Noida community; living in fear of dogs

Coexistence is a virtue that we all must learn. However, the presence of dogs in high-rise buildings has become a threat for humans with Dog-biting cases becoming more common by the day in Delhi NCR. Several dog bite incidents have been reported in the last month itself.

Two incidents of dog bite were reported in Supertech Czar suites in Greater Noida in the last 2 days. A stray dog bit a lady on the night of September 7, 2022, and again a boy on September 8 night. In similar events, a video from Apex Athena sector 75 has gone viral where a delivery person was attacked by a pet german shepherd. This incident took place nearly a month ago.

Moreover, the case from Charms County society, where a small boy going for tuition was attacked by a pet dog in the lift is now known to all from another viral video.

In light of recent incidents, societies have tried to form guidelines and trying to make them compulsory for everyone to follow.

In the recent case of Apex Athena, Sector 75, Noida, a delivery boy was attacked by a pet german shepherd. The dog was tied to a leash as he attacked the delivery person. 

Today's incident in charms.
ये उनके लिये जो बोलते है कि पालतू कुत्ते किसी को नहीं काटते है।
कुत्तों से सम्पूर्ण रूप से सावधान रहें
यह हम सब के आसपास चलते फिरते यमदूत हे
रेबीज, पीछे भागना, काटना, जान से मार देते हैं कुत्ते, पालतू के साथ साथ आवारा ज्यादा खतरनाक होते हैं pic.twitter.com/VmLVPvG77D

— Joginder Singh (@Joginde05957128) September 5, 2022

On this, we contacted Sangeeta Agnihotri, Vice president of Apex Athena AOA. She says, “We are shocked to see the video after it went viral. We were asking the maintenance to give us the CCTV footage. After
this incident, 18 members of AOA, went to meet the JLL maintenance department, and they denied to give us CCTV footage. We also demanded compensation for the boy, which they denied completely. Plus they did not reveal the identity of the dog owner."

On guidelines, he says, “No guidelines have been formed yet. Yesterday 16 ladies from our society went to the facility office and requested to see the guidelines. I am discussing with the committee and also contacting the victim, we will take solutions legally now."

In the current incident at Supertech Czar suites, Greater Noida, the attacked lady is a pet lover.

Varun Verma, President, AOA, Supertech Czar Suites while informing about the incident says, “She was trying to put the strap on the stray dog’s neck, and the dog bit her. She has requested not to reveal her name, so we respect her privacy not to be mentioned anywhere. She went to the hospital later."

He adds, "Resident who has been bitten by a dog is a pet lover herself. We have done a lot of efforts to keep stray dogs in control but nothing is working. We have set the rules and trying to follow the guidelines too. All the details have been shared in the WhatsApp groups. There are mixed reactions so far."

Varun Verma, President also shared that in April also, there was a severe dog bite case, when a stray dog followed the maid and attacked her biting her legs and hands.

Ayush Gupta, Former President of AOA, Supertech Czar, Greater Noida says, “There is a fear among residents and they can not come downstairs as the dogs are continuous dog bite incidents are being reported. There are several stray dogs and it is difficult to control them. A few days
back, a stray dog chased a kid and almost attacked him, he hurried home but fell from his cycle while escaping. Parents are in shock and do not want to send kids downstairs.”

He continues, “The scare is not only due to the stray dogs, pets are creating a threat too. People can be seen handling 2-3 pet dogs at a time, small kids can be seen walking big dogs. We are setting the guidelines to ensure safety for all."

The following guidelines are in process for Supertech Czar Suites:

• All the people who have kept dogs should get their dogs registered and give their copies to us so that we can know the number of dogs.
• When you use the lift with your dogs, make sure that your dog is not dirtying the lift.
• Before bringing or carrying the dog in the lift, inform the tower guard so that he informs people that other people should get away from the lift
• Your dog should not litter anywhere in society, if it does, the dog‘s owner should clean it.
• If your dog messes up and you don't clean it, you (Dog Owner) will be fined Rs 5000.
• If you do not pay the fine, it will be put in your paid meter and circulated to all social groups.
• For Anyone who loves stray dogs, we don’t have any problem with keeping as many dogs as they want and the same rules will apply to them as written above.
• If you do not want to keep stray dogs in the house and also want to take care of them, then let us shift all the stray dogs to the adjacent park and dog lovers can take care of them.
• If you do not agree with what we have said about stray dogs, then you should stop giving them food etc in society.

Rajiva Singh, President, NOFAA says, “The recent incident of a pet attacking a child from Ghaziabad is highly disturbing. More disturbing because of the insensitive nature of the pet owner. Such pet owners bring so much disrepute to the pet owners who genuinely believe in mutual coexistence in a community and also for those who care for fellow residents.”

Tina Kaushik, a dog lover from Paras Tierra society, Sector 137, Noida who was bitten by 5 dogs in July 2022 in the basement of her society had to undergo major surgery as her wrist was broken during the attack. She says, “I cannot wear my clothes on my own, I need to take the help of a maid. I am a pet parent and a parent of a 13-year-old kid too but I suppose we need implementation of proper guidelines."

She adds, "All pet owners must train their pets properly. It is important to give the dog good playtime so that their frustration levels come down. People are keeping dogs locked inside the flats and as they get a chance to come out, they get excited and attack.”

To know more, we contacted Meghna Uniyal, Director of the Humane Foundation for People and Animals, she says, “Existing laws, Acts and court orders regulate dog ownership and assign culpability for dog attacks. Licensing pets, keeping them on a leash outside and picking up their poop is mandatory for owners. RWAs should make rules to enforce these laws".

"Muzzling of pets in lifts should be made compulsory. Stray dog feeding is a highly regulated activity and is prohibited in any area used and accessed by people. Most critically, biting dogs (pet or unowned) are to be confiscated, permanently removed and/or euthanised. These laws benefit both people and animals. Recent incidents reveal irresponsible ownership, untrained dogs and dangerous biting incidents waiting to happen repeatedly," adds Meghna.