We began our journey by helping the suffering dogs of Lalitpur, speaking out against the exploitation of elephants in the Terai and working closely with the equine owning community whose animals were often abused and overworked at the brick factories. With the support of international friends, we gave a voice to rhesus monkeys, which were bred for cruel lab tests in the USA. We protested against ‘diplomatic wildlife gifting’ by the government and a new law regulating wildlife breeding. We spoke for the thousands of animals brutally sacrificed in the name of religion at the Gadhimai festival. We highlighted cruel cases of stray dogs poisoned by local authorities. We fought for individual animals at the zoo, for animals used for entertainment, stray cattle and every other animal whose suffering deserves a voice.
And we continue voicing our concerns. We protest against the loss of greenery in our cities, the destruction of our forests and animal habitats in Nijgadh and other parts of the country, the despicable suffering of non-lactating cows and male calves as a result of the dairy industry, the cruel exploitation of elephants by the tourism industry, and many more. We lobby for legislation which provides legal protection to all animals and ensures their welfare. We campaign for humane conditions for livestock. We promote vegetarianism and right living.
But we are more than just a voice. We practice what we preach and are not afraid to act. As a result, we have been successful in delivering our long-running programs for stray dogs and working equines, focusing on permanent solutions through education, improving conditions and birth control. We built a sanctuary for discarded equines, a treatment center for dogs and have plans to expand our sanctuary into a resource hub for anyone interested in learning about and helping the animal welfare movement. We have expanded our working area beyond Lalitpur, to other districts such as Gorkha, Dhading, Banke and Lumbini.
I would like to invite you to join our movement for the welfare of all animals, so that our collective voices can be heard throughout our neighborhood, inside Singha Durbar, across the nation and globally.
Pramada Shah, President, Animal Nepal