Celebrated author and humourist Mark Twain once said, “The more I learn about people, the more I like my dog.” And, of course, who doesn't love these always-hyper, unconditionally-loving, tail-wagging creatures?
However, a recent upward spike in culling the stray dog population in Pakistan's urban cities has caused an uproar. While local civil authorities and municipalities are making an effort to help reduce the number of stray dogs, it is their method that is distressing for animal lovers.
The Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) and the Cantonment Board Clifton (CBC) are allegedly killing canines around the cities by feeding them poisoned meat. This leads the animals to suffer horribly for more than 30 minutes on average, as they writhe in pain and finally succumb to death.
A few days ago, some videos had surfaced on the social media wherein TV actress Muzna Ebrahim narrated how three of the four pye-dogs she had adopted were put to death by the authorities. She sobbed as she witnessed her beloved pets breathed their last.
Probably acting as the trigger, the tragic incident led to a metaphorical reactionary explosion on the Internet, both positive and negative, as comments poured in requesting the government to take action on this issue.
Celebrities also joined the cause, using their fame and Internet presence in a bid to raise awareness and push for a solution. Here are some of the prominent ones.
Among the famous names, morning show star Sahir Lodhi said that a win-win option is available for humans and dogs if KMC and CBC work hand-in-hand with animal rights activists and vets. Sara Haider, Zhalay Sarhadi, Ramsha Khan - alongside her adorable black pug, Ainy Jaffri Rahman, Anam Tanveer, Mansha Pasha, Simi Hussain Raheel, and Nida Butt also condemned the act, and asked people to stand up.
Video director Sohail Javed, interestingly, highlighted another important concern - that neither does anyone know where or how safely these dogs' bodies are dumped nor are they aware of potential diseases that may spread consequently.
He added that "the two-legged 'dogs' are scarier than these four-legged ones," throwing a jibe at systematic corruption.
Nevertheless, for a country to prosper, it is necessary to provide care and safety to all living creatures alike, as Javed aptly mentioned Turkey as an example, where, recalling from his trip earlier, he saw collared dogs and small, makeshift shelters at the street corners for cats.
In this regard, a group of animal-lovers, including pet-related organisations and renowned vets, have come together to stage a protest at the Karachi Press Club today (March 18) at 12 noon to halt inhumane dog culling activities and work towards better and safer ways out.