Indies are the new cool

Interestingly, after Prime Minister Modi connected nationalism and 'Make in India' via the indie dogs, being an indie dog parent became a matter of patriotism

In the early years of the Sunday Cubbon Dog Park, we used to hear the 'oohs' and 'aahs' only when a St Bernard, Husky or Akita sauntered in. Now, over 60% of dogs at this event are indies or rescues.

They get the maximum attention and fussing, while the proud parents share a pet snippet or their rescue story.

Animal welfare discussions usually tend to be warm and fuzzy. But I am also a consultant and so let's try a contrarian lens and think from a practical, supply chain angle.

We have over 3.14 lakh Indian dogs on Bengaluru's streets and perhaps about 40 per cent are neutered. This means the remaining dogs reproduce almost every heat cycle. Now with India's compassionate and no-cull policy, one can assess the effectiveness of neuter/vaccination programmes as well the need for street dog adoptions. Ergo, the need for #IndieProud & #IndieDogDay campaigns.

Adopting Indies

As a segue from the global standard of ADS - adopt don't shop (where pet parents adopt from a shelter, rather than buy a pedigree dog), adopting Indies has become increasingly visible in the millennial and social media-savvy population. It may be a small yet significant start.

The multiplier effect kicks in when the indie adoption results in the new parents also caring and feeding the street dogs around, and later even taking up their sterilising. They seem to be consciously moving away from the old jaat/caste/pedigree mindsets that prevented indie adoptions.

The push to adopt Indies also come in the form of The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Dog Breeding and Marketing) Rules, 2017 (which resulted in a lower supply of pedigree dog,s given stringent breeder controls) as well as the increased supply of indie dog, which is now known for its charming looks and tremendous resilience.

Interestingly, after Prime Minister Narendra Modi connected nationalism and 'Make in India' via the indie dogs, being an indie dog parent became a matter of patriotism. Also, National Geographic, which met hundreds of visiting pets and their parents at the Dog Park last year, acknowledged this trend of indies become the new cool.

The indie Dog issue presents an opportunity and a challenge. Obviously, we need a well-thought-out supply-demand regulation. Supply must reduce and branding and demand must go up. But we can succeed only if we look at it as a pure management issue without being distracted by the liquidly intelligent eyes, whirring tail and pointed kangaroo ears of a gorgeous Indie next to you!

Mind map

My Indie Dog mind map thus focused on observing an Indie Dog Day not just to create awareness or draw attention towards Indies, but also to pool in ideas to bridge the supply-demand. An online petition was launched that created an impact.

Clearly, the need was to work with the government on the supply side and involve both government and other stakeholders (corporates, vets, pet companies, NGOs etc) in stringently pushing up demand, especially by smart branding.

Therefore, CJ Memorial Trust (CJMT) & Citizens for Animal Birth Control (ABC) worked closely with the BBMP-AH (Animal Husbandry) to ramp up the neuter/spay programmes. This was done through a tighter city/zonal mechanism and contractors and social media.

The BBMP-CJMT inked an agreement about the #IndieProud Campaign in March. The BBMP-AH will not only conduct indie adoption camps and carry out better #IndieDog branding, but also ensure free vaccination, neutering as well as free pet licenses for indie dogs adopters.

This programme will be launched once the lockdown eases.

(The author is a civic evangelist with a focus on city issues, heritage and dogs)