MANGALURU: Some heroes don’t wear capes and some believe that ‘the left hand should not know what the right is doing’. One such noble soul is 42-year-old Rajani Shetty, who has been on a mission to rescue stray animals and unfortunate birds from hunger and danger, for the last 22 years.

For Rajani, a resident of Ballalbagh in Mangaluru, it all started in Mumbai, her hometown, where she noticed a puppy lying in a sewage drain crying for help. “I was disturbed seeing the little animal shivering and drenched in dirt. I immediately rescued the puppy and for the next 14 years, he remained a part of my family,” says Rajani, who works as a domestic help and babysitter.