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This can be evidenced by the many mentions made in the Puranas and other Sanskritic scriptures about it.
Vedic mythology recognises the dog as Bhairava’s companion and according to Greek mythology, dogs are the watchman of the netherworld.
Moreover, scientific research has claimed that dogs are the most trusted animal and companion for humans.
This is especially true in Channapatna in the Ramanagara district of Karnataka.
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A temple has been built there for dogs as a mark of gratitude to this faithful creature.
The temple is known as the ‘Dog Temple’ and is located at Agrahara Valagarahalli in Channapatna town.
A local businessman Ramesh, who also built the Kempamma temple in the village, built this dog temple in 2010.
The explanation for the temple is that once two dogs from the village suddenly disappeared.
A few days later, the Goddess Kempamma appeared in the dreams of many villagers instructing them to build a temple for the missing dogs.
Thus, a temple was built with the statue of those two dogs installed and regularly worshipped.
The villagers believe that the dog temple is blessed by the goddess to protect the village.
Every year a festival is organized on behalf of the dogs. It is the belief of the villagers that these dogs have the power to correct any mistakes committed by the villagers.
Every year during the festival, villagers pray to the dogs to protect their village and organise a grand feast for all the dogs in the village.
Regular poojas are performed in the temple from 4 to 6 pm on Sundays, Mondays and Thursdays.
The villagers also believe that if any problem is predicted in the village, the village deity Veeramasti Kempamma comes in the form of dogs and warns the villagers.