Are you fascinated by fancy dog cafes that house some cutest breeds of pooches? These cafes usually attract a lot of pet lovers who like to spend hours with these furry buddies. Spending time with dogs is often touted as a ‘therapy’ to de-stress the mind. But not always the owners of these cafes are animal lovers. Under the radar, they might be simply using these voiceless creatures for profits. A former employee of a dog cafe in Bandra recently raised the issue of pedigree breeds being exploited in the establishment. The ex-employee named Diya Bhatia, who had been with the cafe for over two years, had alleged that the cafe used to cage the dogs for a stretch of around 11 hours. She has also written to PETA about the atrocious actions of the cafe supervisors on the dogs. As per reports, the charged cafe is Puppy Cuddles Dog Cafe in Khar West.
The Dogs Were Crammed In Cages For Long Hours; Forced To Stay In ‘Cuddle Zones’
According to a mid-day report by Gaurav Sarkar, writing to PETA, Bhatia has explained that the cafe lured people with the concept of spending an hour with 25 expensive dog breeds. She added that the animals were forced to stay in ‘cuddle zones’ for more than 6 hours and were sometimes caged for over 11 hours. She also said that the owner would not feed the dogs adequately to save expenses. The cafe charges ₹400 as entry fee to let guests interact with the dogs in the cuddle zone. The mid-day report quotes Bhatia saying that the owner used to play cricket inside the cafe and the ball used to hurt the dogs. Bhatia added that if they barked, they were beaten with sticks.
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The Cafe Violates Animal Rights Acts
Bhatia has uploaded a video on the cafe on her Instagram handle which has left netizens aghast. Taking the issue forward, PETA wrote to the Maharashtra Animal Welfare Board (MAWB) and Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) Mumbai. Allegedly, the cafe was not registered under MAWB, which violates Rule 3 of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Rules, 2017.
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Reportedly, the cafe has four beagles, six huskies, five golden retrievers, three pugs, four shih tzus and one chow chow. The cafe has been shut down after protests on social media. Vijay Kishore Mohanani, founder of NGO Bombay Animal Rights (BAR) is investigating the matter now. Efforts are underway for rescuing and adopting the animals.