This week featured the first sign of rain in months. A light thunderstorm hinted at the upcoming monsoon rains that will hit later in the summer.
I've seen bats, storks, fish, cats, dogs, owls and lizards... a huge range of animals. This week I found myself paying extra attention to the stray animals, especially dogs, on the street. Dozens of stray dogs, in various degrees of health, roam nearby streets. The concept of spaying and neutering animals is not well-established in India, so pregnant dogs and cats on the street are not an uncommon sight. Unlike several countries in the Western world, however, the Indian government has passed laws to protect the rights of street dogs. Killing or displacing street dogs is illegal and there are no efforts to round up and euthanize the stray animals. Although these laws are designed to help street animals, they may also contribute to the injurious fights that sometimes erupt between animals on overcrowded streets.
