There is this very strange relation between humans and animals that’s beyond explanation — on one hand, dogs are said to be a human’s best friend, we humans struggle to be the same for them. It goes without saying that, whether stray or pet, every animal deserves care and attention. In India, there are almost 35 million street dogs and everyday, hundreds of thousands of them struggle to get proper food. They are, more often than, not found scavenging here and there to get something to eat. And sometimes, when they do find something, we become their foes and shoo them away.
Of course, a sense of inferiority retains if we are not serving our own pet. This can be seen in conversations such as these:
“Look, it’s so ugly.”
“Yeah, its eyes are so frightening.”
“Let’s run away lest it run behind us.”
If we humans show a little affection towards these lovely creatures, they give you double that affection by licking your face or just sitting beside you. These are sweet gestures that they exhibit as a mark of affection towards you. But sometimes, people don’t see this. They just feel an amazing contentment while feeding these creatures and that is enough.
One such organisation that came forward to make this possible is Vrikshit Foundation, a Delhi-based non-government organisation headed by young people. With the aim of providing a healthy and a safe environment to everyone, Vrikshit Foundation is trying to touch the lives of people as well as animals. Recently, this foundation started a campaign for animals and branded it ‘Feed Animals On Street’.
From rescuing injured animals to feeding fragile ones, it has been an incredible journey. Stepping out and feeding six lakh street dogs, cows and buffaloes with a diverse team of volunteers made what the foundation has achieved possible. The goal is to feed one million stray animals, including cows and buffaloes and to not let them hunt for food in bins or streets.
Apart from this, they want people to be motivated to come out and put their best foot forward by not ignoring them or shoving them aside. They divided the volunteers into groups and fed animals in every nook and corner: near trash bins, for instance. The experience of looking at those scintillating eyes getting food renders us speechless. Their wagging tales indicate happiness upon receiving food.
Vrikshit Foundation is not alone in its efforts. There are five other organisations that are involved in feeding six lakh street animals: Animal Peers, Dog Walkies, Street Dog of Ranchi, Ashish Joshi and Strays of Delhi. They have been pooling in their resources and filling the lives of dogs and little puppies with food and joy.
Apart from this, Vrikshitians have not only cleaned 150+ locations, but also made people aware about waste management techniques. Moreover, Vrikshit collected tons of trash and recycled it. They started spreading awareness among the masses with their campaign, ‘#4RHERO‘, which stands for the four ‘R’s of waste management: Reduce, Recycle, Refuse, Re-use. For a clean and green environment, they have started an initiative called ‘#Vrikshit10kTreesChallenge’, with which they have planted 7,000 trees and counting till date, for more for a better and healthy environment.
With their work, they are trying to give their best. It’s our combined human efforts that can change the lives of strays and make them sleep contentedly, rather than hungry and tired after searching for food, getting sick or dying due to intoxication from garbage food. It is a combined human effort in the form of a daily strife that is needed to make our environment better. Some relationships do not have names and many a times, it is a simple gesture that makes human beings and animals smile.