TLC for dogs

Located in a narrow, congested bylane of Dhobhi Ghat is an NGO that provides shelter to stray dogs, albeit temporarily because among other things, one of the aims of the Welfare of Stray Dogs is to find loving homes for the strays. And the organisation is leaving no stone unturned to make this possible — even if this involves educating their strays, as dog behaviourist and trainer Vanessa Cassa-Laine who volunteers with the NGO puts it.

On many mornings, you will find Vanessa walking the dogs at the open space at the NGO, or cuddling them — but never spoiling, or talking to them in French, her native language. A resident of France, she moved to Mumbai about two year ago with her husband who came to the city for work. She did not know about WSD earlier, but her search on the internet led her on to them. Vanessa says that just because she left her country she could not stop loving dogs.

Apart from ‘educating’ strays, her time is spent on training other volunteers. Presently, 10 volunteers come to the centre to mainly walk the dogs. Vanessa says that because of so many volunteers she is now able to train more strays.

Abodh Aras, CEO of WSD, says, “After Vanessa started volunteering with us, the number of dog adoptions has gone up. Last month alone, 10 dogs were adopted.”

Vanessa tells us that training strays is important because there are some who are not accustomed to human beings or even other dogs. She gives us the example of Shanti who was brought to the NGO a few weeks ago. “When Shanti came here, she was such a shy dog that she would not even come out of the kennel. Even when she first came out, she only trusted me. But today, she walks with other volunteers too.” Sure enough, I met Shanti who was being walked by a volunteer. She seemed far from her old self. However, not all canines can sometimes adapt to the changes around them.

A dog at the shelter has a certain dislike for women. Neither Vanessa nor the vet or any of the female volunteers can touch him. Vanessa says, “The person who phoned us about this dog had said that he was thrown from a car by a woman. This probably explains his behaviour.” The dog will stay at the centre forever as it is difficult for the people there to find a home with no women.  

Another dog who was brought to the shelter was only a one-man pet. If he liked someone, he would bark at all the others around the person. Over time, Vanessa changed this trait in him.

Vanessa says that it is not as much as about training dogs as it is about educating humans. Often people don’t know how to behave around their dogs. “It is important for people to eat before their dogs. If your dog eats with your or before you, he will think that he is the boss and this could lead to many complications,” she says.

“When your dog starts believing he is the boss, he will not listen to you. He could growl at you or even bite you because in a way he thinks that you are his servant,” she adds.

“Even if your dog does not want to be the boss, he will be forced to be one as he feels that someone has to take charge. Dogs are used to living in groups and each group has a leader — it could either be a person or another dog. This can hide the true character of your pet,” she shares.

Many people also like to train their dogs with food. “The dog obeys you only because you offer food to him. The food approach is easier and a lot of people use it, but it is not advisable.”

Vanessa suggests that one should use the caress approach instead. “You choose when you want to caress your pet and not when he wants you to do it. It is important to be strict with your pet, but one should not hit him.”