Rescue and Managing Street Animals in Nepal

Dear Supporters, 

Towards the end of 2016, HART ran a 3-day sterilization program in the Dang District and it was a huge success!

In total, 124 dogs were neutered- 59 were spayed and 56 were castrated. An additional 25 dogs were vaccinated. So we helped a total of 149!

The Ghorahi Municipality proved to be a great help in the spreading of the message in the lead up to the program. They put an advert in the local newspaper and spread the message about neutering on the local FM radio stations. It was very encouraging to see so many local people bringing their free-roaming dogs to our venue to get them neutered. 

Out of the 124 dogs neutered in the 3 days that we were open, 44% of the dogs were brought in by the people of the community. The other 56% were caught by the HART staff. 

We were very sad to learn that the strychnine poisoning of dogs was carried out in Dang District prior to our arrival. The DLSO claims that it was done without their consultation.

“The poisoning had to be done as the dog bite cases was going beyond control and the two major festivals were right at the door step and there was a huge pressure from community” says one of the officials who does not wish to be named.

At a meeting with the CEO of the Municipality, he was asked about the poisoning. He acknowledged that he was compelled to do it because of a huge pressure from the community, particularly because the dogs at chowks (intersections) were biting people and chasing motorbikes. He mentioned he’s already faced criticism from media and animal groups and realizes that the poisoning is a short term solution. We’ve discussed how the program can be conducted on a larger scale if we all collaborated (Municipality, DLSO and Animal Group). He’s assured us that he would sideline a budget for next year. 

Following our discussion with the DLSO and the municipality, we are positive that no stychnine poisoning will be repeated in Dang. There is also the possibility that the four municipalities in Dang may collaborate for Dog Population Management through neutering. 

Thank you to our HART supporters, who have contributed and sent donations to help us reach these districts!

With Gratitude, 
HART