The Cubbon Park Canines were the first squad to be formed in Bengaluru, followed by the Cunningham Canine Squad. Presently, there are an additional 63 squads in the city that focus on animal welfare. On World Animal Welfare Day, Bangalore Times shines a spotlight on these numerous groups, whose members have dedicated their lives to improving the lives of animals in need, especially those that are often neglected.

These groups serve as a safety net for animals, according to Priya Chetty-Rajagopal, the founder of Bengaluru's canine squads. She explains that members of these groups go above and beyond to assist voiceless animals, acting as watchful guardians for dogs in need. Their primary goal is to offer education and empower individuals to care for animals.

Many people face uncertainty when encountering abandoned or injured dogs; therefore, these groups aim to bridge this knowledge gap. Mallika Ghosh, a member of the CV Raman Nagar Canine Squad, regularly shares essential emergency contact numbers to equip people with the necessary information on how to respond in such situations.

The canine squads in Bengaluru focus on various tasks, including establishing local communities for animal care, prioritizing critical issues such as neutering and anti-rabies vaccination, enhancing community involvement in animal welfare, fostering trust and a sense of community, and collaborating with authorities like BBMP, the State Animal Welfare Board, and the police to share knowledge and best practices on issues like neutering, abuse, rescue, and cruelty prevention.

Amid the pandemic, many dogs were abandoned due to baseless rumors of spreading Covid-19, and the Animal Birth Control (ABC) program in India was inactive, resulting in a surge of puppies. Parvathi Prabhakar, a member of the Sadashivanagar Canine Squad, took the initiative to neuter around 400 dogs to address this issue, aiming to neuter every dog in Bengaluru."She expresses her belief that neutering is the sole solution to this issue," she shares."