Furkids help forge family bonds at AirAsia

DogQ: AirAsia’s four adopted dogs, (from left) AK, FD, QZ and D7 having a meal together at the dog house. FD has since passed away.

PETALING JAYA: It is always heartwarming to hear stories of everyday heroes who choose to take in stray animals.

Such unsung heroes can be found at AirAsia RedQ, the headquarters for AirAsia located at Kuala Lumpur International Airport 2 (KLIA2), Sepang.

Unknown to many, there is a corner in RedQ that provides shelter for stray dogs picked up at a construction site several years ago.

The two AirAsia executives behind the shelter are Vijaya Priya Ananthan, its head of government relations; and Renuka Kunathevan, head of people and culture.

Vijaya, also known as Priya, said AirAsia staff found the dogs when they were just puppies.

“In the beginning, we found four of them wandering around the site of our RedQ building when it was under construction in 2016.

“It was believed their mother had died in a car accident, leaving them without anyone looking out for them.

“We informed Capital A chief executive officer Tan Sri Tony Fernandes, and he decided to take the four puppies in, eventually building them a kennel named DogQ at RedQ’s office carpark,” said Priya.

Capital A is AirAsia’s holding company.

The four dogs were eventually named D7, AK, QZ, and FD after AirAsia’s flight codes, and they immediately became part of the AirAsia family.

Priya and Renuka told the entire company about the DogQ kennel via their internal communication channels, and many employees volunteered to take care of the dogs.

“We have a DogQ volunteer committee on WhatsApp filled with AirAsia staff who volunteer to look after the dogs,” Renuka said.

“At least once a day, a volunteer will feed them and take them for walks, while others donate money for food and other necessities.”

She added that the volunteers began noticing that each dog had unique quirks.

“AK is the alpha in the team, and he is handsome and always cool around everybody.

“D7 is the most playful and loves to bite plastic bottles, to the point that he swallowed one and had to go for surgery.

“QZ is cute and laidback – she is slightly overfed, a little chubby, and loves belly rubs,” said Renuka, who added that the fourth dog, FD, died some time ago of cancer.

“She developed a tumour in her spine and the vet said there was no other way but to put her down.

“Many DogQ volunteers were there to mourn her passing,” she said.

The one-time strays have helped foster a strong bond between DogQ volunteers.

Volunteer Alvin Jitendra Vora, an AirAsia infrastructure site reliability engineer, said he looks upon the dogs as family and cannot stand seeing them go through pain.

“I have a dog named Anya, adopted from a shelter. She was in an accident before I adopted her. She had nerve issues and had trouble walking straight. But overall, she is a healthy dog.

“Since I adopted Anya, my love towards dogs has dramatically changed in a good way,” he said.

Another volunteer, Vanisthaa Shanmuga Nathan, a cadet pilot, said she misses her “furkids” whenever she is away for work.

“It is a dull week at work not seeing the dogs and their cute antics.

“Dogs are indeed a man’s best friend as they are unconditional with their love and are ridiculously loyal, a quality that makes me feel really blessed being around them,” she said.

Volunteer Rajendran Pillai, a security officer, said he is proud that AirAsia has a positive attitude towards stray dogs, and it is a reflection of the warmth and kindness of its staff members.

“The AirAsia family accepts everyone in all shapes and colours. We feel it is our duty and responsibility to give extra care to the less fortunate. We will do our best to help any wandering around our office site,” he said.