Rescue

Calls come in from across the city, from residents, from police, from people who have found an animal on the road and do not know what to do. An ambulance goes out.

The service began in 2011, when the high number of animal accidents in Mumbai made it clear that the city needed ambulances for animals. What started with spot treatment and first aid has grown to five ambulances covering the city. Each ambulance has a licensed driver and a trained assistant who can handle injured animals, give first aid, and treat minor cases on the spot. For serious injuries, the animal is brought to our hospital for treatment by a veterinarian.

The animal is brought in for examination and treatment. What happens next depends on what is wrong, but the animal is not turned away.

Some animals are treated and released back to their territory. Some stay longer. Some never go back. The decision is made case by case, based on what is best for the animal.

The ambulances also run for our sterilisation programmes and for emergency cases throughout the year. In the last twelve years, the timely arrival of an ambulance has saved more than 8,000 animal lives.