[Bading Dawa Tayeng]
Tarun Jamoh started the Arunachal Dog & Cat Rescue foster care centre in 2019 in the confines of his home in Chandranagar, and currently operates from Rainbow Colony in Lekhi village.
He looks over the treatment of stray dogs and cats, and dogs suspected of rabies, besides taking care of animals that are yet to be adopted.
“At the initial stage, I was all alone. A lot of people have joined us in our journey since then,” said Jamoh.
“People now have started feeding dogs. The police authorities have also become more cooperative, compared to back then,” he added.
When starting out, Jamoh supported the foster care centre with money out of pocket – money he earned doing part-time jobs. He now looks after the animals full-time.
A major portion of the funds comes from his family and well-wishers, he said.
“However funds are not received on a regular basis and, in the absence of government aid, we have a long way to go,” he said.
“Shortage of funds restricts our ability to look after these animals,” he added.
Recently, influencer Deja Bayor and podcaster Techi Kokololo initiated a 100-day promotional, ‘Charity & Content’ campaign, promoting 10 homegrown business establishments in the capital city.
All the earnings from these promotions will be used for the development of the foster centre.
“I am very happy with the responses we have received from the beginning. Through this initiative we want to help the animals at the shelter home,”Jamoh said.
The foster care centre is currently home to 25 dogs. Dogs in need of assistance are brought to the centre and looked after. After availing the required medical assistance, they are put up for adoption through the centre’s social media pages.
However, only 10% of the dogs are adopted. Jamoh urged the public to adopt dogs instead of purchasing them.
Places like Ziro, Aalo and the Itanagar Capital Region have the most reported cases of animal abuse, he said. (Bading Dawa Tayeng is an intern at The Arunachal Times)
