We aim to create a world class facility for disabled animals that can evolve into a research centre, that attracts surgeons and doctors from all over the world. We would also like to work with new technologies and other streams of medicine like Homeopathy, Ayurveda, Acupuncture, Acupressure and massage therapies.

Madras Animal Rescue Society (MARS) is a pioneering animal welfare organisation that works to identify, rescue, and rehabilitate injured and abandoned homeless animals. Since its inception in 2019, MARS has been integral in initiating and sustaining paramount change and improvement in the lives of scores of dogs and myriad other animals in the greater Chennai and Mahabalipuram area.

“The story of our journey into animal welfare started with our dog PK. We found him as a puppy, severely injured and abandoned outside our home. Over the course of several weeks during which we treated and nursed him back to health, we realised the momentous power of timely rescues and treatment. The incident instilled a sense of passion and purpose in us that we decided to take an active part in rescuing and rehabilitating animals.
Starting with a whatsapp group of 80 strong members, our group rescued and rehabilitated scores of animals ranging from a small rabbit to a large horse or a donkey. People from different parts of Chennai reached out to us to help with rescues and together with a team of rescuers, we started to rehabilitate dogs at our home in Palavakkam.
At a point in time, we had close to 15 dogs in their home of which 5 of them were paralyzed. When the need for a much more structured process came into play, an animal welfare trust was formed in the name of ‘Madras Animal Rescue Society’. You can read more on our activities here.
This led us to look for a place where we could house many more dogs in a safe and nourishing environment.”

Daaman is an urdu word that refers to the soft pallu of a saree. But on a much more nuanced level, Daaman refers to a safe, nourishing place that offers comfort, care and love.

Housed in a 3 acre sprawling property filled with lush green trees, our shelter is home to 250+ dogs of which some of them are blind, old and paraplegic.

“It was always my mother’s dream to build a dog shelter. Growing up, I have seen both my aunt and my mother going to great lengths to feed a hungry animal.

Ever since we started our rescues, both me and Gerry have rescued scores of animals ranging from a small guinea pig to large animals like horses and donkeys.” – Sarah

Daaman is a safe haven for dogs who would have otherwise lived a miserable life on the streets.

Dogs which would have otherwise been put to sleep find themselves living their best lives here.

At Daaman, we believe every life deserves a fighting chance; every life deserves to know that they are valued, loved and add a special meaning to the world around them.

Most of the dogs that have come to Daaman were rescued from horrendous conditions and also from uncommon places like garbage disposals, the trenches and so on. Read some of our rescue stories here.

One of the common misconceptions that we at Daaman want to rewrite is that paralysed dogs cannot lead a purposeful and meaningful life.

We are currently the ONLY facility in Tamil Nadu housing the largest number of paralysed dogs in our shelter, some of whom have started walking just like any other regular dog.

Most of our paraplegic dogs were rescued from the clutches of death to be brought here and given lots of love, care and nutritious food that with time, they undergo a miraculous transformation and of all wonders, start walking like any other dog!