ANDAMAN & NICOBAR PROJECT

At the time when the devastating Tsunami hit India in December 2004, Friendicoes SECA was one of the few animal organizations offering hope and succor to the people and the animals of the Tsunami ravaged areas and islands of Andaman and Nicobar off Southern India. Since then Friendicoes with support from its sister concern Wildlife S.O.S. has continued its silent work in the islands of Andaman & Nicobar where the concept of animal welfare is yet to win many supporters.

Our team there headed by Dr. Geeta Gladson has been feeding over 158 dogs on Port Blair and Hut bay islands and providing veterinary aid to about 1200 large animals all survivors of the Tsunami that have now been given surrogate owners through Geeta’s efforts. Dr. Geeta and her helpers go around in her white Maruti Omni carrying food for these animals on the islands and feed them at different points. Recently the team has started a sterilization and vaccination drive in Neil Island to check the population of stray dogs on the island.

These dogs were caught with the help of two great volunteers Nori and Lucan and taken to the very clean though tiny veterinary clinic on the island where Dr Saravanan and Dr Geeta Gladson on behalf of Friendicoes / Wildlife SOS performed the surgeries along with Dr Vardhan of the Animal Husbandry department. The camp lasted five days and over 300 dogs were sterilized. The boarding of the dogs for post operative care was a huge shed made by Nori and Lucan entirely from waste planks and tin sheets on an old foundation of a school hall. The wonderful weather and very clean air of the islands undoubtedly contributed to the dogs quick recovery and most of them were back on the beaches and the huts of the fishermen by the time the team boarded their ship to get back to Piort Blair.We hope to cover the island of Port Blair, Little Andamans and Hut Bay during the coming year and thanks to Dr Vardhan’s kindness in giving us the use of three rooms in the Animal Husbandry building in Port Blair we hope to set up a proper clinic and target to do twenty dogs a day.


Meanwhile our feeding of the dogs on the streets of Port Blair will go on as also the vaccination of large animals and we hope to hold talks in schools and clubs about kindness to animals as well as explain the concept of spay and neuter and get the public involved in it enthusiastically. That should go a long way to controlling the stray dog population humanely and it will in the long run protect the wildlife as on many of the islands the dogs have turned feral and hunt the wildlife including nesting turtles.

This is an unsponsored programme and any contribution towards it will go a long way to help the animals.