Discrimination against street dogs started in British era: Agra rescuer

Agra (Uttar Pradesh) [India], December 12 (ANI): An Agra woman, who has been rescuing and rehabilitating stray dogs for nearly 40 years, has raised the issue of discrimination between the domestic and foreign breeds.
Vineeta Arora, who runs a non-government organisation that works for stray dogs, says street dogs are neglected and the foreign breeds are exploited. "I have written about the plight of the street dogs in my book Odyssey of street dogs. While researching for the book, I found out that this discrimination started during the British era."
She alleges that the majority of dog rescuers usually treat the animal after rescuing them and then leave them. "But I keep them at my shelter," Arora tells ANI, adding sometimes she even gets threats when she goes out to rescue dogs.
About the origin of her NGO, Arora states she started working for the stray animals more fervently after losing her pet animal in a road accident.
"After losing one of my most loved dogs in a road accident, I started the NGO and decided to focus my life on the service of the stray dogs. I, along with my husband, pooled all our resources to start this venture," she says.
On how it is different from others, Arora says other NGOs refuse to take the foreign breeds. "But I am against that notion. Once a dog is on the street, it doesn't make a difference whether it is a street dog or a foreign breed. Indian dogs can survive on the streets and but the foreign ones cannot."
"Unlike other NGOs, we don't leave the dogs on the street after giving them medical treatment. Now, we have even started a helpline number," she adds.
She reveals her zest for animal welfare has been there since her childhood days in Delhi.
"My company got registered in 2016 but I have been doing this work since my childhood days. When I came to Agra from Delhi, I picked up the work here with support from others. I always wanted to work for the welfare of the most neglected animals in the country, especially the street dogs," she says.
Lastly, she adds, they are looking for support from the government. (ANI)