Most people find it difficult to even address a dog wandering on the streets with kind words. But there are also those in society who are passionate about caring for such dogs. There is a group of women in Bharatpur and Narayangadh who take care of such dogs like family members. They are always ready to feed the dogs when they are hungry, give them medicine if they are sick, and rescue and treat them if they are injured.

Even dogs that have been suffering from lameness and smelly have recovered with their care and treatment. The women, who have been voluntarily 'serving' dogs in their own way, have formed a group on social media. They raise money together to cover the costs of rescue and treatment. Their main job is to care for dogs that are starving, injured, and sick and are stranded on the streets.

Sita Basnet, 53, who came to Narayangadh from Nawalparasi 14 years ago, now lives in a dormitory in Kshetrapur, Bharatpur Metropolitan City-2. She has set up a small shop in the square to raise her children. She does not spend the income she earns from selling food, such as biscuits and rice, for her children only. She also feeds five/seven dogs every day. ‘We are a family of three. We cook food not only for ourselves but also for the dogs. We feed the dogs rice and chicken feet/heads,’ said Sita. Sita, who lives in a dormitory herself, has also sheltered dogs in distress. When the plate rings during mealtime, a pack of dogs gathers in her yard. Even when the others return, the two/three dogs she has been keeping for a long time stay around the kitchen.

The injured dog that was walking on the road with a bleeding wound 12 years ago is still with her. The injured, sick and hungry dogs get healthy with her food and care. ‘Even my children do not feel shy when they see dogs. Even the housewife should never ask why I brought such dogs. I loved dogs and cats since I was a child. That is why I have been raising them as much as I can,’ said Sita.

Sita’s father Resham Baral also loved dogs. After her mother left when she was one and a half years old, Sita was raised by her father. That is why she says her father’s qualities were passed on to her. Pooja Kharel Tamang of Bharatpur-5 developed a love for dogs when she was pregnant. Seeing dogs that were not getting food, were sick and had wounds, she felt like taking care of them. She lost her daughter five months after her birth.

‘After that, I started taking care of such creatures,’ said Pooja. Pooja has a Bhote breed dog at her house. Even now, it starts to suffer from dandruff when the heat increases. ‘We call it Kali.’ Kali’s story is painful. When I met her a year and a half ago, her ears were dry, she was suffering from dandruff, and her nipples were swollen,’ said Pooja.

She started treatment after seeing her in this condition while walking around the courtyard near her house. The dog, which she found unconscious, recovered after two months of treatment. Kali now does not leave Pooja’s house. The story is similar for another dog, ‘Punti.’ Pooja met her two years ago when she was a small child. She had a deep wound on her neck. It took a month and a half to heal.

Pooja has been actively involved in dog care since 2072. ‘I couldn’t control myself after seeing the dogs suffering a lot due to the problems of being hit by cars and rotting their body parts due to various diseases. I started this job so that I wouldn’t have to give these poor people one less meal,’ said Pooja.

Pooja started looking for people to do such work on social media TikTok and Facebook. Women who were doing such work in the Bharatpur-Narayangadh area came in contact with her. Pooja says that currently 23 women are involved in the social media group.

Isha Khanal of Bharatpur-3 Narayangadh is also in the group. At 4 pm, she leaves other work and goes out on her scooter. She starts putting chicken legs, heads, livers and rice in front of the dogs. She has been doing this job continuously for 10 years. 30/40 dogs wait for her. Four/five dogs arrive at the gate of her house to eat. Others gather at various squares. Five to seven hundred rupees are spent on this daily.

Sunita Shrestha Pudasaini's house is in Pokhara Bus Park, Bharatpur Metropolitan City-1. She has been taking sick dogs found on the road for treatment for 10/12 years. Even the tired dogs do not want to leave her house after treatment. She now has a small dog with her, whose four legs cannot move. It had lost its fur and become deformed, but is now growing.

This dog, which was found a month and a half ago after being thrown off the Jayashri Khola bridge in Gaindakot, has reached her house for treatment. They also gave her medicine worth 32 hundred rupees a day to see if the leg would heal after treatment. But there was no progress.

Women are not ashamed of the dog's condition. They don't keep the fear of someone saying something  in their minds. It had been about a month since the father of Brinda Lamsal of Kshetrapur, Bharatpur-2 passed away. One day, a bad smell came into the house . 'When I forgot to close the gate of the house, a dog with wounds entered and stayed in my father's room,' says Brinda. 'The dog was covered in wounds from head to toe . It was difficult to keep it because of the stench, so we chased it away because we felt sorry for it .' Brinda said that after treating the dog by cleaning its wounds and body three times a day, it recovered . Brinda's family has named the dog 'Gore Dai' .

Brinda not only carries biscuits and other food for the dogs on her scooter, but also keeps medicines . 'We sisters have gone all the way from Dhodeni and Daldale in Nawalparasi to rescue the dog . Even a dog with a limp body and no hair anywhere is not given a handful of rice or water by the locals. Seeing this, it seems as if humanity has disappeared somewhere. We have not just arrived and walked away,' said Brinda.

There is also a clinic of the Himalayan Animal Rescue Trust (HART) that treats street dogs. Pooja says that the HART clinic in Ratnanagar has provided a lot of relief in treatment. 'But I did not know about it before.' I have also spent my own money on treatment. HART does not provide all the treatment and tests. Those with serious problems should be taken to a private veterinary clinic,' said Pooja.

The women in the group are involved in some profession/business. Anjana Kandel Chhetri, a teacher from Bharatpur-11, says that seeing her parents lovingly raise dogs and cats has had an impact on her. She has not bought a dog and raised it at home. She feeds and treats dogs outside. She always keeps food for dogs on her scooter.

Shila Gurung, a resident of Muktinagar, Bharatpur-11, says that people who do small business take care of such dogs more than the rich and famous. ‘I also love dogs. I have done so much for their welfare, but I have seen my mother, who runs a small tea shop, feeding five or seven dogs enough food,’ said Shila.

Dogs are beaten on the road and run away after being hit by cars. ‘When we saw this, we have started forcing the concerned parties to get them treated. The police have also helped in Chitwan,' said Sunita Shrestha Pudasaini. She says that the government bodies do not show enough interest in treatment. 'There are government bodies that treat animals. What treatment should be given to dogs there? They say to bring cows, buffaloes, goats. Some even help a lot,' said Sunita.

The trend of keeping dogs in the city has increased. But Pooja has experienced that the tendency to throw them out of the house if they are injured, sick, or old has also increased. She said that the tendency to throw away the mother who keeps the puppies at home has also led to dogs wandering on the streets. To end this trend, she urges the local bodies to keep a good record of the people who keep dogs and the dogs and increase monitoring. 'The owner should keep them at home until they are small and healthy, and not leave them on the streets if they are old and sick,' said Isha Khanal.

Women who have taken care of dogs have experienced dogs behaving like relatives. ‘Whenever we leave the house or when we reach home, dogs come to the door to be dropped off and picked up.’ Family members and children are now lost in their mobile phones,’ they said.