Is this dog neutered? (How to identify)

It’s easy; observe the ears of every street dog. If at least one ear is notched, the dog has been sterilised. Some NGOs notch the left ear; some notch the right, and some notch both. (This is the easiest way for all agencies to identify a dog from some distance, so that they don’t waste time picking up an already neutered dog.) If both ears of a street dog are intact, RED ALERT — it needs to be neutered/spayed!

The featured image (at the top of this post) shows what the ears of a neutered dog look like.

Here is an example of a dog not neutered (this pic was taken before she was spayed).

FAQs: How do I deal with these dogs?

Q1. “The street dog attacks me when I am walking.”

A1. Often, it is hard to distinguish between aggression and attention-seeking. Keep an eye on the tail; if it is wagging, the dog is probably trying to make friends with you, or maybe it wants food. (My girl is like that — she runs after people and gives off a high-pitched bark. She does not bite; all she is saying is, “Please turn around and tickle my throat or give me a treat!”)

A dog may also be scared and may bark at newcomers out of fear — it usually maintains a “safe” distance (about 5-10 feet) and keeps barking from there. A dog may also chase people who have threatened it with a stick or stone, or noisy or fast vehicles. Usually, if you extend a hand of friendship, it will reciprocate, or it may just run away out of fear.

A dog can also get irritable and scream if it is hungry, in pain, has worms in the tummy, or has a skin infection. There is no way for them to express the itching and discomfort, except by whining or barking.

Initially, until you get over your fear, wear thick clothes that cover you fully; this gives you a little confidence.

Always, please ensure that a street dog is neutered. Sexual aggression in dogs could lead to other forms of aggression. Once neutered, it usually calms down considerably. To know if a dog is neutered, see this post.

I also came across this post with some unusual tips.

Q2. “The street dog attacks my dog when I am walking it.”

A2. The dog may be scared of you (please see previous answer), and it may take out its anxiety on your dog. Also, the dogs feel that they own the place because they were there earlier, and that the new dog/pup is an intruder. (This is not very different from our own human relations — it is like the first child’s reaction when the second child is born, or the reaction of the mother-in-law when the first daughter-in-law enters a traditional Indian family, or a reigning hero/heroine when new entrants enter the fray!)

My suggestion is that you first befriend the street dog. Buying peace can be surprisingly easy.

• Go on a walk (without your pet dog, without a stick). Carry some treats — Marie biscuits, Pedigree pellets, leftover chicken/mutton bones (most effective). Please avoid the “gluco” biscuits because they seem to be bad for the skin of the dog.
• When the “aggressive dog” comes towards you, toss a treat at it. Most likely, it will eat it and follow you for more.
• Repeat this for another 3-4 days. Now the dog sees you as a friend, a caregiver, an annadaata.
• Now, take your dog on a walk on the same path where you encounter the aggressive dog. Carry lots of treats! This time, when the dog sees you, it is confused. Hmmm, should I attack this dog that I always used to attack, or should I just wait for a treat from this nice man/lady? In 99 cases out of 100, it would rather take the food!
• So, toss a treat at it as usual. Also give your own pet dog a little treat, so that it does not feel neglected. Do this throughout the walk.
• Repeat this for 3-4 days, and you may find that you and your dog have actually got a new friend! You may even be able to invite the dog to hunt all the rats in your garden (street dogs are terrific mouse-catchers).
• In a pack of dogs, it’s important to identify the bully and buy peace with him/her. Once this is done, the other dogs follow their “don” and adopt the same attitude that the boss is displaying.

Remember: A friendly approach is much more likely to succeed than one of intimidation — and this holds good for human beings as well!

Q3. “Dogs are entering our gated community/ club premises!”

A3. Perform a root cause analysis.

• Perhaps your fence is broken somewhere, or the spacing too large, or the gate is open, which is how the dogs are getting in and out. Dogs do not have our sense of property lines and khata! So it’s important for us to raise the wall or fence, or fix a simple net.
• There is obviously some food available to them on your premises, or they would not want to be there.

Steps to take:

• Check and seal all your fences.
• Please demonstrate that you are a responsible society! Get the dogs neutered. Perhaps it could be part of your CSR initiative. Above all, you will demonstrate that you care about the safety of the people in the locality — let them know, so that you become a role model for them.
• Please continue to feed them, because this is the best way to decompose cooked food and non-vegetarian food. Just have a designated time and place for their feed, and they will get used to it in a week or two.

Q4. “Dogs are overturning my trash!”

A4. Please refer to this post.

Q5. “The dogs are noisy at night.”

A5. The most likely reason is that they are fighting over food. Many people throw out leftover food because they do not want it to stink up the house. When several dogs get the smell, they all go there, and the bully fights with the mild ones, to take the lion’s share. This leads to the noise you hear.

If it is possible, please figure out with your neighbours as to who will feed which dog/s. My neighbours do that — they feed four dogs, so they put the food in four plates, and they give it to the bully first. Then they quickly place the plates for the other dogs. Each dog has its own spot, and they are now used to this.

Ensure that they are well fed at night! A hungry dog is anxious and may be noisy. Dogs need a lot more fat in their food than we human beings do. They need about 30% — this keeps them feeling full longer.

They are suspicious of occurrences that are not regular or typical, such as:

– an unfamiliar dog

– an unfamiliar person (these two reasons, I can understand)

– a familiar dog, but at a different time from the usual! — this last part is what I have understood only recently (see more at this answer I wrote on Quora)

– unusual or high-frequency sounds

I hope this helps. If you have other questions, please leave a comment here!