The menace of stray dogs in Indian cities

The Supreme Court of India, on August 11, directed municipal authorities in Delhi to relocate all stray dogs from the streets of residential areas to dedicated shelters within two months. The court stated that the order came in the wake of an increase in dog bites and rabies cases across the capital city. Based on surveys conducted by government and private sector agencies, the stray dog population in Delhi is estimated as close to 1 million—a huge number. Barely three days later, in response to protests by dog lovers and animal rights activists, the apex court reserved the order on an interim prayer seeking a stay on its August 11 directive.

Stray dogs menace incidents are hogging limelight these days across the nation. The Supreme Court pronouncement giving directive to MCD has come too late. But the hue and cry raised by ebullient dog lovers and their petition to the apex court to put stay on the directive comes as a big shock in the wake of umpteen numbers of incidents of persons becoming targets of stray dog attacks.

As per available data, more than 3.6 million cases of dog bites and more than 50 suspected human deaths from rabies were reported in 2024 across the country. The corresponding figures for 2023 are 2.75 million dog bite cases.

Over 26,000 dog bite cases have come to light in Delhi so far this year, as per official municipal data.

Let us have a wider look at the statistics of stray dog attacks on persons in India over the last few years.

1. In 2007, in Bangalore, two children were killed by a group of stray dogs, upon which animal rights activists protested against the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike for the action they took against stray dogs.
2. In 2014, a two-month-old baby girl was mauled to death by a stray dog. After that, residents attacked and killed the dog.
3. In 2015, in Delhi, a seven-year-old boy was mauled to death by stray dogs.
4. In 2016, a 65-year-old woman was mauled to death by stray dogs and a 90-year-old man was killed by stray dogs in Kerala. The woman was partially eaten by the stray dogs. After this, angry locals killed some 100 stray dogs. Some people even offered bounties for killing stray dogs.
5. In 2018, stray dogs killed 14 children in Khairabad, Sitapur and Uttar Pradesh. The dogs were called man-eaters as some of the children’s body parts were chewed off.
6. In 2019, a boy was attacked and killed and eaten by stray dogs in Amritsar. In 2019, Chandigarh witnessed an increase in stray dog bites and in one incident a child was mauled to death by stray dogs.
7. In 2020, a three-hour-old new-born baby was mauled to death by stray dogs in Farukhabad, Uttar Pradesh, after hospital staff left the window open in an operation theatre. The Police filed a case against the hospital staff.
8. In January 2022, in Bijnor, a 30-year-old woman was mauled to death by a pack of stray dogs, after a 15-year-old girl was killed by a group of stray dogs. This was a rare case of stray dogs killing an adult, as they usually attack children.
9. The death of a seven-month-old baby in Noida in October 2022 led to candlelit protests by people.
10. In 2023, nine women were killed by man-eater dogs in Begusarai, Bihar.
11. On February 19, 2023, a 4-year-old boy was fatally attacked by three stray  dogs on a deserted street in Hyderabad.
12. In October 2023, Parag Desai executive director of tea company Wagh Bakri  died due to attack by street dogs.
13. In 2025, a 13-year-old boy in Samastipur was killed by stray dogs.

Indian stray dogs reportedly kill endangered species and livestock in national parks, sanctuaries, buffer zones, and protected areas. Complaints have come from Indian farmers that stray dogs kill their livestock. Golden langur, the great Indian bustard and green turtles were attacked by dogs in protected areas.

Domesticated dogs endangered 188 species of animals and have caused 11 extinctions globally. In Hissar, Haryana, stray dogs killed 78% of wildlife in five years.

The above statistics are revealing and acutely alarming. It is clearly seen that dogs are natural carnivores, contrary to the opinions of many that they are omnivores. We need to look at the issue more deeply and objectively. It is developing into more of a confrontational story of dog victims and dog lovers. Pet dogs or domesticated dogs have been seen for a long time. But the number of pet dogs has remarkably surged during the last two decades. Especially the last 10 to 15 years have seen a rapidly growing breed of dog lovers, especially among the youngsters. These dog lovers share some very special traits. Many of them are single. Many are couples who do not wish to beget children. Many of them are of ultra-modern thought which carries the rather infamous epithet of Wokes.

Should we be loving dogs or even stray dogs while ignoring or being apathetic to fellow humans? Are dogs really innocuous animals worthy of wide domestication? They are certainly and clearly not.

When in doubt about things concerning contentious, controversial or debatable matters, it is best advisable to look back at long time traditional thoughts and practices. Because, traditional behaviour is time tested. And traditional thought belonging to the age-old Indian Sanatan culture tells us that among animals, dogs are not fit for domestication. Cows, goats, horses or rabbits are domesticable. In general only herbivores are fit for domestication. A dog is by nature a carnivore but domestication by humans has made dogs omnivores. In wild habitats, dogs survive only on non-vegetarian food. It is only when in association with humans in human dwellings that dogs begin to eat vegetarian foods — cereals and milk. But the fact remains that cereals and milk are not the natural dietary items of dogs and they are natural carnivores, as is borne out by their physical features—long canine teeth, short lengths of small intestine and their mode of drinking water by licking.

It is very strange and dismaying to see pet dogs playing on the sofas and beds of their domestic masters. Many of them are seen patting, hugging, kissing and licking their pets. Some of them give their pets fancy human names and out of evident exhilaration call them their sons or daughters. Let us not ignore the many episodes of dogs as domestic pets biting their own masters.

The incidence of stray dog attacks in which dogs have bitten or mauled humans has increased exponentially in the last 15 years. Especially this has been so in the years after the outbreak of Covid-19, a pandemic that struck the entire world and led to two long spells of physical lockdown enforced by governments. During the lockdown period there has been a mass migration of dogs to city streets and corners. The other notable fact is that numbers of ideologically driven dog lovers have greatly increased during the same period. They feed stray dogs regularly in the streets adjacent to their houses. They are often seen cuddling them. And most importantly, they hate fellow humans who are not inclined to keep pet dogs or are against feeding stray dogs. Dog protections squads have sprung up in the cities. There were candle lit protest marches by many dog lovers against the recent Supreme Court directive.

Establishing dog shelters is fine but it is a costly arrangement. If people stop feeding stray dogs, what will happen? Will they die of starvation? Not likely. Most of them will move back to jungles and fit into their natural habitats. The growth in their numbers will diminish and this will be quite in line with the natural pattern supported by the larger ecosystem.