[10] Then Yudhishthira meets Indra, King of the gods, who welcomes him to heaven but tells him he has to leave his dog behind.

[10][12][13] The dog disappears and it is replaced by Yama, the god of death; Indra is impressed by his actions and then his righteousness opens the gates of heaven for Yudhishthira.

[18] During the festival, dogs are worshipped, bathed, and decorated with tilaka, which is made from kumkuma or gulal powders with rice and yoghurt.

The first Kukur Tihar- Day of the Dog Celebration §[23] happened October 27 th, 2024 at James Long Park, Haymarket, VA.

Speaking at the event organizer Jewan Tiwari said they will be celebrating Kukur Tihar Annually the last Sunday in October in the US.

[26] Kukur Tihar spread around Mexico in 2016 to make people aware of respecting animals.

Asian Art in London celebrated the festival by creating a dog walk charity event.

[34] People on social media contrasted the Chinese festival with Kukur Tihar and The Dodo reported that "[it gave] heartbroken dog lovers a reason to feel hopeful again".

[35] In a 2016 newspaper article, the President of Animal Nepal appealed to Nepalis "to take a pledge this Kukur Tihar, to not just worship your pets on this day but to do the right thing for them all year round.