A dog in Belgavi district of the South Indian state of Karnataka suffered more than four years with a broken stainless-steel kettle held fast around his neck, not allowing villagers to approach him to remove it. Now thanks to rescuers from Animal Rahat—a PETA-supported animal protection charity in India, the dog named Chala is finally free. Chala which means “resilient” and “tenacious” was spotted along a road in the northwestern region of Karnataka——he has made a full recovery and is now back, safe and sound, in his community.
The Day Rescuers First Found Chala
When Animal Rahat rescuers found Chala, he was suffering from a broken kettle lodged around his neck, with sharp edges causing chronic wounds as it dug into the flesh behind his ears. After managing to sneak up behind him and sedate him, they transported him in their ambulance to their clinic where team members carefully cut away the kettle and cleaned and treated his injuries. He was allowed to rest, then later vaccinated and neutered, and given time to recover in their care. Once fully healed, Chala was returned to his neighborhood. As he was being released, a neighbor reported that he had seen Chala roaming with the kettle on his head for more than four years—but everyone’s prior efforts to help him had been unsuccessful.
Watch Chala’s Rescue
Animal Rahat receives similar reports almost every week—dogs with their heads stuck in plastic jars, cans, bowls, and other household items. And in the U.S. and around the world, commonly discarded items such as soda rings, beer and soda cans, gum, plastic bags, and more can be deadly to unsuspecting wildlife and even dogs and cats. PETA encourages everyone to rinse and crush cans and containers; cut open plastic packaging; and keep garbage in sealed, chew-proof bins to prevent animals from getting trapped.
“For more than four years, Chala suffered because of a thoughtlessly discarded item, but thanks to Animal Rahat’s compassionate rescuers, he’s finally free from pain and back in his community,” says PETA Founder Ingrid Newkirk. “PETA urges everyone to help prevent this type of suffering by crushing cans before recycling them, rinsing out containers and putting lids back on, cutting apart plastic six-pack rings before discarding them, and always helping animals in need.”
PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to abuse in any way”—points out that Every Animal Is Someone and offers free Empathy Kits which make an interesting read.
