Welfare for stray Dogs

The Welfare of Stray Dogs, a stray animal sterilization facility located in the heart of Mumbai, is the site of the weekly CAS endeavours of an enigmatically eccentric ensemble of grade 11 students. Also serving as an abode for 'streeties' looking to get adopted to their forever homes, the WSD centre provides care for over 3 dozen dogs and cats at any given time. During the weekends, the centre is converted into an OPD, conducting various primary and emergency level medical operations for owners unable to afford the care or for animals that have been left to suffer.

We began our tenure with WSD online by working on an awareness campaign for World Rabies Day. To undertake this, we put up posters within the school campus and ran a 3-day awareness campaign on Instagram, which included reels and posts.

Then, we started to frequent the kennels physically. Our sessions would entail walking the dogs, playing with them in an activity room, and shooting video footage for social media of WSD. Our most challenging assignment was the CAS Fete, where we set up a stall to raise funds for the NGO. Our fundraising techniques included selling WSD merchandise and dog-themed cookies, snapping polaroids of patrons, and conducting 2 exciting games - Feed the Dog and Boop the Nose.

 

Towards the end of our term, we focused on Instagram content specific to each dog or cat, for their sponsoring and adoption, and relating to the harmful effects of colours used on animals during Holi.

 

Altogether, our positive experiences with WSD are a reflection of the virtuous values of the institution and its noble goals. As a group, we learnt how difficult it is to manage a non-profit institution and negotiate the hindrances that come along with it. We acknowledge the Welfare of Stray Dogs as an epitome of a well-run NGO for our beloved 'streeties' and hope to work with it outside of school in the future!