Bengaluru's stray dog menace may bite till 2028

The city’s stray dog population is exploding, despite the BBMP annually neutering at least 45,000 animals since 2018.

A 2019 survey revealed that only 51 per cent of the 3,09,000 stray dogs in the city had been neutered, but officials say containing stray dog population is a far steeper challenge than what it seems.

“The problem is, they multiply exponentially,” said Dr Chandraiah, Joint Director, Animal Husbandry. “Though we neuter at least 150 dogs a day, even one dog that slips away can produce 10 puppies.”

While officials have close to an exact count of dogs in core areas, controlling the numbers in the outer areas is a challenge since dogs from neighbouring villages penetrate these localities, Dr Chandraiah said.

“We work with village panchayats to ensure dogs in their jurisdictions are also neutered,” Dr Chandraiah said.

Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) officials involved in the programme admitted that dog-catching is a big challenge. If they target 10 or 15 dogs, they manage to capture hardly one or two as the strays hide in culverts and drains. “Space is also a constraint. One neutering centre can handle only 20 dogs a day. We have only seven centres in the city,” a senior BBMP official said.

Officials said people may have to wait until 2028 to see a significant drop in dog population. “The Animal Birth Control (ABC) programme gained momentum only in 2018,” said the official. “Given the dog’s lifespan and our neutering efforts, we’re hoping that the population will be under control by 2028.”

Dr Chandraiah said the BBMP will take a fresh census of the dogs, including the number of animals neutered. “We were unable to take the census for two years due to pandemic,” he said.