India batsman Shikhar Dhawan posted a lengthy message on social media imploring people to be responsible human beings and respect animals’ right to live peacefully.

On Friday, Dhawan posted an image of a dog – which was being taken care of by his friend- on his Instagram account. Dhawan said the street dog was doing fine until it found its way out to the street on Thursday and lost its eye after being hit on the face.

Dhawan asked his fans to not only care for the well being of stray animals but all creatures. In a length message, translated to English here, Dhawan said: “I want to tell you that we should not hurt these creatures that cannot speak. If you can’t help anyone, then at least you shouldn’t hurt them. For the sake of humanity, we should respect all creatures. They are living things, they also feel pain.”

Earlier, Pakistan legend Shahid Afridi had posted a brief message on Twitter, asking his followers to take care of all animals.

Dhawan, along with the Indian team, departed for a long tour of Ireland and England.