The India arm of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) on September 9 urged the Uttar Pradesh government to ban the keeping, breeding and sale of dogs for "illegal fighting".
The appeal by PETA, second in the last three weeks, came on a day when it was reported that a 10-year-old boy in Ghaziabad was left with 150 stitches after a pit bull attacked him.
In response to the news, PETA said it "has renewed its call to Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Yogi Adityanath, and Uttar Pradesh Urban Development Minister Arvind Kumar Sharma to prohibit the keeping, breeding, and sale of dogs bred for illegal fighting; shut down illegal pet shops and breeders; and crack down on illegal dogfights".
According to PETA, the ban could be brought into effect by "requiring owners to declare breeds placed on the prohibited list for mandatory sterilisation and government registration within a month of the issuance of the directive".
The government should also prohibit any "new dogs of these breeds from being bred, kept, or sold after a stipulated date immediately following the completion of that month", it added.
PETA India Veterinary Policy Advisor Dr Nithin Krishnegowda said such a prohibition is the need of the hour to protect humans as well as the dogs. "This attack on a child is the latest in a series of wake-up calls that if India continues to allow dogs typically used for cruel human exploits such as criminal dogfighting to be bred, more people will get hurt," he added.
The statement issued by PETA further noted that inciting dogs to fight is illegal under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960.
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