Steady increase in the migration of dogs from outskirts
Street dogs
Hyderabad: Improper disposal of waste food by city hotels and residents is helping increase the stray dog population. Studies show there is a proportionate worsening of the dog menace to public life in the city. The more such waste, the more the problem.
Estimates have it that Hyderabad’s waste food is in the order of '1 crore a day in its original form is helping stray dogs thrive.
With a steady growth in the food availability, there is a matching increase in the migration of dogs from the outskirts. In normal course, each female dog can reproduce five to six pups, resulting in a phenomenal increase in the number of strays. This is the second season of mating during the year.
On an average, a stray dog lives on one wasted meal a day, its material costing between '10 to '20. Going by a 2011 survey, there were five lakh plus dogs in the city. They survived on wasted food wo-rth '30 crore a month. This, by implication, meant as much of food is wasted by residents and hotels.
“Wasted food sustains so many stray dogs, monkeys and even rodents. This also attracts flies and mosquitoes which build a sort of eco-system for spread of diseases. Street dogs tend to become aggressive and rabid. Sterilising them would help only to an extent. That does not stop migration of strays from outlying areas, especially as long as garbage is left unattended. In fact, bins on the city roads are a major source of food for strays,” said an expert, who had participated in a survey on the waste food generated in the city.
Hyderabad has over 20,000 eateries including school and college canteens, street vendors and other pushcarts. A lot of waste is generated at marriage halls, where the food would mostly be in excess of the actual requirement, and then thrown away as waste. Some 50 per cent of the food joints take a casual view and do not dispose of their waste as per standards set by the GHMC.
Experts say people should dispose of food properly, which will curb the growth of stray dogs, and prevent diseases.
( Source : deccan chronicle )
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