The dog story: Why do strays go on a biting rampage?

While dog attacks is a lengthy debate, experts believe that, apart from rabies, the biting incidences have more to do with human behaviour than it just being a 'dog problem'. From human-instilled aggression to repeated abuse, there's much more to a dog's story.

Stray dogs launching biting attacks is not unusual. But a single dog injuring dozens of people raises concern.

On April 15, a stray dog in Maharashtra went on a biting spree, injuring at least 40 people within two hours. The injured queued up at a government hospital for anti-rabies vaccination.

This is not a one-off instance. In the past too, dog attacks have been reported frequently.

According to the National Library of Medicine, around 59,000 rabies deaths occur annually. The same report notes that dogbite cases peaked in 2018 at 7.57 million, followed by a steady decline until 2022 (2.18 million), before rising again in 2023 (2.76 million).

As per the World Health Organization, India accounts for 36% of global rabies deaths and 65% of such deaths in the Southeast Asia region.

Experts say that while some incidents occur due to rabies infection in dogs, others may be linked to human behaviour that contributes to aggression in stray animals.

Why do rabid dogs bite, you ask. Rabies affects a dog’s brain and causes neurological changes, including aggression, agitation, confusion and loss of control, which can lead to biting.

Arathi Sen, a Bengaluru-based dog behaviourist and co-founder and chief knowledge officer at Sniff, a pet care advertising agency, said dogs often display warning signs before attacking.

“Before a dog actually attacks, there are enough warning signs, but they can be subtle and are sometimes missed,” Sen said, adding that many bites stem from fear and frustration.

She said that actions by handlers or people around dogs can sometimes aggravate behaviour. For instance, restricting a dog from reacting to its natural instincts may lead to stress.

“If you continue to prevent the dog from its natural prey drive and direct its behaviour only towards obedience, you are stress-stacking the dog. At a vulnerable point, this stress may manifest,” Sen said.

She added that genetically driven aggression is relatively rare and can be difficult to identify in stray dogs.

Most dogbites are triggered by fear, pain, protection or provocation.

Savitha Nagabhushan, managing trustee, People for Animals and Reaching Out to Animals

“Common situations include a dog being startled, guarding food, puppies or territory, being handled roughly, or suffering from injury or illness. Sudden crowding or loud environments can also push a dog into defensive behaviour,” Savitha Nagabhushan, managing trustee, People for Animals and Reaching Out to Animals, said.

Dogs often exhibit warning signs before attacking, such as growling, baring teeth, stiff body posture, raised fur, pinned ears or backing away. These signs may be missed or misinterpreted, especially by children.

Nagabhushan said a dog’s aggressive behaviour, whether stray or pet, is usually influenced by a combination of human behaviour and environmental factors.

“Poor handling, lack of awareness, improper waste management, which attracts dogs, and failure to sterilise or vaccinate all contribute. It is rarely just the dog’s fault,” she said.

And to top it all off, a report by Humane World for Animals states that dogs, cats and horses are among the most abused animals globally.

Animal abuse can take multiple forms, including physical harm such as stone-throwing or beating, as well as emotional and psychological distress.

The key is to respect a dog's space. Don't just go around greeting and petting dogs. Dogs have personality. You can't just go up to a dog and say, 'I am a dog person, I love indies, I'm gonna pet you.' Maybe that is a dog who just wants to be left alone. Never touch any dog, pet or street dog without permission. And don't even tower over a dog and pat his head.

Arathi Sen, a Bengaluru-based dog behaviourist, Co-founder and Chief Knowledge Officer, Sniff

Ruban, Integrated Bite Case Management officer, Charlie's Animal Rescue Center (which has collaborated with the erstwhile Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike) said that while in the recent months no rabies death is reported in humans, they are getting at least 20 to 25 cases of rabies-infected dogs in a month.

"If any rabid dogs is reported to the BBMP, I'll be the first person to visit the place and confirm if it's rabies or just distemper," he says.

The signs of rabies, Ruban says, are hyper salivation and restless roaming, aggressive biting, paralysis, circling, eyes turning red.

"There are two types of rabies — dumb and furious. In dumb rabies, dog will be very normal. It will not show any agitation signs. The symptoms are silent with simply two obvious signs — jaw lack and loss of appetite," Ruban added. However, this form is rabies is rare and only one in 10 dogs suffer from it.

What happens to rabid dogs? Such dogs die within 10 days. "We keep the dog in quarantine for 10 days in a BBMP shelter. Within 10 days if the dog is dead, we will send the carcass to the lab. And we will do the post-mortem. We will collect the brain sample and it is tested in lab for rabies confirmation," Ruban explained.

Once rabies is confirmed, the department then does ring vaccination. "If any dog has been bitten by the rabies-affected dog, it gets vaccinated," Ruban said.

Why do dogs dislike some humans?

Is a stray dog barking at you for no obvious reason a frequent occurrence? It might not be you who is to be blamed. Scavengers, in particular, face the brunt of just going about their job.

Take for example, a dog barks at scavengers who might have never interacted with this dog and have never done anything wrong. It reflects the dog's past trauma.

"It usually happens when the dog or the dog's mother, when the puppy was in the womb, might have had an interaction which was not so pleasant. So, there's a residual genetic, disposition towards such people," Sen explained.

