Guwahati’s College of Veterinary Science located in Khanapara is supposed to be a sanctuary for animals, a place where pets and animals receive the care they need. As the largest veterinary facility in the region, it carries the responsibility of treating animals with the expertise and compassion they deserve.

However, a recent experience shared by a Guwahati couple who took their elderly Labrador for treatment reveals a grim reality—one of neglect, dysfunction, and a lack of compassion that raises serious questions about the institution’s commitment to animal welfare.

The couple had taken their aged Labrador, who had suddenly lost the ability to walk with her rear legs, to the hospital on the recommendation of a veterinarian. Expecting the government-run hospital to be equipped and staffed with professionals ready to help, the couple instead found themselves in a chaotic environment, lacking in basic care, compassion, and professionalism.

From the moment they arrived, the situation spiraled into frustration. It was an oppressively hot day, and they asked the hospital staff for a stretcher to carry their immobile dog. Instead of offering assistance, the staff—who were lounging around and chewing tobacco—showed no interest in helping. One staff member even told themto find the stretcher themselves. Even when asked directly for help, the hospital staff shrugged off their responsibilities, leaving the couple to fend for themselves.

Forced to manage on their own, the husband found a rusty, broken stretcher left baking in the sun, its metal burning to the touch. Dragging it back to the car, he finally managed to get the dog inside the hospital.

Inside, they were met by a team of interns who appeared utterly unprepared to handle a medical emergency. The only senior doctor on duty was nowhere to be seen, leaving the inexperienced interns to deal with a situation far beyond their capabilities.

Basic blood tests were conducted but failed to address the dog's actual condition. As they waited for the senior doctor to arrive, their dog began twitching, likely due to nerve issues. Desperate, the wife asked a nearby doctor for help, but he remained seated and indifferent, displaying no urgency or care.

Eventually, they had to track down the senior doctor themselves, who was surrounded by interns attending to another dog (a non-emergency case). Even after the couple pleaded for help, the doctor didn’t respond until the wife mentioned the referral from a veterinarian. Only then did he reluctantly turn his attention to their dog. If this was the treatment given to a couple with a referral, one can only imagine the struggle faced by others without one.

The senior doctor administered basic saline and another test but still didn’t address the primary issue—her legs. It was only after the husband suggested an X-ray that the doctor casually agreed. “Yes, you can if you want,” as though it were optional.

Frustrated, the couple dragged the stretcher themselves to the X-ray department, located a considerable distance away, without any assistance.

At the X-ray department, they expressed their frustration, but the technician merely laughed. His cavalier attitude angered the husband, though he maintained his composure.

To make matters worse, after the X-ray was completed, the technician informed them that the printer was out of ink, so they couldn't get a printout of the results. Instead, they had to settle for taking a photo of the X-ray displayed on a computer screen.

Throughout the entire ordeal, one thing was consistent—the staff’s insistence on payment. Even as their dog was left suffering, the couple was repeatedly reminded by the staff to make payments. “Sir, payment tu kori dibo” (“Sir, make the payment”) was a phrase they heard over and over again.

The couple also overheard another pet owner who was begging the doctor for help, explaining that she had been coming to the hospital repeatedly without receiving proper treatment for her pet. Shockingly, the doctor smiled and dismissively brushed her off. The hospital seemed not only under-equipped but also woefully lacking in compassion.

The senior doctor eventually admitted that the hospital did not have the necessary equipment to treat the dog’s condition, stating that such equipment wasn’t available in Assam. Are animal lives so undervalued that a government-run facility is left without the necessary tools to provide adequate care?

When the wife inquired about a possible thyroid issue, which they believed could be a contributing factor, the doctor seemed startled and admitted that such a test could indeed be done, offering to admit the dog in the hospital and perform it the next day. But the couple, weary and disillusioned, refused to return, knowing the hospital lacked the care and competency they expected.

As they prepared to leave, the husband once again had to pull the rusted stretcher back to their car while the staff loitered, indifferent and unhelpful. To add insult to injury, one of the staff members even asked the husband to return the stretcher to its original place after they were done. It was a final act of audacity that only deepened the couple’s frustration. How could a hospital, entrusted with the lives of animals, operate in such a disorganized and uncaring manner?

If the largest veterinary hospital in Guwahati operates in such a deplorable state, where can pet owners turn in moments of crisis? Private clinics, while an alternative, often lack the advanced equipment expected from a facility like this. But when even basic necessities like functioning stretchers and attentive staff are absent, the entire system crumbles.

The institute management must take immediate and decisive action, or perhaps an audit if need be. But the situation at Khanapara Veterinary College cannot continue. Animals are living, feeling beings who deserve care, respect, and attention, especially when they are suffering. The staff’s complete lack of urgency, combined with broken equipment and an almost palpable lack of empathy, shows that the hospital is failing its most vulnerable patients. 

Guwahati’s pet owners deserve better, and so do the animals who rely on this institution for their survival. It is time for the institution to live up to those expectations. If not, it risks not only losing credibility (which it already is) but betraying the very creatures it is meant to protect.