If we hadn’t found her, Lilly would have been condemned to a life of pain and suffering

“I’m Dr Ajoy, Head Vet of Mayhew International’s sponsored Vet team in Ranchi, northern India, and I’d like to tell you about a dog called Lilly.

Our dog catchers were out looking for strays as part of our Trap, Neuter, Release programme when they first saw her. They thought she was just another dog trying to survive on the streets in the city, something that is all too common here in Ranchi. However, as my team approached her, they realised there was something very wrong.”

A horrific injury

“Lilly was very scared and in a lot of pain. When the dog catchers finally managed to get near her, they could see what looked like a deep gash all the way round her middle. They were horrified to discover that someone had tied a metal wire around her very tightly. It had clearly been there for some time as it was deeply embedded into her flesh. I don’t know how she had managed to survive with such a terrible injury, not to mention how she had been able to endure the agony.

The wire seemed almost to have cut her in two, but the dog catchers were able to carefully transport her back to our clinic where the Vet team and I were waiting for her. Amazingly, the infection seemed limited and there were no maggots present. She was anaesthetised and I began to slowly remove the wire with cutters. It took some time as the wire was embedded so deeply and I didn’t want to damage anything else. I then dressed the wound and started her on a course of antibiotics to help fight infection.”

Gaining strength

“Lilly was also severely malnourished and weighed only 15kg, it would not have been easy for her to find food with her injury. The healthy weight of a dog of her size is about 25kg so you can imagine how weak and hungry she must have felt. She’s been in our care for just over a month now, during which we have been giving her regular meals and letting her get the rest she needs. Her condition is starting to improve and she has gained an encouraging 5kg so far. She is still very frightened and doesn’t like us to get too close, but she seems to feel safe here, responding well to her treatment and slowly starting to recover. Once she is stronger and her wounds have healed she will be neutered and vaccinated, and then released back into the community where she will be monitored by the dog-loving local residents.”

The harsh reality

“I find it impossible to believe that a human could do something so cruel and inhumane to another living being. By tying the wire around her middle, the culprit was condemning poor Lilly to a life of pain and suffering and if we hadn’t found her when we did, she would have died a slow, painful death alone on the streets.

Here in Ranchi community dogs that are neutered and vaccinated can live safely side by side with the locals, but there are still many in need of our help. Some suffer from cruelty at the hands of humans, some become diseased and access to food is a daily challenge. We are working hard to educate more of the local community about animal welfare and change their behaviour towards animals to treat them with care and respect. If it wasn’t for Mayhew International’s sponsorship of our education programme and my veterinary team, we wouldn’t be able to help hundreds of animals like Lilly. We are so grateful to Mayhew’s supporters who enable us to carry out our vital work here in India and help improve the lives of animals and make the local community a safer place to live.”

You could help care for Lilly and other animals like her by making a donation today. Thank you.

You can make a donation quickly and easily by visiting our donate page or calling 020 8206 5870.

Your £5 could provide flea and worm treatment for a street animal like Lilly

Your £20 could help pay for transport costs for our dog catching team in Ranchi for a month

Your £50 could provide a dog catching net and pole to allow us to catch and treat street dogs quickly and with minimal distress

Your £100 could provide an essential surgical kit needed to treat an injured animal like Lilly. The kit includes surgical supplies, drugs, pain relief and antibiotics