caught in action!

here's to a day i didn't know existed!

Aug 20th was World Photography Day. i had no idea....i received a text from, 'fotocentre' the place i bought my camera from saying so. i checked with Google and sure enough-there was such a day! so i was determined to take some good photos on my first official photography day. here's some of what i captured.

sights from my window

i tend to daydream a lot. i sit at my table hoping to accomplish a certain amount of studies, but i usually end up staring out my window thinking of numerous, strangely unrelated thoughts that don't even string together. or when my mind is way too lazy even for imagination to kick in, i just stare blankly into space, taking in every unexciting happening on my road. so, during these reveries of mine, i tend to notice crows, some other birds if i'm lucky (like the copper-smith barbet you'll see below), or just people walking by. having the camera next to me always, i reach out for it and shoot. so here are snapshots from some of my many daydreams.

going wide on zoom

The silent sufferers

While we all love the rain, the cool breeze, the smell of the earth and the lush greenery all around, the monsoons is perhaps the hardest season for stray animals to see through. It's the ever-moist season when skin diseases spread, scabs don't dry, sores get worse, wounds don't heal and they run the risk of getting septic. You find cows, dogs, cats and crows with gaping, open wounds shivering in the cold.

There are many accidents too; with the slippery roads, cars keep ramming into unaware strays. The lucky ones escape with a limp but some not so fortunate ones succumb. Rarely do drivers take responsibility for these cases either. It's terrible to hear of such instances or see them happen and know that there's little you really can do.

But let's think of the things that we can do: we look at these helpless animals struggling to fend for themselves in dire conditions, often with illnesses or wounds dragging them down. We feel miserable when we see them suffer. But sadly, just a handful of us will actually try to help them; because only a handful of us know we can.

There are organizations such as the ASHA foundation and Animals Matter to Me, apart from SPCA who work incredibly hard during times like these to help the animals brought to them. However, it's a huge responsibility that they cannot take on single handed. If we see an animal that needs help, informing these foundations should be our reflex action-and even more importantly, following through. Places like these get at least 30 such calls in a day and they need our support to treat each and every animal that get's called in. Be co-operative and determined. Once you've got the animal in their clinics, your job is done. You'll feel immense satisfaction for having been able to help.

This isn’t the only way you can contribute. These organizations run solely on public donations and funds collected during fundraising events. They face a constant need for medicines and medical supplies. By making a donation or by directly providing common medicines and amenities like cotton swabs, syringes, sterile needles, antiseptic gloves, etc, you’d be of great help. Any donation large or small is appreciated by these foundations; after all, every little bit counts.

During the monsoons, when there are numerous injured and sick animals being brought in daily, an extra pair of hands on board is a boon. Volunteering with SPCA, ASHA foundation or any org of your choice is by far the best you could do to make a difference. You don’t need to be a trained specialist to be able to volunteer. Doing simple things like walking and grooming dogs, tending to the cleanliness of the kennels, feeding the animals, being a canine/feline companion, fostering an animal and doing data entry are some of the many things you could do.

For further information on how you can work towards helping animals this monsoon, visit the links given below.

ASHA foundation-9820127085

Animals Matter To Me Mumbai-9819380310

SPCA-022-24137518

http://www.bombayspca.org/helpus_volunteer.html

http://www.ashafoundationindia.org/how-you-can-help.html

http://www.petdig.com/info/pet/activities/963/

snug furballs

the monsoons!

pet portraits