AHMEDABAD, India – Does a city that routinely batters and abuses its street dogs, and then takes exception to criticism of its brutish behavior, deserve international respect? Certainly not!

Consider Ahmedabad, India, a six-century-old metropolis, home to six million people in Gujarat state. It's one of the biggest cities in a great nation, yet remains crude on animal welfare. A 45-year-old Canadian woman who dared to challenge the cruelty has become the target of a nasty backlash.

For two years, Lisa Warden, who adores dogs and campaigns for their wellbeing, has lived in India where her husband works. (She wrote our previous feature story, Life With, and Without, Pickles the Dog). There, she devoted much of her attention to promoting canine spay-neuter procedures and anti-rabies vaccinations.

One thing that constantly haunted Lisa in Ahmedabad was the dog-catchers' practice of using iron tongs to grip screaming animals by their necks or torsos and manhandle them, pick them up to load into vans or even drag along streets. (For video evidence, see: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IXdqO8Dd6kU).

The pincer-like tongs crush or pierce internal organs. Abdominal cavities tear open. Up to half the “caught” dogs die from internal bleeding.

The dog-catchers have been dumping their captives, scores of them each day, at a huge landfill on the city's outskirts where the animals face thirst, starvation and scorching heat. (See: http://vimeo.com/11261417). As dogs collapse and die there, others survive a little longer by gnawing on the remains.

Both the tongs and relocations violate national laws that say street dogs should be sterilized, vaccinated and returned to where they were found. As animal-rights activists explain, Ahmedabad's actions “serve no practical results. When dogs are removed from their locations, other dogs move into the vacated areas and fight to establish dominance. People inevitably get bitten in the crossfire. The practice of dislocating dogs actually puts humans at increased risk of dog bites and rabies.” Sterilizing and immunizing would better manage the street-dog population and prevent rabies.

Outspoken Lisa, the daughter of William Warden, a former Canadian high commissioner to India, gave media interviews and confronted city officials. Bluntly, she told them that unless they reformed, she'd campaign vigorously against Ahmedabad's bid for UNESCO status as a World Heritage City.

Lisa also visited the dog-catchers' headquarters and took away all the tongs she could find for destruction. She insists this was done in consultation and with agreement from the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation. The AMC says otherwise.

It's tough to fight city hall. Lisa's brother Scott gives us a grim update: “Unfortunately, Lisa is being viciously targeted by a despotic, rogue municipal authority. She inadvertently crossed them by exposing their illegal and unconscionable cruelty to the city's street dogs.”

As a result of challenging the municipality, Lisa has been charged with the likes of theft, misleading the public, obstructing public servants and slapped with a US$2 million defamation suit. If convicted, she may face a long prison stay.

“The same municipal authority is trying to get her India visa revoked…,” Scott said. “Lisa has a legal team and will fight the charges, but it will be a long battle.”

Lisa's supporters urge people to assist her and the dogs by signing an online petition. (http://www.petitiononline.com/dogtruth/petition.html). Facebook fans can join a group, “In Support of Lisa Warden”.

In recent days, Ahmedabad dog-catchers have switched from using tongs (presumably because Lisa removed them) in favor of nets. But the "dog-dumping" continues.

Dog abuse blots Ahmedabad's name. So does trying to silence a critical voice. Why should anyone visit a city that systematically abuses its animals? Could this be a world-heritage city? More like a “world-horrific city”, a kind of place that travelers may wish to avoid!


Dog-catchers use iron tongs on a terrified
animal. The pincer-like tongs crush
organs and cause internal bleeding.


Once taken away by the canine-catchers, most
dogs never return, at least not in this lifetime.

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