During the festival of Pongal, having just returned from successfully rescuing a cat who was down a 35 foot well, Dawn Williams, General Manager of Blue Cross, set off again immediately, as soon as he heard about a calf in dire straights.
Three Blue Cross volunteers, Mr. Anand, Mr. Murali and Ms. Jennifer, had come across the calf under the Dr. Ambedkar Bridge, near the big shopping center, Chennai Citi Centre. Sadly, they had been heading home following the funeral of their dog, Shearu. They spotted the calf lying on the road, weak and sick, looking just about a week old. The male calf had not seemed very useful to whoever his original owner had been, and now, having been abandoned, he could be found by a passerby and sold for slaughter.
In fact, a person claiming ownership of the calf did show up, around the time that Dawn arrived, demanding payment, and insisting that he would not allow the calf to be taken away until he was paid first.
Dawn, who could see clearly that the calf was not being cared for by anyone, stood up to the man, threatening to have him arrested. Seeing that he would get no payment, the man left, leaving Dawn to rescue the calf.
Dawn rushed the calf, who was very weak, to Madras Veterinary College, where he was put on an IV and stabilized.
In the meantime, Ms. Sheela, a Blue Cross volunteer, was preparing a feeding bottle with milk for the calf to feed him just as soon as he arrived back at Blue Cross. With such good care, the calf was soon feeling a little more energetic.
Thanks to quick action by Dawn and Ms. Sheela, the calf is expected to recover. The festival of Pongal is all about the protection of cattle.
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Photo: Courtesy of Blue Cross
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