Two of the cases we handled last month involved situations that were somewhat delicate. While scouting for animals in need of assistance, two Animal Rahat staffers came across dogs on whom people had affixed harmful devices—although with good intentions.

The dog above was wearing a collar made of spiked iron. Our staffer tracked down the owner, who explained that the purpose of the collar was to protect the dog from being attacked by wild animals or other dogs. Our staffer praised the man for wanting to protect the dog but explained that the collar was doing more harm than good by making it impossible for him to groom or scratch himself or even lie down comfortably. The owner agreed to remove the collar, which our staffer then took away. In even better news, the owner agreed to let us neuter the dog, which we did just days later.

Similarly, one of our staffers had to have a discussion with a man who had tied a log around his dog’s neck in order to keep him from roaming far from home. We explained to the man that the log was hurting the dog and that if he were neutered, he would be much less likely to roam. It worked! The dog is now free from the log and no longer contributing to the overpopulation of strays.