Horse Kodai and calf Kabir, touching tale of besties at city shelter

It all began when a horse was found on the streets of Kodaikanal with a broken leg. “The vets there said he had to be put down. But an animal lover in Chennai received the news and decided to give him a chance,” says Radhika Kasturi Rangan, a volunteer at BMAD. So he was brought to Chennai in a mini-van and into caring hands of the shelter staff. 

“When he came in, his leg had severe wounds and was broken. After continual treatment and a good dose of food and rest, he’s perked up now,” she says with a smile. Aptly named Kodai, the senior horse is very gentle and a ‘pleasant’ fellow, unlike his companion, a younger rescued horse named Charlie, who is quite the pompous one, feels Radhika. This is probably what made Kodai an ideal companion for Kabir, an orphaned calf. 

“A resident of Kalpakkam found the calf who was covered in bite marks as a result of being attacked by dogs. Since he is a male, the rescuer was scared he’ll be sent to a butcher, so he brought him to the shelter,” she recalls. 

They decided to keep him with the horses away from the in-house dogs. “On the very first day, he walked up to Kodai and started suckling on him, probably because the horse’s size reminded him of his mother,” she says. Since then on, Kabir hasn’t left the horses’ side and even sleeps with them. Observes Radhika, “Initially we would bottle feed the calf but now he eats on his own. Since we feed the horses grass and hay, we’re hoping Kabir learns to eat fodder from them.” 

Since the animals need to be fed every day and the expenses for their medicines are high, the shelter encourages ‘virtual adoption’, where volunteers can sponsor an animal or even go in person to feed them, especially on weekends. 

“We’re willing to educate people about caring for animals and the medical procedures we follow for their treatment,” she remarks.