She is not an animal rights activist and doesn't even understand what the term means. But kick a stray dog or whip an horse and you've had it. For the paan-chewing Sara-bi who houses - believe it or not - 150 animals in three tiny rooms in Karad's Guruwar Peth - dogs, cats, eagles, goats, monkeys, cuckoo, squirrels, ducks and even pregnant scorpions are her true friends.

Then, whether she allows her daughters Sabina and Reshma to study only till Standard VIII or has a verbal spat daily with her husband about looking after the animals, it does not matter. Her pets are what she lives for. ``It's so unjust. Just because they cannot speak, they have to suffer cruelty at the hands of people,'' lashes out Sara-bi.

She recalls the time when she stopped eating food as a five-year-old simply because her grandfather sold the family goat. With the motto hamare jaanvar hamare saath hai (Our animals are with us), it was not surprising that visitors to her `stinking' house were barely a handful.

Her `extended' family hails from the streets and it doesn't seem strange to Karad residents that strays usually find their way to her house. Whether its a whimpering kitten or a screeching owl, Sara-bi is always at their beck and call. Sara-bi spends nearly Rs 500 per month on food - milk, grains and meat for her animals. With her husband making enough as a truck driver for the family, Sara-bi struggles hard to make ends meet for her 150 `children'.

She may skip her meal, but saves just that much for a check-up by the veterinary doctor. But she has a grouse with the local municipal council officials whose care-a-damn attitude led her to complain to none other than animal rights activist and chairperson of People for Animals Maneka Gandhi. The Union Minister promptly replied offering help and urging her to join her campaign against cruelty to animals.

While her daughters too have grown extremely fond of the pets, Sara-bi refuses to pinpoint her favourites. All are the same for me, Sara-bi fondly laughs admitting that she had a soft corner for the sheep who was affected by gangrene but did not hesitate to drink the dog's milk or the horse who she nursed for over ten hours splashing water on the infected body.

Thirty dogs, 25 cats, innumerable goats, hens and cows apart from the mischievous monkeys and chirpy parrots form the centrestage of Sara-bi's life. ``I have no sympathy for people,'' she quips, but urges with a heart-felt plea - please don't exploit the silent animals.