Plea as strays ‘left to die…’

Bahrain: STRAY dogs are being rounded up and driven out into the desert where they are left to starve to death, an animal rights activist 

has claimed.

Bahrain Strays founder Fathiya Al Bastaki told the GDN that her group, which promotes animal welfare and feeds homeless dogs around the country, had received several reports of strays being dumped in remote locations.

Killing  

“These people take these poor animals and instead of caring for them they drive them out into the desert and leave them for dead,” she said.

“They are killing them slowly by leaving them in these areas, where they cannot find food or water.”

The issue had been compounded in recent years by a sharp increase in Bahrain’s stray dog population, Ms Al Bastaki claimed.

“We have found many dogs left for dead in several areas of Bahrain including Sakhir,” she said.

“One memorable incident involved 12 dogs that had grown up and were very friendly with the employees of a
company in Tubli.

“I used to feed them with other animal rights activists and we even took them to the vets to have them neutered.

“However, I then learnt that an official from the company had said that he wanted to get rid of these dogs.

“The employees loved the dogs and did not want them to be taken away, but the official insisted – even asking me to
remove them.”

Because her organisation does not have a shelter of its own, it is unable to take in strays, Ms Al Bastaki said.

“I then found out that this official had forced some of his employees to take the dogs away to Sitra near the industrial area,” she said.

“We searched for them and found them, but now the owner of a nearby building is complaining that the same dogs are scaring his tenants.”

Ms Al Bastaki recounted another occasion when a guard dog named Joey, who she had become familiar with after regular feeding sessions over the past three years, was suddenly branded a nuisance.

“One of the employees at the company Joey guarded told me to take him away,” she said.

“He claimed that he had been biting pedestrians and said that he wanted to get rid of him in the desert.

“I have had several requests like this since I started my journey taking care of stray dogs several years ago.

“But I cannot remove these animals, I just feed them because I take pity on them.

“Therefore I call on officials who have mercy to provide a shelter for them
immediately.”

The GDN reported last month on plans for a new government-run animal shelter within the country’s main
nature reserve and zoo.

Proposal 

The proposal, which was put forward by the Southern Municipal Council, envisages a shelter at Al Areen Wildlife Park and Reserve – drawing on its pool of on-site veterinarians to care for stray dogs and other abandoned animals.

However, council chairman Ahmed Al Ansari admitted that the earliest this could happen would be 2019, given the government’s current fiscal problems compounded by
low oil prices.

noorz@gdn.com.bh

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