There’s something in the water in Mumbai, India.
And it may be turning packs of dogs blue.
Local residents have captured images in recent weeks of stray dogs sporting a vibrant blue hue roaming the streets of Taloja, one of the city’s industrial neighbourhoods.
The canines’ alarming colour prompted animal rights activists such as Arati Chauhan, the head of the Navi Mumbai Animal Protection Cell, to file a complaint to the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) about the phenomenon.
Chauhan uploaded photos of the blue dogs on her Facebook page on Aug. 9 along with a post that blamed the dogs’ unnatural colour on untreated industrial waste and dye dumped into the Kasadi River by a nearby manufacturing company.
Although the river is cordoned off from the public, local dogs frequently wade into the river to cool off and search for food, according to local media. The animals have also been known to enter the factory’s premises, some reports said.
The animal rights campaigners say the dogs are at risk of developing infections, skin irritations, blindness and other diseases by consuming the contaminated water.
The MPCB investigated the complaints against the manufacturing plant, which reportedly produces detergent, and shut down the company’s operations on Wednesday. The board confirmed that the dogs were turning blue because of the air and water pollutants released from the factory.
The pollutants were released into the air and water in a powder form, according to Badri Chatterjee, a reporter for Hindustan Times who broke the story. He told CTV News Channel on Tuesday that they have also heard reports of birds covered in the dye as well.
Officials from the company in question told the local Hindustan Times that they were installing a temporary gate to prevent the stray dogs from entering the river.
Most of the dogs affected by the waste have been treated or washed clean by heavy rains, Chauhan wrote on Facebook. The stray canines didn’t develop any infections as a result of the dye, which is water-soluble, Chatterjee said.
“But these dogs are suffering because of this particular pollution that is being released,” he said.
One of the dogs is still under observation by the veterinarian officer, according to Chatterjee. He said there have been no reports of humans impacted by the pollutants.
