The Youth Volunteers, appointed as ‘Corona Warriors’ by the Information and Public Relations Department, in association with Labour Department and Indian Red Cross Society, to check the spread of false rumours and messages regarding the deadly COVID-19, have now started feeding the stray dogs, cats and birds which have been starving due to lockdown.

The volunteers are also involved in works like distributing food and medicines to the needy.

Snake rescuer and former Corporator Snake Shyam is now saving stray dogs from starving. As everyone are aware, due to lockdown stray dogs are left with no food to feed on and hence, the snake rescuer makes it a point to feed around 150 stray dogs near Sanatorium Circle, Vijayanagar, near Sunanda Factory and Vikrant Tyre and Bharat Cancer Hospital Ring Road Junction. Apart from this, he is also feeding birds at Sri Shivadatta Sai Mandir premises on KRS Road.

Thanisha Changappa, Architect and a resident of Vijayanagar 1st Stage, too has taken up the job of feeding several such stray dogs in the interiors of the city. “We are targeting 50-70 dogs everyday with eggs, rice, curd and Pedigree, expenditure coming up to Rs.300 per day,” she said.

Talking about what made her take this voluntary work, she said: “The whole idea started with training five street dogs who live in front of our house, one is a recently rescued puppy who was handicapped, here all of us take turns in feeding them. But, when we look at the bigger picture, I don’t think people feed the dogs in their streets, everybody concentrated on the dogs who live in the main roads, so I took the initiative of going to interiors of Mysuru, that is Vijayanagar, Hebbal, Gokulam, Metagalli and Ring Roads.”

“The negligence towards street dogs has been increasing since the lockdown was imposed, these dogs whose main survival depends on whatever left over they find on the roads. S.V. Vatsala, a young Architect of B.M. Shri Nagar, who launched a social media campaign called ‘Mysuru stands with transgenders’ distributing kits containing essential items, has always been a source of inspiration to me. She sparkled the thought of feeding dogs who live the interiors of the city in my mind. I took the initiative to feed almost 90 dogs everyday who were shivering and weak. We have started spreading happiness through this simple task. Street dogs and abandoned cows are most neglected during such pandemic,” she added.