It is a typical evening in Poonamallee High Road. The traffic slowly gains momentum with the arrival of the yellow coloured college buses. They race past snail-paced trucks and two wheelers while their occupants doze off under the scorching heat. Amidst the buzz stands a hapless dog. It looks left and right uncertainly, waiting for the right moment to cross the road. When the road clears up, it swiftly moves forward. In the blink of an eye a speeding bus runs over the animal. The air is filled with an agonizing howl followed by a dreadful silence.
Dogs getting run over by vehicles is not an uncommon sight in Poonamale High Road. Once in a while I see a bloody mass on the road, squashed so badly that it hardly resembles a dog or rather anything. I flinch in revulsion, wishing that I never saw it. But it was always just a moment’s worth of pity and I never really gave it a thought. Now it’s different. Recently, I witnessed a run-over accident. It all happened so fast that I didn’t actually see the dog getting hit but I just heard the howl.The driver could have used the brake but he didn’t. My dog-loving friend was aghast after actually seeing the dog going under the wheels. She became upset throughout the journey. We tried in vain to cheer her up by telling that the dog would lead a better life in its next birth(?!?) and the driver would be born as dog(!?!?). That obviously didn’t work. But that incident really got me thinking.
It is murder, not any accident. Many people dismiss it because the victim in case is just a dog; a five sensed creature. That makes me question the underlying foundation of moral values in our society. We have been taught by our textbooks that Man is a superior being, God’s greatest creation, blah blah blah. So we labour under the illusion that treating beings below our intellectual level like scum is our birthright. Why the brazen display of power?
Aliens vapourize people in ‘War of the worlds’ and ‘Independence day’or any other Sci-Fi hoopla. Why ? Because they can. They find it mighty funny to kill the pea-brained humans who get in their way. We sympathize in the theater for our movie-counterparts but in reality have we ever taken such animal-killings seriously ? Drawing comparisons between a Sci-Fi movie and real life may look silly but apparently I am not alone in this.
If a group of beings from another planet were to land on Earth – beings who considered themselves as superior to you as you feel yourself to be to other animals – would you concede them the rights over you that you assume over other animals? ~Attributed to George Bernard Shaw
In the end it all boils down to one thing – Life. Be it a Man or an animal who goes under the wheels, it is still a life that is getting snatched away. I am no saint. I am still the same old person who is afraid of dogs and who doesn’t like to stand within a 10-metre radius of a dog. But the next time I see a dead dog on a high way (which I hope doesn’t happen again) it won’t be revulsion. It will be pity on the human race for it stoops so low as to inflict its brutality on a helpless little creature. As they say, all cruelty springs from weakness.
Platform 9-3/4 
It’s so sad to witness such incidents. If every individuals feel the same like you, we can really see a good change.
I see a cute signature on the picture… So you are good in drawing too 🙂
Of all the people I think the driver should understand that …
Thank you so much Balu 🙂 Tamil Nadu power shut down periods always bring the creative side out of me 😉
Good one vandy :-). No living thing needs this situation!
nevertheless you may want to consider the following… Kids/ toddlers in the mouth of street dogs (if u didn’t find one in poonamalee, pls come here), goats and chicks in meat shops, bus drivers in the hands of unscrupulous lorry and motorists, all of them in the hands of bad roads, and that in the hands of the govt… Finally, the many things that man can’t do in changing the politics of bad governance. No intent to make you a political writer 🙂
That is a very interesting perspective. In fact, while writing this post the incident in Bangalore (the toddlers’ death by stray dogs) came to my mind. I vividly remember that incident. Vasudha and I were boiling with rage about the Govt’s negligence to act on the issue. It is quite perturbing when people use power for all the wrong things and turn a cold shoulder for the right things.
I guess there are certain things which never change.
Thanks for the insight 🙂
i completely agree that these kinds of deaths are preventable. but the fact that there are people who are callous enough to not care about a death is a sign that common courtesies are fast depleting and we are growing more intolerant. as an animal lover it galls me to see such things. but we just have to accept that we certain things have to change for us to be called a civilized country
Absolutely.
I am not basically an animal lover. I mean I am quite afraid of animals. But when I saw the look on my friend’s face I understood…
Ok,first of all,if that’s your signature,you deserve a Nobel:D
I won’t comment on the story.The more I think of such stuff the more it angers me..
Thanks ! 🙂 drew inspiration from a couple of wonderful cartoonists on WordPress. Plus I couldn’t find the right image … 😉
This is horffic! So so so sick.
It is 😦
The Lord in his infinite grace created all creatures big and small to live on this earth; but as man and woman the most advanced of all creatures turn more and more into four-legged beasts; one wonders where all of this will end!
Prayers for all those strays who die get culled mercilessly and a prayer of thanks to the few good souls who help and care for the strays!
I am so glad you posted this. I think about this a lot and it’s very true. I mentioned something like this to my best friend once and she pointed out that I do the same thing to insects that I find disgusting and fearful. At the time I felt justified about my actions, but the more I think on it the les justified I feel. As humans, we definitely need to take a closer look at things and find some empathy for all living things.
Very true about the insects. While writing this post I felt whether all the accidental and non accidental insect killings I did was correct and I felt quite guilty about it.
Thank you so much for stopping by 🙂
An absolutely wonderful post, well-reasoned and argued, and obviously spoken with a compassionate heart. Makes me glad to know you. I’ll just add that like yourself, I am not an “animal person.” I’ve met a few dogs I’ve liked, but not many. Most dog owners seem oblivious to the fear and anxiety their dogs can arouse in others– but that’s another story, I suppose.
And that’s your own cartoon drawing? It’s excellent! Superb job in every department, Vandy! : )
I drew it 🙂 And I must say I was greatly inspired by your blog… Thank you so much for the kind words 🙂 So glad to get it from you 🙂
About the dog owners, very true! From my side there is always a fear of offending the dog or the owner ! 😀