system. It simply needs to be implemented more effectively and more broadly.» She adds: «Some critics say only aggressive and biting dogs should be killed. But who can accurately determine which dogs those are?»

According to government estimates, there were approximately 15.3 million street dogs in India in 2019. The country has around 1.4 billion inhabitants.

Several experts believe the dog count is too low. Veterinarian Gowri Yale of the non-governmental organization Mission Rabies is quoted by the «Times of India» as saying: «In 2016, we started working in Goa and were told that there was an estimated dog population of 30’000. But we found that the population was around 130’000.»

According to data presented in the Indian Parliament, more than 1.9 million dog bites were reported in 2022. However, many believe that the actual number of unreported cases is much higher.

WHO: Up to 20’000 deaths from rabies

The World Health Organization (WHO) also estimates that between 18’000 and 20’000 people die from rabies in India every year – accounting for roughly one third of rabies deaths worldwide. The disease can normally be prevented with a vaccine. It is transmitted to humans through saliva, primarily from dogs.

Dogs are by nature actually friendly and only attack in exceptional situations, emphasizes Ambika Shukla of the organization People for Animals, which also participates in the sterilization program. For instance when male dogs are in heat, or when females have just given birth and want to protect their young. Or when other dogs enter their territory. “The government program helps in all these situations through sterilization and vaccination,” says Shukla.

The debate over street dogs remains fierce in the Indian media and on social media. The government hopes to bring the rabies problem under control by 2030. Ayesha Christina of Neighbourhood Woof in New Delhi finds achieving this goal difficult. Animal lovers feed the street dogs every day – which does nothing to reduce the population. More on the topic Animal welfare and Animal rights.

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