AT LEAST 70 to 100 dogs will be caught and neutered per month as part of a new strategy to tackle strays.
This was revealed at a meeting of the Muharraq Municipal Council, which has been seeking solutions to the menace following complaints from residents.
The issue of strays was earlier handled by the Municipalities Affairs Directorate. However, since last year it has been moved to the purview of the Animal Welfare Directorate, who are now proposing new methods to deal with them.
Veterinary Clinics and Disease Control Section chief Dr Abbas Al Hayki, who was present at the council meeting, said people from all governorates can continue to report strays to the municipalities hotline 17155363.
“Calls are being monitored so that the directorate can trace, catch and neuter strays in co-operation with a private clinic. The strays will then be released in Askar,” he said.
“These dogs used to be released in other construction areas such as Arad and Sitra and there was no neutering so their population continued to grow,” said Dr Al Hayki,
“When the livestock department took over, we restructured this issue with focus on three pillars – catching, neutering and establishing a shelter.
“A plot of land has been assigned in Hafira and it will serve as a park for pets, where such dogs will be rehabilitated. People can come and adopt one of the dogs if they want to as long as they abide by regulations which will ensure that the dogs won’t be let go to become strays again,” he said.
According to Dr Al Hayki, a private company will be entrusted with the job of catching strays.
“They will have a minimum monthly quota of dogs to catch, which is between 70 to 100 which was not implemented previously.
“We are also planning 24-hour campaigns throughout the day that will cover as much ground as possible.”
Council vice-chairman Hassan Al Doy told the GDN that initial surveys indicate nearly 2,000 dogs have been neutered and taken to Askar.
“The plot of land has been assigned and now I believe it’s in the tender process to figure out the budget, but I expect it will greatly help with our stray dogs’ issue,” said Mr Al Doy.
“Earlier, they would catch the dogs, neuter them and drop them off far away. But strays will always find their way back to their territories, and now there are more of them. One of the reasons is negligence by the ministry. There are people who feed them in residential areas which prompts them to return to the area.”
He said a designated park would keep the dogs out of residential areas and give them a place where they would be safe.
“They can be adopted and if people want to feed them they can do it there,” said Mr Al Doy.
The GDN previously reported that according to data compiled by the Animal Welfare Directorate, there were 2,968 stray dogs in all four governorates.
The Capital Governorate had the largest number with 968 dogs, followed by the Northern Governorate with 753, the Southern Governorate recorded 700 and Muharraq Governorate 547.
The survey by the animal welfare directorate revealed approximately 3,000 stray dogs, which were expected to reach 4,000 after breeding.
ghazi@gdn.com.bh
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