4 min readHyderabadJan 29, 2026 07:18 AM IST
First published on: Jan 29, 2026 at 07:18 AM IST
In Telangana, hundreds of dog killings are being reported by just three young people — A Goutham (35), M Preethi (22) and V Vinay (22) — who are committed to saving dogs. All three hail from rural Telangana and are bound by their love for stray animals.
Members of the Stray Animal Foundation of India (SAFI), the trio have been travelling from district to district, lodging complaints of mass killings of stray dogs allegedly carried out by panchayat administrators, including sarpanches and panchayat secretaries. So far, they have reported the killing of over 1,000 dogs across the state, with complaints filed in Hanamkonda, Kamareddy, Jagtial, Ranga Reddy and Nagarkurnool districts. Seventeen people have been booked so far.
Preethi told The Indian Express that she became a dog lover at the age of 19. “I was given a pet dog which died and then I tried to adopt four stray puppies. In my village in Nagarkurnool district I was harassed for being a feeder,” she said, adding that she initially took to Instagram to report crimes against animals. “I didn’t know whom to approach when I was being harassed. I had to change homes from Atchampet to Lathipur in Nagarkurnool because the house owner threw me out for helping dogs, which were later killed,” she said.
She registered her first police complaint over animal cruelty in 2024. The 22-year-old has been in touch with politician and animal rights activist Maneka Gandhi for the past two years. “She is truly inspirational and has been helping me with several cases of animal rescue,” Preethi said.
The team leader at SAFI is Adulapuram Goutham, who holds an M Tech and an LLB degree. The 35-year-old began as a dog feeder in 2018. “I used to feed 20 to 30 dogs at the time. But then people intervened, brutally captured and relocated these dogs. So I turned to animal rescue,” Goutham said. “I lodged my first police complaint in 2020,” he added. Hailing from Karimnagar town in the district of the same name, Goutham said it has always been difficult to stand up for dogs. “In small towns, villages and cities alike people are brutal to stray dogs. The dogs often live in fear,” he said. During the COVID-19 lockdown, he travelled on foot to nearby villages for animal rescue.
Vinay, 22, is the least experienced in pursuing legal action. “I have not lodged a police complaint as of now. I have only been monitoring the situation,” he said. By monitoring, he means receiving about 20 calls a day regarding incidents of animal cruelty. “There are people who call me from the remotest of villages in Telangana,” he said, adding that he has been a dog lover since childhood. “I’m the one who gave her first dog to Preethi,” he laughed.
The group works with the help of a network of dog lovers from across the state and the country. “There are people from outside Telangana who inform us of cruelty towards animals in the state. Our numbers get circulated widely,” Goutham said. Several reports are also received on the SAFI email ID, Preethi said. “We always respond to every message and every call,” she added.
So far, they have reported the killing of over 1,000 dogs across the state. (Express Photo) 
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