India and Sri Lanka have a long and complex relationship with street dogs, with community tolerance and dog welfare often being directly impacted by fear of rabies and bites. Additionally, dog ownership has increased rapidly in the region, but a lack of understanding ofa dog’s needs has led to high incidence of maltreatment and abandonment, adding to street dog numbers. 

But coexistence is possible, and by focusing on this region, we aim to achieve healthy, stable and managed dog populations, which live in communities with collective knowledge about animal welfare, while having access to professionals for assistance.  

Key issues

Limited veterinary services  

Companion animal veterinary care and surgical skills development has historically lacked in the region’s veterinary training, culminating in a shortage in the number of high-quality veterinary services needed to allow for sufficient humane management of owned and unowned dogs. Owners are also less likely to be encouraged by private vets to spay and neuter their pets, with cost also being a main barrier.  

High rates of Rabies 

Dog-mediated rabies in India accounts for 59% of human rabies deaths in Asia and whilst rates are lower in Sri Lanka, rabies is still endemic and the cause of human death annually. Fear of rabies often drives negative behaviour towards dogs, leading to cruelty, relocation and culling.  

What we’ll do:  

We want to see free-roaming dogs coexisting in numbers which are acceptable to community members and the authorities. 

We want dogs to be provided with timely and appropriate veterinary care to ensure their lives are not burdened by breeding, illness or injury.  

We want a rabies free India and Sri Lanka where the annual rabies vaccination of owned and unowned dogs is proactive and commonplace, especially in rural areas which are disproportionately impacted by the disease.