Dog–A Loyal Friend or A Treacherous Enemy
Dalai Lama once said- “Our prime purpose in this life is to help others, And if you can’t help them, at least don’t hurt them”. We all understand this quote but are we really implementing it in our real lives? Are we helping others? And most importantly are we really not hurting them?
Ask these little creatures who feel threatened every now and then;who are beaten and pelted for no reason; who feel scared and endangered when they see humans passing by. For what humans do to them they never retaliate or express their grief instead they love them unconditionally and without expecting much in return. They are the most trusted and faithful creatures made by God yet they are considered to be a peril for the society.
By now you would have realized that I am talking about ‘Dogs’ –a vulnerable species
Being literate and civil, we humans should realize that just like us these stray dogs are also living creatures and they have every right to live on this planet. Just because there is no constitution in place for them, doesn’t mean we can exploit their freedom or their right to live peacefully.
I always wondered if ever‘Dogs could Talk’, how would they react to the behavior of humans towards them, how would they express their grief for the retaliation they have to face from us. With all these thoughts in my mind I started contemplating and found myself talking to one of the stray dogs. Here is my virtual conversation. Let’s see what he has to say about humans-
Hey Bro, We humans feel you are a menace to the society and we should get rid of you. Because you are callous and untrained, humans fear that you might attack them. What’s your take on this?
It’s true that we are untrained and nescient but that is purely because god made us so. It was written in our destiny and we had to accept it. As far as attacking humans is concerned, we would never do that unless and until they intend to harm us. We know there are few good people who feed us and why would we even think of attacking them and risk our own lives.
I think humans have already created a bad perception about us and that is the sole reason why they consider us a threat. But I would like to ask you a question, if a pet jumps on his owner it is considered as affection but if we express our gratitude likewise, they consider it a threat. Why is it so??
Sorry, I have no answer to your question. But I also know that you dogs run behind their vehicles and as a result they get scared. How would you explain this? Is it done on intentions to harm them??
Okay, but what about our security?? Every now and then our close ones die beneath their vehicles reason being over speeding or carelessness. At that time, do they even bother to stop their vehicles right then and there and to take our beloved ones to a hospital for treatment? No they don’t.
‘Just because we have nowhere to go, it doesn’t mean we are worthless, stop the killing of stray dogs’.
When we run behind vehicles, we don’t intend to harm them, it is done on purpose so as to caution them to drive slow and be a bit careful. We don’t want them to play around with so many precious lives. I truly believe-”Saving one dog won’t change the world, but the world will surely change for that one dog!”
Oh that’s sad!! You changed my perception buddy. Thanks a lot. And I promise you, I will try my best to ‘educate the uneducated humans’ about your sentiments and emotions.
A Thought to Ponder
It is said that “A Dog is the only thing on earth that loves you more than he loves himself”. Now the question is do we really deserve this love and affection? Are we repaying this selfless creature for his trust and fidelity towards us?
It’s high time that we realize our responsibilities towards the society. We are humans and we are considered to be intellectual and intelligent yet we behave as uncivilized creatures, whereas dogs have no source of literacy yet they know how to be civil and disciplined.
Dogs are not expecting much but “They just want to be loved; they just want not to be harmed by our cruelty”
Can’t we do this much for them??
NOTE:
It is absolutely legal to feed street animals and this order was passed by the Hon’ble High Court of Delhi on 4th Feb 2010. In fact citizens/animal welfare volunteers who choose to do so are performing a duty cast upon them by the Constitution of India- of showing compassion to all living creatures.
(To read more about Rights of Indian Street dogs visit link-https://jaagruti.org/information-to-empower-you/indian-street-dogs-and-their-rights/ )
