Foreign dog breeding farm inspires many in Tangail

Arko Kennel, a foreign dog breeding farm in Tangail, has set precedence as a different farming venture in the area.

Proprietor Dilip Kumar Saha started this venture about two years ago with different breeds of foreign dogs.

About eight years ago, Dilip bought a pair of pet dogs from abroad and later bought two more as he enjoyed dog rearing as a hobby. He envisioned turning his hobby into a business venture and after years of planning his farm finally started its journey two years ago.

Dilip built the kennel in a well-fenced secure area of 20 decimals of land, with an air-conditioned house for the comfort of the dogs. The farm is located near Mohera Zamindar Bari in Tangail’s Mirzapur upazila. His farm is also a popular tourist destination for people all over the country.

Dilip was a Saudi Arabia expatriate for a long time and has travelled to many countries of the world. In his travels, Dilip has seen many people breeding various breeds of dogs as a hobby which inspired him to start keeping dogs as pets.

Dilip’s younger brother Gautam Saha is in charge of the kennel’s management. Dilip’s son Vivek Saha’s friend veterinary doctor Abhishek Sharma provides medical support when necessary.

Currently, his farm has 75 small and large dogs of 24 breeds, including Dogo Argentino, pitbull, American Bully, Cane Corso, French Mastiff, Chow Chow, Russian Samoyed, White Terrier, Basset Hound, and Beagles.

There are five active workers to take care of the dogs that are fed twice a day with a mixture of rice, meat and vegetables.

The kennel has various types of dogs available, including- hunting, guarding, and security dogs. Some of the highly-trained dogs are capable of tracing and identifying substances and criminals.

“Despite this being a different type of farm, I never faced any problems with finding hired workers. My family and also the neighbours have always inspired me in this venture,” Dilip said, adding that he wants to expand his business in the future.

In the past two years, he has spent about Tk 2 crore on the farm. This includes the primary price of the dogs, their feed cost, labour and electricity costs. On average, about 18 kg of chicken, two pumpkins and cooked rice are fed to the 75 dogs twice a day.

Arko Kennel has dogs worth Tk 20,000 to Tk 2.5 lakh depending on the variety. So far the farm has sold dogs worth Tk 25 lakh since its establishment.

Dilip cannot invest the huge amount of money required for a larger venture. He expects that if the farm receives a low-interest loan or some sort of government grant, it will help expand his business.

“Dog lovers can buy any breed as per their need from our farm and do not have to go abroad for exotic dogs. This is less costly for the buyers than importing dogs,” said Dilip.

Farmworker Masud Mia said he was an agriculture labourer but finding regular work in the field was hard. “Working on this farm gives me job security; so I am happier working here,” he said.

Veterinary doctor Abhishek Sharma said he came from India at Vivek’s request to help in taking care of the dogs.

Manik Miah, a local from Mirzapur upazila, said that this was his first time seeing a dog farm and all the locals are fascinated with the kennel.

Local UP member Ratan Miah said that Dilip’s dog farm has become the talk of the area since the beginning.

Arko Kennel’s Managing Director Gautam Saha said, “There are different breeds of dogs in our kennel and we get customers from all over the country. Buying foreign dog breeds from our farm costs 50 per cent less than importing them from abroad.”

Upazila Department of Livestock Services Veterinary Surgeon Dr AKM Atiqur Rahman said, “This is undoubtedly a good initiative as the demand for pet dogs is rising in the country. This can be a profitable business if they can properly breed and sell the dogs.”