So, there I was. Doing the same ol' shit I used to, one time ago. Literally cleaning up poop and changing the newspapers where the dogs sleep on their rusted and almost broken cages, is the basic cleaning done twice a day. Well despite the lavatory smell the morass place lets out, at least SPCA (Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) provides the shelter and food needed for the unwanted and left-idle dogs and cats. As you may have already concluded by now, yes, I have volunteered to provide my service to help this under-paid organisation to continue to support these stray animals.
Recently, it came to my attention about the intership available where, you would be tied to this "work" for as long as you would want to and because you are not paid, you can choose what time to show up and what time to leave. Since I have wasted the whole month of June, practically laying eggs at home and growing more layers of fat, turning myself into this gulab jamun (for those who are in the dark, gulab jamun is a type of Indian sweet which looks like "waffle balls" in a sugar syrup flavoured with cardamon seeds and rosewater or saffron), I decided to put my public service in practice!
Well anyway, back to the days routine at the shelter. Altogether, 5 of us cleaning up the place where 4 are permanent workers. Having completed basic cleaning, the meat will be separated from the bones of priorly boiled chickens. The bones will then be mixed in one pan where there is a mixture of cooked rice and pellets while the meat will be mixed in another pan where there is only cooked rice. The latter pan is for the puppies while the former is given to dogs as they will be able to break down the bones without chocking themselves. Having placed in their respective bowls and served to them hot-from-the-oven, it is our time for lunch!
The workers were pretty friendly to talk to and they invited me to join them for lunch at this nearby mamak restaurant. Though having brought my lunch box, I thought 'Oh, what the heck? Its time for knowing me, knowing you...aha...' I tagged along and had my lunch there itself. About an hour or so later, the story really begins when we got back.
After lunch, I proceeded to the same cage I was at, earlier. As by now, the dogs would have messed up the place and their bowls would have been chewed into pieces. It was pretty obvious that one of the dogs was having her monthly cycle because the floor had patches of blood scattered around. Taking it as something normal and deemed to occur, casually I got on with the routine. But, Appu (one of the 4 workers I went out for lunch with) started grumbling about the place being smelly and dirty. So, he went up to one of the dogs and what seemed to be checking the dog's gums, turned out to be that he was literally hurting the dog by pinching and squeezing its lips.The dog was already squeaking in pain while Appu (hate repeating his ominous name) continued to curse at her and just when I thought the torture drill was over, he started punching the helpless dog! I ran up to him and told him that it was hopeless what he is doing and tried to assure him that I can help him clean up the place. And just when I thought the worst was over, he sighed and adjourned to another cage and to my horror he starts playing with another petrified dog's penis! Yes! The dog's fucking penis! Hhmm...that does not sound right together.
But, seriously what is the purpose of having a centre to care for hungry and homeless animals when they are subject to worse abuse? According to the vet, Dr Lim, it seems that dude has to be given a 'pep-talk' every now and then to keep his behaviour on the right track. Oh urm, pardon me, a pep-talk? Then why in the Devil's name have you taken in him for this job at the first place?!
Colin Clarke once said that, “We've got to make sensible choices about what's best for the team, and we've got to be sure we're 100 percent right at the important times.” In this case, the main players in the team are the dogs. The coach is Dr Lim while the supporting players are the workers working first hand with the dogs, which brings in Appu. If he cannot perform his best and what is expected of him in this crucial game of upkeeping this centre of relief for lost animals, it will eventually bring only devastation to the team. Even if the coaching is at its level best, if the players do not support each other in the field, the game is lost.
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