According to hospital staff, as part of the exercise, animal wards are currently being repaired and covered with plastic sheets, and the surgical wards are also being cleaned. The space is being freed within the kennels to admit casualties and extra medication is being obtained, said hospital staff.

According to Lt Colonel J C Khanna, secretary of the hospital, said, “Every year, during the rainy season, the hospital sees a great increase in cases of maggot wounds and hit-an-run accidents. This year, we are ensuring that we have enough resources to treat such cases.”

The hospital has stocked itself up with anti-septic creams, antibiotics, chloroform to treat wounds and surgical items like anesthesia, plaster for casting etc. “Usually, causalities among dogs and cats increase. Due to low visibility and slippery roads, accidents are on the rise. As a result, amputation cases double up during monsoon, Khanna said.

Dr Yuvraj Kaginkar, hospital manager of the SPCA, said, “We are cleaning up and disinfecting the wards where we keep animals with open wounds and infections. It is important for this ward to remain contamination-free.”

To further equip the hospital to treat stranded animals, World Society for Protection of Animals (WSPA), an international animal welfare body funded by the UN, recently inaugurated a state-of-the-art rescue centre.

The centre is equipped with emergency plan, evacuation plan and fire-proof centres, to where the animals can be shifted during natural disasters like floods. Hospital staff, doctors and ward boys have also been given intensive training to tackle emergency situations.

Apart from dogs and cats, birds also often suffer due to fever and drenched wings during monsoon. To handle bird cases, the hospital recently opened an aviary, with separate enclosures for ducks, pigeons and other bird, Khanna said.