Reena Johney, who runs an animal shelter at Irumpanam in Thripunithura, says an old and frail German Shepherd was found abandoned at Kundanoor in Kochi a few days ago. “It was in a pathetic state, with fleas and ticks all over its body. One couldn’t recognise it as a German Shepherd. This is not a one-off event, I had received a similar call about an abandoned Labrador Retriever last day,” she says.
At her 1.5-acre farm where rescued animals are housed, she has 40 dogs, with a majority being non-native breeds and 15 among them being Labrador Retrievers.
With the latest case of an 11-year-old boy being mauled to death by street dogs in Kannur and the population of stray dogs being reported to be around 2.9 lakh in the State, people’s craze for non-native dog breeds might actually be worsening the issue.
