Sterilisation is key. Education makes it last.
Seva Bhuana was formed in 2013 and has two main programs; Subsidised Sterilisation and Education.
These two main programs of Yayasan Seva Bhuana and Bali Pet Crusaders are now thriving to work with communities in Bali to support the government in achieving Rabies-free Indonesia in 2030.
Our Bali Sterilisation Program
In Bali, over 599.719 dogs are roaming free on the busy streets of Bali
(Based on Data from the Department of Farming, Animal Husbandry Division).
The habit of throwing away female puppies to the street, public cemeteries, traditional markets, or garbage dumps adds a significant amount to this population problem.
A dedicated vet, Drh. Nana Dianita of Bali Pet Crusaders formed subsidized sterilisation in 2015, specifically aimed at people who could not afford to pay clinic bills for their local dogs and cats.
Since 2019, this sterilisation program has also worked with Karangasem, Buleleng, Denpasar, Badung, and Gianyar governments to create mass sterilisation in their Banjars to prevent the spread of rabies virus.
The Husbandry of Bali Province has also recommended this program to control the population instead of mass culling. The program developed and now we have a full team of three vets, two dog catchers, and two administrative assistants. Until now, we have successfully sterilised 25,715 dogs and cats in Bali.
25.715
Dogs and cats in Bali successfully sterilized
8 Regencies
In Bali have joined our sterilisation program
Our Education Program
We started this education program by creating a successful campaign of #SaveBaliDogs in 2012
Our education program was initially planned to provide fresh education about animals and the environment for young people.
The campaign we started on Twitter to promote the Bali Dog as an indigenous dog of Bali and its role in Bali community, which became a trending topic in Indonesia.
Seeing potential in youth, the education program continued into street feeding and movie screenings about animal welfare.
Our education program was initially planned to provide fresh education about animals and the environment for young people. We started this education program by creating a successful campaign of #SaveBaliDogs in 2012 on Twitter to promote the Bali Dog as an indigenous dog of Bali and its role in Bali community, which became a trending topic in Indonesia. Seeing potential in youth, the education program continued into street feeding and movie screenings about animal welfare.
Through the year 2018-2021, we managed to teach all elementary schools, Junior High schools, and Senior High schools in Tabanan and created teacher training to apply the animal welfare curriculum in 2019 for elementary school teachers of Tabanan, Buleleng, and Karangasem. This year, besides working with KitaBisa to spread the pet feeders (portable automatic food dispensers for street dogs and cats), we collaborate with Veterinary Medicine students of Udayana University for various educational activities, and teacher training. In the beginning of 2023, we were sponsored by Hello Poochie to hold monthly education activities in the public elementary schools of Jimbaran.
Besides teaching 50 students on each occasion, we also shared several animal welfare related activities to the teachers on how to implement animal welfare in classroom activities. We focus on applicable and engaging tasks in our education program to ensure the material is received well.
Work With Grabpets ID
Grab recently launched their new feature called GrabPetsID, a transportation platform specifically for pets and their owners. We had the honor to be their collaborator, and had the chance to educate more than 45 GrabPet drivers on how to handle dogs and cats properly during transportation.
Our work with the Mobile Sterilisation Unit really came in handy when we explained hygiene and animal transportation safety to the drivers. With the rabies virus lurking everywhere, we shared our prevention method as an organization who deals with this everyday. We also work together as a consultant in case there is an emergency during the transport.
This is one of the concerns of Seva Bhuana, an NGO that works in the area of animal welfare in Bali.... I was invited to speak in front of primary school teachers about what can be done in the classroom so that children do not only know the animals around them but develop the love and care of them. I based my presentation on my experience in teaching in primary school in Australia. I also included research findings that spending time with animals can increase a child’s self-esteem, help teach children how to interact socially and even can promote their cognitive development. I involved teachers in some activities such as story telling, games, and role play, that have the animal characters. The teachers are also encouraged to work in groups to create more fun activities. I hope this contributes to the meaningful learning that make children love animals around them. Read more
If we can't donate, we can contribute by helping to spread awareness to our closest circle first then to the public through our social media. We're really excited and can't wait to arrange this kind of event with them again in the future.
Many memorable things, not only feeding the dogs but also giving skin medication for them. I hope Seva Bhuana can be a melting pot for improving animal welfare in the future.
Street feeding is everyone’s responsibility as a community, and as a vet candidate, so the welfare of the animals can be improved.
