Bangalore-based Rahul N Nesargi is a second-generation entrepreneur who has rescued several animals and given them a new lease of life.
Rahul N Nesargi is a mechanical engineer by profession who not only loves animals, but also takes good care of them. He was born and brought up in Bangalore and will be 28 years old coming August. He has a family business and as a second-generation entrepreneur, Rahul has an extremely dynamic schedule. Despite that, he intends to contribute significantly to voiceless stray animal community.
His love for animals runs across the board. It all started when his parents got a white Persian cat. His love for the cat only grew over six years. However, after six years, when his family moved into a new apartment; the cat jumped from the balcony of his seventh floor flat while trying to catch hold of something. That incident left a deep mark on Rahul.
A couple of years later, his parents got another Persian cat and named him `Romeo’. The family mostly prefers cats as Rahul said, “Cats are mostly independent and do not require much personal attention as compared to dogs”. Romeo was with the family for eight years when he suddenly developed a kidney problem with very high creatinine levels. Romeo was on his deathbed and was suffering with each passing day. Rahul took the hardest decision of his to put him down to sleep as it was difficult for him to see the cat in pain, teaching him the valuable lessons of taking tough decisions and coping with loss and grief. This incident sparked in Rahul the interest to take care of stray animals. He has carried out several noteworthy rescues of stray animals and birds till date.
On several occasions, Rahul has stumbled across stray puppies wandering about on the streets not wary of the traffic and no mother dog in the vicinity. These puppies mostly seem to have strayed from their near and dear ones. On such occasions, Rahul realized that these were abandoned puppies and that survival on the streets would be difficult for such puppies. He would look for forever homes for these little pups and take care of these little pups personally, until a rescuer or a loving family is willing to adopt the puppy. In July, 2021, Rahul saved his first ever stray puppy which was later adopted by Mylos Rescue. He even made a donation for the upkeep of the same. Subsequently, he saved another puppy near his residence which was recently adopted by a loving family. The first puppy is healthy and doing well at Mylos Rescue, which Rahul visits from time to time. The second puppy is now enjoying the role of a sheepdog on a farm where it not only receives pampering and love from the family but also receives plenty of attention from the various farm animals as well.
As a volunteer of the feeders’ community, Rahul also actively feeds numerous stray dogs in his locality every weekend. His donations have helped provide vaccinations to many strays to reduce the risk of various fatal viral infections and diseases.
On another occasion, he rescued a cat whose hind legs were run over by a motorcycle. The cat was a part of the apartment society and was taken care of by various residents of the apartment from time to time by providing food and water for the cat. However, one day, the cat went suddenly missing. After missing for about 5 days, the cat was found dragging its hind legs and its wounds severely infected with maggots. The cat was looking to crawl into one of the sand burrows inside the apartment premises to die as is the case with most animals on the verge of dying. Despite the dire condition of the cat, Rahul and his sister, Raksha organized a fundraiser to help pay for the treatment of the cat. He was able to raise 20,000 rupees from the residents to help pay for the surgery. After about 25 days in the Veterinary hospital, the cat had finally recovered from its horrific injuries but the severity of the injuries meant that one of its legs would have to be amputated. It was later found out that the age of cat could not have been more 6-7 months. After having gone through so much at such a young age and after surviving the motorcycle accident, the cat was nicknamed “Fighter” for its will to fight on and survive. Rahul has now found her a foster home where she is being taken care of very well.
Additionally, Rahul has also helped save three pigeons thus far. Two of which was treated for and released by one of the pigeon hospitals in Bangalore and the other one, which was on the verge of collapse was personally taken care of and fed by Rahul for four months before it found the strength to survive independently.
In January, 2021, he saw a kite lying helplessly in front of his office. The kite could not move after being struck by an electric current. In order to facilitate its rescue, Rahul contacted People for Animals for assistance to help the bird. While waiting for the rescue team to arrive, he provided water to the kite and made a box with suitable ventilation to transport the injured bird to the treatment centre. After about four days in the treatment centre, the kite was brought back to his residence to allow him to be released into the open. Thereafter, he also donated to the organization for carrying out such wonderful work.
Asked about the state of rescue homes, Rahul said that in Bangalore the experience has been good. The rescue teams are very proactive here, he said. In Karnataka, many people have left their full-time jobs to take care of strays.
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