Secondly, anyone coming to that garbage is a threat to dogs because that is their source of food. That's a resource guarding that they do.

"Unfortunately, some dogs have no way to survive but to eat food from that same place the scavenger is picking up garbage from. So it's actually a fight for survival," Sen added.

Recalling an instance to analyse how past experiences affect dog's behaviours, Sen said: "I had a case of a 30-day old puppy that would just go for your ankle, meaning hold on to your ankle and not let it go. And eventually on probing, one found from the breeder, who was not a good breeder, that he had literally tied the mother during her pregnancy and kept her in a dark room. And there were footfalls which would cross that room and not so pleasing things would happen. So, the dog always had the fear when she heard footfalls."

That puppy, Sen added, genetically had derived a hatred for the sound of footfalls since she was a foetus. Even, stray dogs could face similar situations and that is why they dislike some humans or bark and chase away cars.

However, Sen emphasised that with proper training, this behaviour could be rectified and stopped.

Face-to-face with an aggressive dog

While every situation calls for a tailored solution, but ideally, if one comes across a seemingly aggressive dog, running or throwing would not be the best idea.

First, stop and try to control your fear.

"When humans are afraid of dogs, the body releases certain chemicals, the smell of which is recognised by dogs and they get attracted to it. So, if one fears a dog, there are high chances that a dog will chase them away sensing that fear," Sen explained.

Second, one should avoid direct eye contact with dogs. If you are on a vehicle, slow down your vehicle and try to get out of the situation.

Third, stay loud and tall and slowly move sideways or backwards. Don't turn your back towards dogs. If a dog still attacks you, use any nearby object as a barrier. Don't try to hit the dog, it will make it more aggressive. Instead, focus on protecting yourself and preventing damage.

Are we feeding the dogs right?

Then there's lack of nutrition, which could possibly, aggravate aggressive behaviour in dogs. Because hangry is definitely a thing. More so, when access to clean drinking water and proper, timely and nutritious meals is more like a luxury than necessity for stray animals.

"Stray dogs are fed not so that they thrive but so that they survive," said Anjali Kalachand, pet nutritionist and co-founder of A Petter Life.

And while many of us claim to be dog lovers, it is rare that any one would have thought how much calories does a dog need on a daily basis. And the facts would surprise you.

"The average indie is between 18-22 kg, so their calorific requirement varies depending on their life and growth stage. Ideally, they should be having an intake of 1,200-1,400 kcal a day. And in an ideal world a predominantly meat based diet — because that’s what their body needs," Kalachand said.

So, that packet of Parle G or processed bread is not enough for strays. In fact, these should be avoided.

"Any biscuits that are high in sugar and gluten, spicy foods, foods with onion and a lot of masala should be not fed to dogs," Kalachand explained.

However, the change is happening as many dog feeders have now recognised the dietary needs for strays and have acted towards them.

"Many community feeders have noticed a correlation between fresh feeding and prevention of disease, so they tend to prefer that as it reduces vet bills in the long run," Kalachand said.

Wash the wound with running water thoroughly for about two to three minutes. Then use a detergent soap to rinse the site of bite. Next, apply alcohol or surgical spirit on the wound. After that, you have to go to a nearby doctor and, get post-bite anti-rabies shots and immunoglobulins, if needed.

Kiran Kundargi, consultant veterinarian, Shree Pet Hospital, Vijayanagar, Mysuru

What to do if a dog bites you?

Kiran Kundargi, consultant veterinarian, Shree Pet Hospital, Vijayanagar, Mysuru, said one should not panic when a dog bites.

"Wash the wound with running water thoroughly for about two to three minutes. This will help in taking out the viral particles. Then use a detergent soap to rinse the site of the bite as it has more efficacy in removing the virus. Next, apply alcohol or surgical spirit on the wound. After that, you have to go to a nearby doctor and, get post-bite anti-rabies shots and immunoglobulins, if needed," Kundargi said.

What makes things worse is that there is no treatment for rabies. So vaccination remains the primary defence system. "There is no effective treatment for the disease. So it's almost fatal. Very rare cases of recovery have been seen in such patients. So rabies is preventable but not treatable," Kundargi points out.

Next, monitoring the dog is also imperative as if it was a rabies-affected dog, which is having virus in the saliva, so the bite of the dog can inject the same virus to humans or another dog, too.

"If the bitten dog was rabid, it will not survive more than 10 days. So that's a thumb rule. If even after 10 days, the dog is still active, alert, and fine, it's less likely of being rabid," Kundargi explained and added that in any case taking the post-bite shots is a must.

The condition of stray animals has improved over the years. Many are relatively healthier, often due to their ability to adapt to their environment. However, access to adequate medical infrastructure and facilities still remains uneven.

Dr Prateek Grover, Veterinarian (Gynaecology)

Are there enough facilities for streeties?

Kundargi said that according to the 2019 livestock census, there are 15.3 million stray dogs in India, but the present counts are much higher.

Given the high number, he said the facilities for strays are not enough.

"Though there are enough government hospitals, even NGOs for treatment of stray animals or stray dogs. But considering the number of stray dogs and the free-roaming nature of the dogs, the facilities are not enough to handle them completely with proper medical care or conduct a complete vaccination drive or even conduct sterilisation surgeries for all," Kundargi said.