Parel’s drug mules and flying secret agents

The pigeon enclosure at the Bai Sakarbai Dinshaw Petit Hospital. The ‘spy’ pigeon got acclimatised to the hospital environs. Pics/Anurag Ahire

He's not the one - no, that guy is known to be notorious," warns Col Dr BB Kulkarni. The ‘guy' he refers to is a large white horse with a penchant for misbehaving with the cow ward staff at Parel's Bai Sakarbai Dinshaw Petit Hospital for Animals. The beast we've been eagerly waiting for is Sultan, a celebrity resident of the hospital who arrived 15 years ago. As the brown and black horse surveys his kingdom, Chief Medical Superintendent Col Kulkarni tells us, "Sultan was first brought here because of an injured hoof and joint. He never left, because where will a chronically injured horse go in a city like Mumbai?" Fittingly, a carved bust of Sakarbai - wife of textile mills owner Dinshaw Maneckji Petit, after whom the hospital is named - hung over the entrance of the main office, too, features a gallant-looking horse.

The expansive cow ward was built to meet the needs of the 19th century

The lively grounds of the 140-year-old hospital, animated by the sounds of hawks, mooing cows, and dogs barking in unison, made headlines in 2023. They were the site where a suspected spy was brought in by the police - a pigeon captured in May because of the red and green markings (suspected to be in Chinese) on its wings and the metal rings tied to its legs. The Parel hospital, where it underwent basic tests, gave it a clean chit of health and it was released in late January, rather anticlimactically. "It's an unusual, solitary case," says Col Kulkarni, who has battled questions from curious journalists of national and international publications in the last fortnight. The administrators say that the pigeon made the hospital surroundings its home over half a year, fraternising with the other pigeons in the bird ward. They wonder if it is flying not too far from here.

The Bai Sakarbai Dinshaw Petit Hospital is singular in this regard; in matters of officialdom, crime (atrocities against animals), and civic upkeep (the neutering of street animals), authorities line up at its doorstep. "It is the oldest hospital in the city, and the only one of its kind," Col Kulkarni informs, "Just last year, we were sought out in a case involving geese, which were seized by the police."

Sultan, the horse, is a celebrity resident at the hospital - having arrived 15 years ago. The institution has become a home for a number of ‘ownerless' animals like him

In his 12 years as an administrator at the hospital, Dr Mayur Dangar has overseen cases of suspected illegal trade - one of these involved nearly 2,000 parakeets, while another involved 80 goats who were allegedly carriers for drugs. "We conducted X-rays on all the goats, of which 12 had substances in their stomach. We operated on the animals in question and removed the packets of illicit material, handing them over to the police," Dr Dangar explains.

Established by Parsi entrepreneur Petit in 1883, it was run by the Bombay Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (BSPCA) till 2020, after which the organisation's duties in cruelty prevention were assigned to a state-level SPCA and governmental ministries and departments. Historically, it was Sakarbai, and not a medical centre for humans, that was the first hospital founded in the area. Most Mumbaikars know it simply as ‘Parel hospital', a reliable place where their beloved pets will get the best, most affordable medical care in the city.

Alongside mighty Sultan, another star guest at the hospital included a dog wounded during the 2008 terror attacks - one who lived out his last years here, with a bullet lodged in his throat, in true martyr style. "The dog survived for half a decade… We couldn't take the bullet out because it would cause further damage to the patient's airway," staff member Suresh Gaikwad informs, adding that it is part of the hospital's core philosophy that it cannot turn back an injured animal.

(Left to right) Suresh Gaikwad, Colonel (Retd) Dr BB Kulkarni and Dr Mayur Dangar, who ensure the hospital is a well-oiled machine servicing over 30 new patients each day

Col Kulkarni invites us into the main office which dates back to the 19th century, like many of the structures on the four-acre campus. The built infrastructure of the hospital was designed to meet the needs of the era, when many city residents domesticated horses and cows - resulting in wards with high ceilings and large spaces where the patients could be made to lie down. At the present cow ward, the staff will encourage a patient with an amputated heel and hoof to use a prosthetic implant. "In those days, bullock and horse carts were the norm. In fact, even when I trained in the 1970s, cows were more frequently brought in," he says.

Though cats and dogs may be the average patients today, Sakarbai has offered its medical facilities in cases where wild animals have wandered into the city, like hog deer or monkeys who got electrocuted. One such case involved a jackal found at Vashi's Palm Beach Road in 2015. "It was brought in with hind leg paralysis. We managed to cure it such that it could be sent back into the wild," Dr Dangar says.

We walk through the different wards, and Col Kulkarni is able to recognise each animal's condition without referring to the patient file, and knowing when they will be well enough for discharge. When he notices a dog shivering in a corner of its kennel, he sits down to pet it and quickly orders the staff to help it stay warm. The staff - who carry out X-rays and other tests, clean the kennels and help the doctors from Mumbai Veterinary College - are trained personally for a month by Col Kulkarni. He follows in the footsteps of Lt Colonel JC Khanna and other retired army veterinarians who were entrusted with the responsibility to run the hospital.

When the hospital still performed the duties of the BSPCA and served as an infirmary, it was home to more ‘ownerless' animals that it could manage. They would often be the survivors of atrocity and violence, brought here to be treated, with no home to return to. Sometimes, they would be injured strays brought in by good samaritans who did not follow-up and rehabilitate the dog back to the neighbourhood where they found it. Sakku, a portly cat who has been at the hospital for 15 years, is among its ‘ownerless' inhabitants; others include a pony, 20-odd dogs and a handful of raptors.

"In a few cases, even after treatment, the animal's condition is such that it cannot go back to living on the street, among other strays," says Col Kulkarni, calling out to Coco, a dog that continues to prance around happily, despite losing two legs. The superintendent is trying to inculcate a sense of accountability in these samaritans. "It's not unusual for us to find animals tied to the gates outside, left behind by those who cannot care for them anymore." He's also trying to ramp up the institution's adoption numbers.

Perhaps the hospital's biggest challenge is the maintenance of its heritage infrastructure. The grounds also feature the eerie-looking skeleton of what was once a pathology lab, which will lie unused until it is refurbished. With an eye to the future, Col Kulkarni visualises a building where animals can be given medical care and recuperate at close quarters. "Time and efficiency are of the essence in these matters. If all the facilities were under one roof, it would be possible to take the animal from the operating table to its ward conveniently - for the staff and for the animal."

In the coming months, it is going to invest in its social media game so it can reach newer generations. "The show we put up on our social media could be far better; we should be posting interesting anecdotes from the cases we have worked on," Dr Dangar remarks. Since he first joined the hospital, he has observed a growing willingness to update established techniques and try novel, experimental methods.

The hospital has also re-thought its approach in terms of charging for treatment, offering discounted services when needed, to ensure its own longevity. What has kept it going, thus far, is its trust's corpus as well as the generosity of donors like Parvez Minoo Mistry, whose contributions were a shot in the arm for concerns like repairs. "Whatever comes our way, we have to keep the hospital going," says Col Kulkarni, "The ideal way forward would be to build the corpus fund. This will allow us to sustain ourselves annually."

12k
No of animals treated annually at BSDPH

The inhabitants

Bai Sakarbai Dinshaw Petit Hospital's capacity for animal treatment, in numbers
Dogs ›› 150
Cats ›› 80
Cattle ›› 40
Birds ›› 25
Horses ›› 16