Mumbaikars show up in large numbers for pet adoptathon

Anyone who has a pet dog or cat will tell you how a single woof or mew melts away the stress. And if you’re planning to get a pet for yourself, how about going in for a rescue or street animal? This is exactly the message that the mega pet adoptathon in Mumbai wanted to drive home. Close to 4,000 Mumbaikars, including celebs, headed to the weekend camp at

Bandra

on Saturday and Sunday. BT, too, dropped by to get a load of canine and feline love…

‘Aim is to increase co-existence between stray animals and Mumbaikars’The large school assembly area at St Theresa’s Boys High School, Bandra, wore a warm vibe with stalls set up with everything dedicated to animals. If there were experts talking about dog grooming and behaviourists and vets doling out advice to pet parents, there were people selling pet accessories like toys and collars, a kenelling stall etc. Said

Taronish Bulsara

, social entrepreneur and president and founder World For All, “The aim is to encourage co-existence between stray animals and Mumbaikars. So, besides making the event a nice meeting ground for prospective stray animal parents, the stalls were actually one-stop adopts. New pet owners realised the vast food choices available for their animals at a dabba food service stall. Also, only registered stray animals, who were pre-groomed and vaccinated, were allowed. We had so many queries that people, who could not be accommodated in this event, were asked to come back in January.”

Taronish, who has a puppy and a three-legged dog at home, feels that pet lovers in the city can step up and do more. “Mumbaikars need to be kinder to strays and be more open to adopt them. It’s not tough. For instance, everyone may not be able to provide the lifestyle needed for a dog, but cats are fuss-free; you don’t have to walk them or bathe them either. Apart from being a pet owner, there are many other ways you can help the cause such as volunteering and donating. Give strays a bowl a water and let them take shelter in buildings. You see a dog injured, just call an animal ambulance. The bottom-line is that if you can’t help, at least don’t harm. It’s also not about how much you like animals, it’s about how human you are.”

Making a ‘pawsitive’ impact The adoptathon saw the whole community of animal lovers gather together for different reasons — some to adopt or learn about what it entails, yet others to get their pets some grooming and some, to take a few petfies (pet selfies). Says Dadar resident Karyesh Patel who adopted a pet on Saturday, “This is the first time I am adopting a pet. When my wife Sherry and I arrived here at the event, we just walked in and looked at the first dog, the calmest one there, and wanted to adopt him. He is a white stray with a slightly deformed leg. I told him, ‘You are going to be the calm factor in my life and I am going to be your mad owner’,” he laughed, adding, “It’s such a warm feeling to see others also adopting these strays, they too deserve a home. More Mumbaikars must come forward to take care of strays.”

Rupali Singh Tewari, her husband and daughter decided to adopt two stray dogs — Dawn and Mischief. “Now they are called Dawn Tewari and Mischief Tewari,” she says, adding, “I’m also planning to take a day off next week to settle them into our home. Earlier, we had pedigree dogs, but this time we wanted to adopt strays.”

For many, it was a wonderful chance to be among the animals. Stylist Janvi Turakhia finds it tough to keep a pet as she has a busy work schedule. “I love animals, but I don’t have enough time on hand to take care of a pet. So, this event was perfect, it was an enriching experience to be with the animals here. I am dog person and my heart melted to see these cute canines here. They are friendly, affectionate and can fit into any family. I have hugged almost all the pets here," she says.

Param Parikh, a first-year management student, decided to volunteer at the event. “I love cats,” he says, adding, “I’ve always helped strays in my area by giving them food and shelter, even going out in the rain with an umbrella to rescue them. So, one can make even small efforts, which will make such a difference to the animal."

With over 100 adoptions having taken pace at the close of the event, it sure seems like Mumbai is all-heart for its four-legged tykes.