Many buyers at Bakra Mandis of twin cities were seen purchasing sacrificial animals with their young ones especially boys days before Eid because their children forced them as they wanted to spend more time with animals.

A resident of G-6, Nadeem Ahmad, told APP that due to summer vacations in schools his children were spending most of their time with goat which he bought to sacrifice to fulfil religious ritual of this Eid.

“My children forced me to buy the animal soon now they spend all their time petting and feeding the goat and I am afraid they are going to be upset when it will be sacrificed”, he added.

Islamabad based Veterinary Surgeon Dr. Aftab H. Rana said it was important to ensure immediate fumigation and anti-tick spray of cattle before letting the child go near the animals. “Besides this, taking steps for treatment of animals suffering from any sort of disease in order to prevent the spread of Congo virus among the people is also essential”, he said.

He said being with the animal in urban environment raised the risk of different skin and respiratory diseases that could be caught through these animals.

“Since children are more vulnerable to any diseases it is necessary to keep the animal vaccinated and sprayed to prevent unwanted hassle”, he added. Getting attached with sacrificial animals was natural because children as kind hearted beings usually were more inclined towards loving animals, he said.

After devoting their days and nights with their goat or cow strengthened the bond between the animal and child, unaware of the value of the sacrifice of a precious thing for the love of Almighty, children cry and resist the slaughtering of their animal.

Many of the heartbroken kids even boycott the food made of the meat of the freshly sacrificed animal which is also an act of showing their love for their pet animal.