No one would have envisaged until November 3, 1957, that a dog will be orbiting around the earth. Laika, the first animal to orbit around the earth, was chosen from the street of Moscow. In November 1957, she was sent on the Soviet spacecraft Sputnik 2.
This mission was indispensable as it made scientists realize that a human can travel to space too. After surviving for four days, Laika sacrificed her life to overheating in the spacecraft. In 2008, a monument in her honour near the military research facility in Moscow.
Hachiko, a street dog of Tokyo, Japan, stands as an example of being loyal for more than nine years. Hidesaburo Ueno met Hachiko every day but one day, he died while working in his office due to cerebral haemorrhage. For the next nine years, Hachiko kept visiting the station daily, just in case Ueno shows up. The dog was held up in Japanese culture as an example of loyalty and fidelity.
Greyfriars Bobby, a Skype Terriers safeguarded his owner’s grave for more than 14 years until his last breath on 4 January 1872. Bobby’s story has been shown and published using various mediums such as digital and print. Also, a statue has been built in his honour and is now one of the tourist attractions.
Loyalty is something that we cannot borrow or filch from someone, it is something that comes naturally. The loyalty that dogs show cannot be collated with any other things, they will never run away when you are in problem, as Kilo did. Kilo, a 12 year Pit Bull, saved his owner by getting shot in the head.
Dogs also have a strong sense of tracking routes. A dog’s memory is much sharper than any other animal. Bobbie, also known as Bobbie the Wonder Dog, travelled more than 4,000 km to reach home. In 1923, Bobbie was attacked by three dogs, and to escape them, he ran away. Later on, realizing how far he has been, he, on his own, decided to trace the journey back.
Another quality that dogs are known for is their solid strength. Many countries have been inducting dogs in their military forces. These dogs have helped officers find and trace the objective left behind by the terrorist.
Coming to the street dogs in India, there are currently more than 35 million street dogs in India. These dogs find it very hard to survive. Some are killed because of being overrun by a vehicle or by being beaten by the locals or by some disease. Even in our building, there is a person who thinks that beating animals is fun. Even after saying many things to him, he just refuses to understand.
While this is the grim reality, there are hardly any measures taken by the government for the prevention of cruelty on animals and their safekeeping.