Fizzah Shah and the Gang of Four

As we all know, a minor incident can change the direction of our lives.  It can even lead to a career change.

For Fizzah Shah, it started when her daughter brought home a sickly, unwanted puppy. Despite her best efforts, the puppy would not survive, but that small incident left her traumatised and would change her life forever. Noticing that where she lived, there were lots of strays that were hungry, and having obtained advice from the local veterinary surgeon, she started feeding them. Realising that some were carrying injuries, she purchased a vehicle and, along with her friends, she was able to transport them to the vet. She reached out to other agencies and established shelters for assistance, but found them to be overcrowded, underfunded and under-resourced, and so being unable to acquire any assistance or find homes for the street dogs, Shah made a momentous decision. She would open her own shelter.

Shah purchased a six-acre piece of land in Virar, Mumbai and developed it by building appropriate housing to accommodate all the different animals: walls, enclosures, even a large aviary required for the more exotic birds.

Expansion

Having started by feeding stray dogs, Shah realised that it was not only canines that needed her assistance. There were the large animals as well, particularly the ones that were taken for granted. Elderly bullocks, worn out by a lifetime of heavy toil, were routinely sent to the slaughterhouse along with cows, so these were purchased from the owners and were some of the first residents of her new animal shelter. For these huge animals, one can only imagine the pleasure of just spending their days in idle splendour without having to drag heavy loads and sometimes being ill-treated.

Along with the cows, bullocks and dogs who were in residence, a number of goats, rabbits, and donkeys arrived to be swiftly followed by a feathered contingent of geese, hens and ducks. Because of the diversity of the animals, the shelter is now referred to as a farm.

Those who work with the animals are expected to follow the rules set down by Fizzah Shah.

Never hit an animal, don’t yell at the animals, feed by hand, and address them by their name. This creates an atmosphere of peace and tranquillity as all the different species appear to reside in perfect harmony along with their neighbours.

With residents numbered in the hundreds, finding names presents its own problems and calls for an imaginative approach. An example is the arrival of a litter of seven puppies, which ended with rather unusual names. Monday, Tuesday…….

Shah does not accept donations and encourages others to use their money wisely by feeding the strays. She has a completely correct stance on adopting pets. If you are unwilling to offer a home for life, leave the stray on the streets where it is free and will at least be fed by volunteers. There is nothing worse than to adopt and then abandon. A pet is for life; it’s not a toy to be discarded when boredom sets in.

The Gang of Four

As she adopted an endless number of animals, Shah was conscious of the fate of ex police dogs. Having given the best years of their lives, the best they could expect in retirement was a life in the police kennels, not the most salubrious environment. So, Shah offered her farm as a home to retired police dogs. Among those were the “Gang of Four.” The police sent an inspector and agreed that the farm was a perfect environment for the hairy heroes to see out their days. When they arrived, all four of them had their collars ceremoniously removed to signify that they would never have to be recalled to work again.

Whilst they are unknown to the majority of citizens, these four canines have legendary status among police officers. In February 2008, Mumbai was rocked by explosions, and terrorism engulfed the city. It resulted in 175 dead and 300 injured. It was carnage; nowhere was safe. These are horrendous figures; however, without the “Gang of Four”, authorities have determined that these figures would probably be in the thousands.

Caesar, Sultan, Max and Tiger were the canine members of the Police Bomb Detection and Disposal Squad (BDDS)

Not only highly trained in the art of bomb detection, but they were all great mates. In three days, they discovered bombs, detonators, grenades, ball bearings, shrapnel, hand guns, rifles, ammunition and all the paraphernalia of making bombs. Working incredibly long hours, under stressful conditions, all four of them never faltered. Max even survived having a bomb thrown at him whilst searching.

The “Gang of Four “would spend their final two years together in the idyllic setting of the farm before the demise of Max, which was swiftly followed by the others.

Shah, knowing the high regard that police officers held the “Gang of Four,” had them buried, and gravestones were erected so that officers could continue to come and pay their respects.

Gone but not forgotten.