Holy Cow Stray Dog Menace & Feeding A Danger to Humans And Wildlife

Stray Dog Menace

Indian Wild Dog 

In Africa, stray dogs, and domesticated ones near major wildlife habitats like Maasai Mara are vaccinated against rabies and other deadly disease. 

Do we take such steps?

"My guess is as good as yours. I guess we do not," Well though it is difficult to say that such vaccination programs are not being carried out by authorities, nevertheless, the dog menace remains a big threat.  Dangers lurk the most in our urban areas and villages where the stray dogs roam free and multiply at will. 

Deer in Danger

They have started to form packs to hunt down the deer that roam in the forests and those that enter human settlements. Among the most threatened species is the chital deer or the spotted deer (axis axis). They are being hunted down by roaming dogs all over India.

Feeding Wild & Stary Animals

Indians have a penchant for feeding animals without discerning whether it is good or bad for them. Some consider feeding stray and wild animals as a sacred act that will reflect positively on health, wealth, and happiness as a result of good Karma. 

We consider the cow holy and that is good, nothing to ridicule. But should we let them survive on throwaways or garbage? Stray cows are a major danger on the roads everywhere, and an International Embarrassment, the owners after milking them leave them on the streets to roam around. The free-roaming cattle are jeopardizing traffic which is leading to a very high number of road accidents and deaths. Is this how we treat our holiest animal? 

Shelters for Stray Animals & Vaccination - Cows & Dogs

There should be proper shelters for street cows, and why not for stray dogs if we cannot sterilize and vaccinate them. For example, in absence of proper vaccination, the dairy industry is under threat from lumpy skin disease. The cattle around the reserves have led to the transmission of rinderpest, and foot and mouth disease killing a large number of bison and swamp deer in our forests.  

What impact disease-carrying stray dogs are having on the dhole has not been studied? Field biologists contend with research on the instincts and behavior of wild animals in natural surroundings. I hope they are including diverse threat factors especially socio-economic, and political impact created by dense humanity around our forests.   

Reason Behind Feeding Wild Animals 

Feeding human fodder to Hanuman Langurs, rhesus macaques, and other wild denizens impact their natural instincts and food consumption habit. I have seen scores of langurs and rhesus macaques lined along highways, tourist places, and busy streets of bazaars awaiting morsels thrown by humans. This unnatural assemblage has created a major threat and nuisance all over India.

Hinduism and many indigenous ideologies are inclined toward nature. The sacred elements it considers worthy of holy status comprise other life forms. This is a good belief since the ideology and religious dogmas teach us to respect all life forms that make up the living planet called Earth. 

Sensitivity towards other life forms is exalting, but there has to be a line drawn somewhere. Offering human food to stray dogs, or wild animals is not a good practice.  Animal adoption as in Zoos, or domesticating a stray dog is the answer. But this does not mean letting them free on the road, they should be offered sanctuary within the house as we do with the pedigree. This is the answer as some NGOs with a court injunction and our own ahimsa does not allow the culling of stray dogs. 

Threat to Dholes or Wild Dogs

The greatest threat is perhaps to the wild dogs or dholes in our reserves, and some nonprotected areas that constitute conventional reserve forests. The frequent human habitats in search of prey.

The wild dog population is vacillating in the reserve, and the forests outside. Even in Kanha, where I was working as a naturalist, the packs usually seen in robust numbers are missing from many traditionally dominated areas. Some of them are losing ground with humanity strangling the remaining crown cover in the buffer beside transmitted diseases. Is the reason behind the dwindling status? 

I think the same stands true for these least studied animals in other reserves and National Parks. 

Will they go down like the Great Indian Bustard, the Indian Wolf, and the Hyena in India?     

Interferences & Conservation Policies 

In India, conservation is impacted by statutory compliance as defined by injunctions, political interventions, and by the pressure of some biased NGOs. Nothing else matters, those Field Managers who do not comply with the limits are literary shown the boot by higher-ups, and the politically powerful lords. Field management practices for the wardens are not a free-hand endeavor, they work under shackles, some are good, while others hinder conservation initiatives.    

Conservation policies are not straight-lined policies as we the common citizen believe. The frameworks depend upon many factors that include the impact on financing bodies, vote banks, religious sensitivities, cost, linear development projects, and precedence to human rights over rights of other life forms. 

Some good work is being done on the conservation front by ruling dispensations. But! We are also responsible! Let us admit that we are selfish, and run after the moolah. And, the other life forms, the amazing biodiversity is entirely at our mercy as has been happening for centuries. Nothing Surprising.

But it is not right to blame everything on the Government we as common citizens should also aid in preserving nature in our vicinity, and help secure remaining natural spots in neighborhoods, villages, farmlands, towns, and cities with fervor. 