Yayasan Seva Bhuana made these petfeeders available for free. I immediately responded to this and after some weeks two petfeeders arrived in the North of Bali. A while ago, there was a Facebook message from yayasan Seva Bhuana about a pet feeder. A great idea for making dry food available for stray animals. Yayasan Seva Bhuana made these petfeeders available for free. I immediately responded to this and after some weeks two petfeeders arrived in the North of Bali.
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About Bali Indigenous Dogs
Bali is famous for its beautiful beaches, tropical climate, and thousands of temples. It is also famous for thousands of indigenous dogs that will be found roaming around the villages.
There are approximately 649.028 dogs on this small island, which simply made it overpopulated. Bali Dogs, what we call them, are indigenous dogs that have lived in Bali for 16,000 years.
Their images have been portrayed in Balinese paintings and written in scriptures, fables, and mythologies (You may heard about the infamous Yudistira story, a spiritual journey of 5 brothers during Ramayana era).
Not one household in Bali that does not own a dog. Owning a dog is within the community’s nature, although they are not considered companion animals.
649K +
approximately dogs live in Bali
80%
dog in the street have home
Guardians of Balinese Compounds
Bali Dogs were said to be the straight descendant of the Proto Dog (the first dog) that was carried by the Neandertals thousands of years ago during the hunting-gathering period. Bali Dogs are not pets, they will not fit the western standard of pet ownership, and many of them belong to one compound, not only a family.
Traditional Balinese compound consists of 3-4 families, and the dogs stay to guard the whole area. That is why when you ask someone who owns the dog, you won’t have the exact answer. This is often difficult to interpret, but this complex relationship lasts until now.
Every Balinese compound will have one or two Bali Dogs that they ‘adopted’ from the neighbor. In fact, 80% of Bali Dogs that you see on the street have homes.
Guardians of Balinese Compounds
Bali Dogs are naturally working dogs; guarding the house, the community, and the village. They have their position in the community. They are around whenever there is a village ceremony, they accompany the mothers to the markets, follow the children to school, or stay with the father in the ricefield. Therefore, their existence is somewhat invisible since they were around for too many years.
Their routines align with the village dynamics; they will sunbathe until 10 am, find shades around noon until 4 pm, and come out after 4 pm to find food scraps. They will travel around in packs until night time, and will always notice if there is an unknown dog/ stranger entering the area. With the lingering rabies virus, close contact is unavoidable, but it is very hard to change this behavior.
Guardians of Balinese Compounds
The only solution is to strengthen the existing pack in the village, with regular rabies vaccinations, feeding, and sterilisation to humanely control the population. One major improvement is nowadays, the dogs are fed regularly and the family often buys meat for their meal.
The abuse and neglect that people witness in Bali are no different from any part of the world. Therefore, animal welfare organizations exist in almost every corner. When we finally realize the most important thing is to provide an accessible option to improve animal welfare in the area, we will have less judgment of the behavior and start with taking action.
Bali Dogs for a ceremonial purpose
A controversial topic among foreigners; Bali Dog is in fact used as one of the Balinese rituals to be sacrificed, but it is not any Bali Dog.
The ritual requires a specific type of Bali Dog; reddish brown hair, with a black snout, a black tip of the tail, and preferably males, which is usually called Bang (Red) Bungkem (Silent).
Balinese Hinduism needs to be separated from Indian Hinduism. Hinduism promotes Ahimsa (no harm), but the tradition lasts way before the religion enters Bali.
Balinese believes in the balance of the cosmos, and the existence of a three-dimensional world, the World of Deities (live beyond the earth), the World of Bhuta/ monsters (live below the earth), and the World of Humans (where the former two worlds meet).
The sacrifice of Bang Bungkem dog acts as the neutralizer or balancer of the world. It is believed to hold the power of Rudra/ Shiva (the God of Destruction), and the World of Bhuta obeys Rudra.
Moreover, the red color symbolizes Brahma (the God of Creation), and the black snout symbolizes Wisnu (the God of Welfare). Symbolically, the Bang Bungkem dog represents Trimurti, the trinity of supreme divinity – the highest power of all.
Therefore, by sacrificing the dog, it is hoped that it will create balance within the World of Humans. The dog used for sacrifice will be treated carefully, and only used for specific ceremonies that involve the purification of a land. Later on, they are believed to be reincarnated into a beautiful human as a reward.
This issue remains controversial even among young Balinese who began to question this long-time tradition. This proves the improvement of animal welfare awareness in society.
And since traditions and culture is manmade, we are hoping for the evolution of this ancient tradition one day.
... And since traditions and culture is manmade, we are hoping for the evolution of this ancient tradition one day.
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