When Dogs Attack

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The day after Deb’s birthday we hiked up to the TCV - Tibetan Children’s Village - which is the local school for Tibetan children and provides a home for orphaned children. The school seems wonderful, with a slogan of “Others Before Self” and beautiful messages painted over buildings to encourage students to be compassionate and kind. We specifically went up to see the babies (whom Deb had seen before and said that they were the most gorgeous things in the world and just wanted cuddles!!) but just as we were about to walk into the area where the babies stay, a nearby dog jumped up and bit Debs on the leg!

Nothing too serious, but the immediate fear was, of course, rabies (though Deb had had the pre-exposure vaccines and the staff also reassured us the dogs have had their rabies vaccines). The women who look after the babies rushed over with some iodine etc and cleaned it up, but after that we only stayed a short time at the TCV (the babies were asleep by that time anyway) to drop off the supplies we had brought and then we walked back down to Mcleod Ganj to take a rickshaw to the Delek Hospital where Deb could start her post-exposure course of rabies injections, as a matter of precaution.

Apart from the stress of why we were there, the hospital was a surprisingly great experience. The Tibetan doctor was lovely, as she matter-of-factly interviewed Deb. We then had to go and buy the vaccine downstairs and then go back up to the nurses’ station where this absolutely gorgeous Tibetan nurse gave Deb the injection. She was sooooo beautiful - just very reassuring and kind and smiley, giving a hugely worried Deb lots of cuddles and rubs in the process. And that was injection one, on day 0, done! Two more to go: on days three and seven.

Because of the rabies shots we have had to delay our departure… we’re staying for at least the second one, and will probably arrange the third when we get to Jodhpur, our next stop. Well, Deb DID say she didn’t want to leave Mcleod Ganj!

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