The Plight of Street Animals in Underdeveloped Countries During the Pandemic

By Anna Levy

The damaging effects of the coronavirus have been felt throughout the world as people struggle to support themselves and their families during a global pandemic. The impact of the virus varies in different places, with stay-at-home orders shattering the Italian economy and deserting Indian cities due to the exodus of migrant workers. However, one less publicized effect of the coronavirus is its impact on the plight of animals. The “plight of animals” refers to the suffering and struggling of animals who are either going extinct or seeking better lives. In underdeveloped and developing countries, the plight of animals is more frequent due to an increased reliance on animals for labor and insufficient animal welfare policies, as production of resources and profit are often valued higher than the health and happiness of the animals involved. Moreover, while there are over 100 million working farm animals in developing countries, there are very few animal hospitals to address the maltreatment, poor hygiene, and other numerous causes of premature death and suffering among these animals. The coronavirus has had both positive and negative impacts on this plight, leaving some animals neglected and others receiving increased attention. As such, this global pandemic may actually provide a unique opportunity for wildlife organizations to consider the impact of human activity and presence on the plight of animals and how we can establish more effective wildlife protection and policies.

One of the benefits of the coronavirus is that the plight of animals is becoming more visible and apparent, especially in underdeveloped countries, and people are actively seeking ways to help suffering animals. In India, there are over 35-million stray dogs roaming around the country searching for scraps of food and potentially a new home with an Indian resident. The number of native Indian dogs being adopted as pets has increased in recent years, but the threats of the coronavirus and the subsequent stay-at-home orders are leaving many of these strays underfed and increasingly territorial as they roam the abandoned streets of India. Because of this, many good samaritans are providing scraps of food and daily meals to these strays, thereby providing a substitute for the restaurant garbage scraps on which the strays were previously reliant. While the decreased restaurant activity has left many of these dogs underfed, the increased awareness of these strays and their need for food and resources has a hopeful undertone, as Indian residents may be more inclined to help and house stray dogs in the future.

A popular misconception about the coronavirus is that it can be transmitted from animals to humans, when in reality there have only been documented cases of human-to-human and human-to-animal transmission. While it is still a good idea to wash your hands before and after interacting with an animal, especially a stray, there is no reason to fear your pets or worry about them mobilizing the disease. Unfortunately, residents in many heavily-impacted countries are either abandoning their pets or sending them back to shelters due to fear of the virus. Hopefully, with the proper education and advice, homeowners will realize the benign nature of their pets in relation to the virus and keep caring for them during the pandemic, despite the circulating myths about transmission.

Tourism also plays a large role in the wellbeing of the environment and its inhabitants; this role can be either positive and negative depending on the level of sustainability of wildlife tourism. Subsequently, the reduction of tourism during the pandemic has had a series of effects, both positive and negative, on the plight of animals. For example, a decrease in tourism and travel has translated to a decrease in illegal wildlife trading between places such as China and Europe; on the other hand, illegal poachers in parts of Africa are taking advantage of reduced tourists and patrols to earn extra money. Illegal wildlife trading refers to the illegal obtaining and selling of rare animal materials such as ivory, certain feathers, and turtle shells. In order to obtain these resources, many animals' lives are put in danger--in fact, over 33,000 elephants are killed each year for ivory, and increased demand threatens to raise this number even higher. While the exact predicted outcome of the virus on wildlife tourism and illegal trading is unclear, what is clear is that wildlife experts must take advantage of this critical time to evaluate the impact of the virus on biodiversity and address possible preventative measures against wildlife trading.

The coronavirus has taught us that all parts of the earth are interconnected, and that a global pandemic has repercussions not only on humans, but on the environment and its ecosystems as well. By taking advantage of this critical time in human history, we can begin to address issues like the plight of animals from a new perspective, and hopefully establish more effective wildlife policies in future years.

Sources

• https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/2020/05/worlds-strictest-lockdown-people-feed-stray-dogs-essential/

• https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/2020/04/should-you-be-worried-about-your-pet-spreading-coronavirus/

• https://www.straitstimes.com/opinion/animal-farm-and-the-plight-of-developing-nations-in-a-pandemic

• https://aminals.org/2018/08/07/ideas-for-improving-the-plight-of-animals/

• https://wildlife.org/pandemic-response-impacts-illegal-wildlife-trade/