Erum Qureshi's Animal Shelter Brings Hope & Love To Strays In Uttarakhand

Seven years ago, a little female puppy walked into Erum Qureshi's yard and began playing with her son. Although she considered herself a cat person or a "total noob about dogs," as she puts it, she quickly embraced the pup in their family. When she decided to get the dog sterilised, she was surprised to find the lack of veterinary facilities for hundreds of kilometres in the region. This drove her mission to create a safe haven for animals in the hills.

From feeding to sterilising or rescuing to rehabilitating, Erum slowly but steadily began her path to improving the lives of strays across Uttarakhand. What started as a single-handed effort is now backed by animal lovers in the town and beyond. Speaking to SheThePeople, Erum shared her journey to founding her non-profit organisation, Himalayan Tails. 

Erum's Story

Born and raised in Mumbai, Erum Ali Qureshi quit her job in the media and moved to Majkhali with her family in 2016 to embrace a quieter, more fulfilling life in the hills. "While it was a retirement plan to move to the hills, my husband and I chose to retire early and move to Uttarakhand," she shared. 

One day, Erum's five-year-old son was playing with some local children when a puppy playfully nipped him. "Shockingly, a kid said, 'This dog bites, let's leave her in the forest so a leopard can eat it'," she recounted. "I refused to let that happen and told them to leave the puppy at my house. And that's how I 'accidentally' got my first-ever pet dog."

Erum had not anticipated how dramatically the newly adopted puppy would transform her life. "Whatever I learnt about dogs was from this puppy," she expressed. "I did not know about female dogs' heat cycles and tried to get her sterilised but there was no sterilisation centre nearby."

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From No Experience With Dogs To Running A Shelter

Erum's dog gave birth to seven puppies-- five male and two female. "Everyone adopted the male puppies but no one wanted the females. I learnt about the discrimination against female dogs. I saw what happens to them here -- left to be taken away by leopards, buried alive-- it was a very traumatic [situation]."

That's when Erum decided to take action. "Initially, I went to the municipality, cantonment board, and the veterinary department and tried to get the female strays sterilised but they said they don't have any such facility. So, I thought of doing something about this myself. I thought even if I would have to take one dog at a time to the vet, I'm going to get them sterilised."

Without any formal training, professional dog catcher, or transport, Erum and her friend Sweta Dogra took batches of dogs to a government Animal Birth Control (ABC) unit in Almora, about 44 kilometres away. "We rented a car, took two dogs at a time, got them spayed, took them home for their post-operative care, and released them back in their territory after recovery."

The duo managed to get at least 48 dogs sterilised in Almora until the facility could no longer accommodate them due to a lack of resources. However, Erum was determined to get the care the strays deserved. She transformed a room in her rented house into a makeshift clinic and sourced a local veterinarian who agreed to sterilise the dogs on-site.

"For the first time, we did 25 sterilisations in one day with that vet. A lot of these were also villagers' pets; People didn't have any means to take their pets to Almora or Haldwani to get them sterilized so they waited for me to get the vet here. Many strays stayed with me. I had about 14 dogs in that house but we had to vacate after a while," Erum shared.

In 2022, Erum bought land to set up an animal shelter focused on animal sterilisation, rehabilitation, and hospice among other services. "We get a lot of leopard attack cases, injured, rabid, and distempered dogs; I take in sick dogs because otherwise, the locals horribly kill them. Now, everybody knows that there is an NGO here; Whenever someone finds puppies, they don't even call and ask. They just bring them to my place." Erum said.

Struggles Of Animal Care In The Hills

Erum described the challenges of animal welfare in the hills and small towns. "Rescuing animals in the hills is very challenging. When I came here, I was like, 'Whom do I call? Where do I go?' When I needed a simple painkiller for a dog, it wasn't available in the local pharmacies. There is no one to help. Not even the municipality."

She also shared the stigma towards animal welfare in India. "How much ever you try to educate people about sterilisation, somehow there is a mental block that they don't want to adopt, especially female pets. Looking at the way our society is moving towards this intolerance for dogs, sterilisation is a must, not just in big cities."

Operating a small-scale shelter, Erum faced many problems in receiving support from the government. "The ABC rules of the Animal Welfare Board of India are so complicated. There is so much infrastructure needed, which makes it very difficult for someone like me, who's running this place from my property," she shared.

"At one point, I received a government notice for 'animal cruelty' saying I do 'illegal sterilisations'. Instead of hindering sterilisation efforts, the government should be more open to actually seeing what exactly is happening. They need to have open minds and support people who are working at the grassroots levels and people who do the actual heavy lifting."

Impact Of Working With Animals

The selfless act of caring for a voiceless creature has been a deeply transformative journey for Erum, teaching her resilience, compassion, and the power of small actions to create meaningful change. She shared how introducing her children to animals from a young age has fostered empathy and responsibility within her family. 

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"In my experience, one of the best things a parent can do is introduce their child at a very young age to an animal, be it a dog or a cat. It teaches children so many things. It teaches them how to be responsible. It teaches them how to be gentle. It teaches them boundaries."

Erum explained how the commitment to having a pet nurtures children. "Being with animals is a way to connect to the real world because I see many kids nowadays who will not even eat until the phone is in their hand. At a time like this, having an animal -- a real, tangible, being with feelings -- can be very important."

Beyond the joyful parts of having pets, Erum described how their moments like sickness or loss can be important lessons too. "No matter how many deaths you see, you never get used to it. It's always a jarring experience and a feeling that humans can't understand... However, even their death teaches us so much. Personally, I've learned that you can't save everyone; You have to insulate yourself."

While Erum Qureshi's foray into animal welfare was unexpected, her perseverance, resilience, and commitment to continuously learn have propelled her to challenge any obstacle and make a lasting impact. Throughout her journey, her unwavering dedication to animals has not only changed countless lives but also profoundly influenced her. 

With Himalayan Tails, Erum hopes to build a safe and self-sufficient sanctuary for stray animals in the region. Her vision extends to fostering community involvement and educating people about animal welfare. She envisions a future where caring for animals is a shared responsibility, building compassion and empathy within the community.