Government of Kerala should DROP the decision to cull stray dogs

Hundreds of dogs will be lynched, poisoned and beaten to death, in the next few days. This is happening because the State of Kerala has decided to control their dog population by culling street dogs.

The Kerala government is planning to kill "rabid and dangerous" stray dogs on its cities' streets in an attempt to control the stray dog population and to address dog bites. But since any dog, even one who is just playing or barking, can be arbitrarily labelled "dangerous" by people who do not like or understand only dogs, officials essentially seem to be planning a mass-slaughter programme. Also, statistics show that stray dogs were not even responsible for the majority of the bite cases reported by General Hospital Ernakulam between 1 January and 12 July 2015. In fact, companion dogs, not strays, were reportedly the cause of 75.6 per cent of the bite cases. 

This method of dog control is not cruel but also completely ineffective. Dogs from surrounding areas will simply move in to take the place of those who are killed, and they'll reproduce, creating even more stray dogs. In India, stray dogs have been killed by poisoning, which causes immense suffering and a slow, agonising death.

According to Dr Kishore Kumar K J, a veterinary surgeon in Kerala, killing stray dogs will not solve the problem. "Unless issues of garbage and irresponsible dog owners are addressed, there will be no solution to the issue", he says.

The Animal Birth Control (Dogs) Rules, 2001, mandate that governments sterilise and vaccinate stray dogs and then put them back where they were found. The only humane and effective way to address Kerala's stray dog population is by implementing a comprehensive animal birth-control programme, as required by these rules. Sterilising stops the problem at its source by preventing more dogs from being born only to end up on the streets.

Under an effective sterilisation and release programme, dog populations become stable, non-breeding and rabies-free and they gradually decrease over a period of time. Sterilised dogs are less likely to fight over territory or a mate or have puppies to protect, and they are less likely to bite people.

Sign this petition and ask Chief Minister of Kerala Oommen Chandy to withdraw his barbaric decision to kill stray dogs instead of working out and implementing feasible solutions to control the population.

If the State Government has failed to bring the dog population under control by regular sterilization, does it justify this inhumane practice of culling? The decision to cull street dogs is in strong violation of the principles laid out in the Constitution of India. Such acts are considered criminal and reprehensible.

Sign the petition and ask Chief Minister of Kerala Oommen Chandy to withdraw his barbaric decision. Animal Welfare Board of India and Maneka Gandhi, ensure that hundreds of innocent dogs don't die because of this decision.

Kerala has the highest literacy rate in India but these acts show things on the contrary. The processes and measures to be adopted for controlling animal population are easy and extremely doable.

If thousands of us sign this petition, we can show the Kerala Government that India wants them to stop this barbaric decision. Hundreds of dogs depend on us raising our voices for them.

Sign and share this petition.

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