Ratan Tata, Chairman Emeritus of Tata Sons, who passed away on October 9, has left behind an endearing legacy as one of India’s most respected Indian leaders. But he was not only a visionary businessman, he was also known for his ardent, undying love for animals, especially dogs.
Ratan Tata’s last venture – an ode to his love for animals – was opening up the Small Animal Hospital in Mumbai this July. This project was the nation’s first-of-its-kind, state-of-the-art pet hospital, with 24×7 emergency care.
Housed in Mahalaxmi, over 98,000 square feet, the specialty pet hospital opened its doors on July 1. The facility has a capacity of over 200 beds and aims to provide advanced medical care for pets in need.
Back in February, when he announced the launch of the pet hospital project worth Rs 165 crore, the veteran industrialist said, “Pets are our family, and their lives matter to every pet parent. When I looked around and saw the lack of infrastructure for pets in India, it made me wonder why, in such a large country with a significant pet population, we cannot have a facility that can save lives and make pets’ lives better.”
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The animal hospital was a long time in the making. The Tata Trust first announced it in 2017, and it was then scheduled to be situated in Kalamboli in Navi Mumbai. Plans then changed, with a plot of land taken on a 30-year lease from the BMC in Mahalaxmi due to its central location—distance, after all, matters in an emergency—and then further delayed due to COVID. A trial run then set it on its way.
“Opening this hospital has been one of the most exhilarating experiences of my career,” wrote Dr Thomas Heathcote at the time of the hospital’s dawn. He is the chief veterinary officer and CEO of the Advanced Veterinary Care Foundation (AVCF), which runs the facility supported by the Tata Trusts.
When Tata skipped meeting King Charles
Ratan Tata accepted an invitation from the then Prince Charles, now King Charles, to attend an event in February 2018 at Buckingham Palace where the industrialist would have been facilitated with a lifetime achievement award for his philanthropic work. A few days before the event, however, Ratan Tata’s pet dog Tito had fallen ill.
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Recounting the incident in a video, adman and socialite Suhel Seth said that he received 11 missed calls from Ratan Tata. Seth, who was also slated to attend the event, said when he called back, the industrialist told him that he could not leave his sick pet and travel to London.
“He did not come. Prince Charles said, ‘That’s a man’,” Seth added.