In most conservation imbroglios macro solutions work the best. Can we as intelligent voters provide them?   

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Uday has worked as a naturalist for a number of years at Kanha National Park in Central India. He is fond of writing on conservation issues and is a storyteller for the common man. 

Uday works as SEO for Digital Marketing and Content Writer. He also teaches digital marketing in Jabalpur. He is closely connected to nature as a naturalist.    

He can be contacted at:

Mob/Wattsapp: 09755089323

pateluday90@hotmail.com

Tiger Conservation: Cattle Conundrum

Holy Cow!

Considered as holy the cow is one of the most ill treated animal in India. Left vagabond on the streets to forage on waste and litter, the animal survives under deep stress and is ridden with ill health. Though there is no shortage of  organized cattle farms and gaushalas, the cattle left astray are owned by people who put forward a claim only whence milking is concerned. They are then left entirely on the mercy of the weather and waste and litter. They are a road safety hazards and a shame on us!

Why this neglect whence we consider it as the holiest of all animals ironically even above the critically endangered tiger?   

Cattle rearing practice is age old and along with other elements of livestock has been the main stay of the households all over rural India. Albeit little is known about beef consumption in earlier times the animals diary produce was always an important element of our existence. Due to its importance in our lives it was ordained a holy status and Hindus with vast majority being vegetarians began to revere it to the point that beef consumption became unthinkable.

But what role does the cow play in conservation especially the tiger conservation. Cows along with other livestock are left to forage in our wilderness. This practice has a detrimental effect since it  denudes forests and grasslands, increases biotic pressures and contributes to man animal conflict as well. 

Our forest ecosystems have been at the receiving end with severe denudation taking place. The wild herbivores have been the worst sufferers since rearing livestock (cattle, buffalo, sheep and goat) became widespread. Being an important means of sustenance this practice was never discouraged on the contrary it became an important industry. But unlike other countries this pastoral livelihood was only partially organized, the rest being tended by people who could ill afford investment in proper dairy farming. 

Gaur

Inability to feed their keep the poor and as a matter of opportunity for the affluent among the rural communities in most of the forested regions all found succor in the ample vegetation growing around their settlements.  The ravage still continues with no solution in sight.       

Tribal 

The effect of unorganized cattle rearing  with dependence on forests for food is reason for severe biotic stress and the herbivores have been the losers. Along with the cattle foraging in the forests the consequent tree felling has had a disastrous impact on our tiger reserves noticeably in the buffer.  The livestock also drains crucial water resources.

Another harmful consequence of this practice has been the increase in man animal conflict. Cattle whence they enter the forests to forage are susceptible to predator attacks especially from the tigers and to some extent from the leopards. In retaliation the carcass or half eaten cattle is poisoned leading to the death of the predator. This is a common occurance around our tiger reserves.    

In order to mitigate this conflict quick compensation is resorted to by the department with aid from NGOs. As a precautionary measure the cattle kill is quickly removed from the spot to a place where the predator cannot reach. This is done to avoid retaliatory poisoning by the owners. 

The preposterously huge numbers of cattle around our tiger reserves especially in the buffer zones is a major cause of concern. This is one of the serious threat to the ecosystem and results in reduced prey base due to stiff competition between the wild species and the livestock. While the formers practice of foraging leaves space for regeneration the livestock practice may not. In order to worsen the situation the herdsmen also resort to felling of trees in order to facilitate consumption by the livestock.

Being natural inhabitants of land since evolution the wild species are able to process seeds through their digestive system to facilitate regeneration. And apart from this they do not transmit disease organism which the livestock is wont to do. In fact wild animal diseases with man and livestock as carriers is a major concern in the arena of conservation.   

Disease like rinderpest, anthrax, foot and mouth disease are a severe threat to wild mammals and an outbreak has occurred many times at Kanha Tiger Reserve severely depleting the population of gaur. Though incidence of infectious disease borne by the livestock is not prevalent at the present juncture the threat remains.  

Every time I visit Kanha National Park I see large number of cattle foraging in the buffer zone. This number is inexplicable especially whence very little income is generated by the owners. The yield of milk is low and as a common practice only single crop of paddy is grown in the buffer. 

The restriction is limited to the core zone but who knows what happens in non tourism core area since nobody except the department is able to set foot there. Not leaving things to wild conjecture the core zone or critical tiger habitat is secure from the onslaught of  the livestock.    

Keeping in mind the human pressure it is unthinkable to impose restriction in the buffer zone. But nevertheless more organized dairy practises could be encouraged which would reduce biotic pressure. A better breed of cattle is essential if organized dairy as means of livelihood is brought into practice here. Until then the scourge remains.

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Uday Works As A Naturalist
He Writes on Conservation Issues
Mail: pateluday90@hotmail.com