It's a dog's life, emphasise breeders

The 36-year-old canine breeding centre in Saidapet that was started to promote native breeds like Chippiparai, Rajapalayam, Kanni and Combai has been asked to be shut by the Madras High Court, after animal activist groups moved the court citing gross violations in breeding activities. 

One of the key sore points for the animal welfare groups was its diversion from its original objective of promoting native breeds and breeding international breeds like Labrador, Golden Retriever, Pug, Beagle and German Shepherd while the breeding of local dogs, except Rajapalayam, have been ignored. 

According to the Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI), the facility that was meant to promote Indian breeds was also breeding dogs like Rottweiler and Labradors. “There were several problems reported from the unit. These animals are sold at highly subsidised rate and the government machinery was being utilised for all of it. Apart from that, the animals were kept in poor conditions. There were warnings given before but on our second inspection we found that nothing had changed,” says Dr S Chinny Krishna, vice-chairman of the Animal Welfare Board of India. 

AWBI, in its recommendations talked about the prevalence of health problems including skin diseases and high mortality rates. According to AWBI, they failed to adhere to the terms and conditions set while registering dogs at Dog Breeding Unit (DBU), under Animal Birth Control (Dogs) Rules, 2001.  

It is important to note that the number of native breed dogs have drastically reduced. Dr Sockalingam of Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) says, “The population of these South Indian breeds is very low when compared to international breeds. This is largely due to the lack of awareness about them. There is a lot of inbreeding among Rajapalayam, because of which they are born with defects. Combai, for instance needs a lot of space and tend s to get aggressive when confined to a small space. Chippiparai’s blood group is universal, similar to the O positive among human beings. They have a lot of benefits, but since there is no awareness, they comprise barely 5 per cent of the population in the city.” 

S Muralitharan, of Indian Centre for Animal Rights and Education  says that in the past, native breeds were mostly used by hunters. “These animals are extremely fast and are extensively used during hunting. That’s why their build is so lean, so that they run like a rocket and corner the prey. Banning the breeding centre won’t do any good as there are hundreds of private breeders who keep the animals in worse conditions,” he says. The native breeds at the breeding unit in Saidapet which cost Rs 1,000 are sold for Rs 10,000 to 15,000 by private breeders. 

However, there are some animal lovers who look out for Indian breeds. Praveen R, who owns a Chippiparai, named Sabapathi, says, “We were told that it was an aggressive dog but when we brought him home, we faced no such problems. Though it is extremely friendly with us (the owners) we have to ensure that he is kept away when there are other canines around.” 

Though there is not much awareness about Indian breeds among dog lovers, there are many online forums that extensively discuss Indian hounds and consult people on south-Indian breeds before buying.  R. Karthikeyan, a native of Rajapalayam, who works in an IT firm in Ambattur also breeds Rajapalayam dogs in his native town. “One has to be aware of the breeders who do it for money. We have been having Rajapalayams in our house and now we have 15 of them in our farm. Factors like the season and the health of the dog have to be considered before buying them. We get all the information before selling. We ask people about the size of the house and enquire about their experience with pets. Only when they meet the criteria, we sell. One has to understand that these dogs are loyal to the masters and are excellent guard dogs. They have to be kept in bigger spaces,” he says. 

High prevalence of health problems, particularly skin diseases and high mortality rates due to inbreeding, depression, prevalence of pressure sores and ectoparasites, continuous confinement, lack of opportunity for socialisation and inadequate exercise contravenes the provisions of Prevention of Cruelty to Animals  Act, 1960. 

Non-compliance of conditions set by Animal Welfare Board of India while registering dogs at DBU, under Animal Birth Control (Dogs) Rules, 2001.

Absence of a breeding policy and Standard Operating Procedure to prevent indiscriminate breeding, inbreeding, depression and to serve original objective of conservation and promotion of native breed.

Breeding of common foreign dogs such as Doberman, Dalmation, Rotweiler, Labrador, do not require any conservation.

Selling of native and other breeds known for their aggressiveness at a time when breed-specific legislation in towns and countries around the world are banning such breeds.

The Rajapalayam hound is said to be bred and used by Nayakar dynasty. It was used for hunting and is a popular guard dog. They need open spaces and are affectionate to the owners. They usually do not get along with other pets.

Chippiparai needs little or no veterinary care. It is said to be an intelligent breed and is used as a watch dog. It loves human company, contrary to the belief that it is not. They love to socialise and are very friendly.

Combai or Kombais have more powerful jaws compared to Rajapalayam. It is an excellent guard dog and it is said that earlier people used Combais to guard their cattle from tigers and leopard. Also, it was used for hunting boar, bison and deer.