Vadodara: Hungry stray dogs and monkeys locked in fight over limited food

VADODARA: Over last few days, the streets of Vadodara have been witnessing a rare

fight

that not many had expected. Since lockdown was enforced last month to contain the spread of coronavirus, movement of citizens has been restricted in public areas. With not many people on roads to feed them, stray

dogs

in many areas are going hungry.

Consequently,

monkeys

and stray dogs are having a duel in different areas over food in case they are able to find it.

“There is

limited food

as there are not many people on roads to feed the dogs. And even the monkeys are looking for their share of food as they too aren’t getting fed by citizens,” said Nidhi Dave, range forest officer (RFO), Vadodara. “So, both monkeys and stray dogs flock to the spots where some food is available and it is causing conflict that is also getting violent,” Dave told TOI.

In last few days, forest department has got nearly a dozen calls of monkeys getting injured by dog bites.

Stray dogs attack in packs to scare away the simians who sometimes put up a fight. Animal activist, Neha Patel said stray dogs aren’t getting enough food and it is making them aggressive.

“Monkeys and dogs usually get into a fight but the shortage of food has aggravated the problem,” she said.

Patel has been feeding hundreds of stray dogs in the city since the lockdown was enforced.


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