Kashmir Couple Rescue 1000+ Animals, Use Financial savings to Construct Them a Haven

It’s one other Monday in Srinagar, Kashmir, and for Dawood Mohammad and his spouse Mariya Mushtaq, it means one more day of calls from individuals who have noticed an injured animal. 

Being one of many solely few rescue centres within the valley, Dawood says that the work at Animal Rescue Kashmir is endless however he wouldn’t have it every other manner. 

It began in 2017 when he returned to Srinagar from London, the place he was working and learning and seen the prevalence of cases of animal cruelty within the valley. This animal lover would usually rescue canine within the neighbourhood that have been damage by serving to them get medical support and even distributing meals. 

With time, his space of focus expanded. Right this moment, not simply folks within the neighborhood but in addition these throughout the valley attain out to Dawood after they spot an animal that wants assist. 

And he at all times obliges. 

Mariya and Dawood run Animal Rescue Kashmir, a enterprise that was began in 2018, that goals to alleviate the sorry plight of animals within the Kashmir Valley. 

A necessity to assist wounded animals

Pondering again to the time he first started serving to animals, Dawood says he noticed that the inhabitants of stray canine was the very best. 

“I usually seen that these canine have been contaminated with mange. It was a typical sight, albeit pitiful,” says Dawood, including that he seen this on nearly each avenue. Not having a lot of a medical background himself, he determined to seek the advice of a veterinarian and browse up about this situation on the web. 

“Primarily based on the recommendation of the vet, I might give these stray canine the medicines that may assist their discomfort,” he says. 

Recounting the first-ever rescue he did, he says it was of a paralysed pup close to his dwelling. “The pup’s hind leg wasn’t okay and on nearer remark, I found that its physique was inflicted by a number of wounds and these had maggots in them.” 

Dawood instantly rushed the pup to the vet and following the go to, stored the animal with him for a yr and a half. 

“This incident modified me,” he says. “I couldn’t cease myself from serving to animals.” 

Dawood and Mariya have been fuelled by a typical zeal and determined to start out a enterprise that may assist them carry out rescues in a deliberate method, and in addition deliver the animals to a centre the place they might be stored till they felt higher. 

‘The enjoyment of doing rescue work is unparalleled.’ 

The duo went on to assist many such unvoiced creatures, typically with medical support and different occasions by merely taking excellent care of them on the rescue centre. The area was given to them by the native municipal company and is about 200 sq ft.

Among the many many circumstances they’ve seen, Dawood says there are two he holds very near his coronary heart. One is of a younger mare. 

“Her leg was fractured and damaged. The proprietor had tied nylon strings round its hind legs to forestall the mare from operating away whereas she grazed,” says Dawood. He provides that the nylon had reduce into the bone of the leg, thus stopping the helpless creature from transferring. 

When he acquired a name from a passerby who had seen the animal, Dawood knew he needed to do one thing to assist.

“From our information of animal rescues, we had learnt that tending to a horse’s leg when fractured was no straightforward activity. It could be a miracle even when the animal managed to outlive.” 

On going to the vet, they have been knowledgeable that the leg must be amputated. Julie, the mare, would reside with three legs. As Dawood provides, she lived with them for 2 years on the rescue centre the place they taken care of her properly. 

One other rescue was that of a canine.  

“One wet day we acquired a name {that a} canine was caught in a pool of water on a close-by floor. Once we reached the positioning, her state was pitiful. Half of the animal’s physique was caught within the water and the canine wasn’t capable of make her manner out,” says Dawood.

On examination, when he went into the water, Dawood found that the canine was unable to maneuver as her hind legs have been tied collectively. She had been thrown into the water by somebody. 

What additionally they figured was that she was a lactating mom and thus started to search for her pups across the space. However the rain made it inconceivable. So, Dawood took the mom to his rescue shelter. 

The subsequent day, on going again to the sphere, they noticed 4 pups that resembled the mom and picked them up in a field and took them to the shelter.

“As quickly as we dropped them in entrance of their mom, they have been so pleased,” says Dawood. Whereas the mom handed away after two months after this incident, two of the pups have been adopted, whereas the opposite two have been stored on the rescue centre. 

‘Each rescue is an achievement.’ 

Serving to a unvoiced creature at all times comes with a way of satisfaction, says Dawood. He provides that what he and his staff are doing is important as there usually are not many rescue operations within the valley. 

“We’re essentially the most energetic and the face we now have will not be our personal, however of the animals.”

In his rescue work, Dawood is joined by his spouse Mariya. She says in her expertise “it has been transformational to have the ability to assist animals in want”. She provides that with the ability to save a soul which might do nothing for you in return has been an awakening expertise. 

She says, “We are sometimes requested – why not assist people as a substitute? This provides us an concept of how necessary it’s to let folks know in regards to the sufferings and plight of animals.” She provides that with the rise of incidents involving man-animal conflicts day by day,  she believes if they’ll make modifications in folks’s behaviour in direction of animals, many issues may be solved.

Together with Mariya, there are three different folks in Dawood’s staff. 

The way in which the rescue operations work is straightforward. The staff’s numbers are on social media and folks within the valley are conscious of them. 

“Folks contact us via name or WhatsApp and since we might not at all times have the ability to go on-site, we ask them for footage and movies. This helps us get an concept of the severity of circumstances,” says Dawood. 

As soon as he receives the main points and might assess the state of the animal, he will get his employees collectively and so they plan on the way to go about it. He says, “We do not have transport of our personal, and so we contact load carriers and auto drivers and ask them to come back to the shelter and cargo the tools such because the cages, medical tools, bandages, iodine, and many others. or within the case of bigger animals, ropes, grass to lure animal, and many others. We then go to the positioning and take the animal to the vet or the shelter.”

On the shelter, canine are given meals twice a day. The meal contains rice combined with pulses and soybean, and typically even non-vegetarian meals. Horses and cows are given hay and dry grass fodder. 

He provides that the largest problem they face is an absence of ambulances and area. The area too is small and overcrowded, rising the probabilities of cross an infection. 

Moreover, adoptions are a priority. “Although we put up posts on social media, so folks can come and undertake, there are many social stigmas right here as conserving canine will not be a achieved factor in a Muslim majority group.”

Up to now, the shelter has helped 1,200 animals, says Dawood including that they obtain 8 to 10 calls a day and might do round three to 4 rescues. 

“Presently, we are attempting to lift funds to get ambulances so we will attain the locations on time and even at odd occasions when transport is probably not obtainable,” says Dawood, who funds the enterprise via the earnings of the clothes retailer that he runs. “The yearly bills quantity to Rs 20 lakh and thus funds are of utmost significance.”  

Should you want to be part of Dawood’s endeavour to avoid wasting and rescue animals, you may donate right here. 

Edited by Yoshita Rao