Going to the dogs
“…And then what happened, Nyondo?”
Well, after the events of the last post, I heard through a friend that the veterinarians who’d spayed the dogs and then left town hadn’t gone far–only to Dharamsala, a 7 hour drive away. (This counts as “close by” in Rewalsar, which is remote enough that Chandigarh, “only” 4 hours away, seems next door.) Supposedly, at least one vet came back for follow-up. Some other people came to town, and a local man showed them around the kora path, stopping to take a look at any dogs they spotted along the way.
The thing about kora is that it not only allows you to fulfill your religious obligations, but also provides an opportunity to meet up with friends and have a cup of tea. This is how news gets around town. If I didn’t go on kora, I wouldn’t know anything. But, back to the dogs…
“Dehisce” is a very neat, very precise medical term that describes the messy process of a surgical incision that’s supposed to stay closed but doesn’t. I think about 7 to 10 dogs were spayed, and out of those, two suffered the horrific and fatal results of dehiscence. Meantime, people seem to be much more aware of the town dogs, and are keeping a weather eye on the survivors,
making sure no others die the same way.
The following morning, while on kora I encountered two Tibetan ladies administering meds to one of the dogs who’d been spayed. They told me the dog was doing well. They were applying one oral medicine–at a guess, an antibiotic–and also applying an Ayurvedic topical ointment to the incision on the dog’s belly. In India, Tibetan and Ayurvedic medicine is as respected as Western medicine, so Ayurvedic animal medicines are available. The dog was complacent, and seemed perfectly happy to be doctored.
In the West a vet with a 20-30% mortality rate on spaying operations would not stay in business for long. Here, though, where sterile technique consists of washing with bottled water, and pet supplies are a 12-hour bus ride away, it’s surprising more dogs weren’t lost. It’s possible the European vets assumed there would be more resources available for the dogs’ aftercare than there actually was.
On the other hand, the Indian government considers poisoning dogs with strychnine to be a reasonable method of population control. This method is also an extremely painful way for the dogs to die, and has a 100% mortality rate.
The whole experience has been something of a painful lesson in how not to carry out a spaying/neutering program. But there are enough canine survivors around town that a program might seem worth while.
And next time, both the dogs and the people are likely to be better prepared for the operations….
I meant to ask before, but were the dogs marked in any way to indicate which ones had been spayed? The generally accepted standard for this kind of situation is to cut the tip of the ear, as it generally heals well and can usually be readily checked to identify animals that have already been done. Saves on unnecessary surgeries & anesthesia.
Comment by Mel | May 28, 2007