Dubai: How often have you come across an injured or lost kitten on the side of the highway and wished someone had helped?
Emirati national Ahmad Al Qasimi became that ‘someone’ when he seized the opportunity to save a terrified cat on a busy Dubai highway, earlier this month.
In a video he posted on his instagram account (@ahmed_alqasimi), Al Qasimi can be seen waiting for the right moment, on Shaikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Road, as cars zoom past at speeds of up to 130km/h. He then wraps a trembling brown cat in a piece of cloth and places it in a pet carrier.
Explaining the video, he wrote: “Last week in Dubai, I rescued this little guy off the highway. Please, if you see an animal stuck on a highway, do what you can to save these poor lives (making sure you’re not putting your life at risk, of course). The least you could do, if you can’t stop, is post about it on the rescue pages in the UAE.”
There are numerous animal shelters and nonprofit rescue groups in the UAE, many of which, can be found in the Save An Animal section.
Al Qasimi told Gulf News: “These incidents happen all too often unfortunately, but when you see the support and feedback from other animal rescuers, it’s a beautiful thing.
"On social media platforms, people come together to volunteer and offer their help in whatever way they are able to when it comes to rescues and missing animals. Additionally, there are many individuals out there who do these animal rescues on a weekly (if not daily) basis. Those people deserve recognition.”
But why did he stop to help?
Al Qasimi said: “There are plenty of reasons... my pets are all rescues that have been abandoned or neglected. The cats I see on the highway are sometimes street cats and sometimes someone’s missing pet. Regardless, I think to myself: ‘What if that was my cat?’ Additionally, it is quite an important part of Islam to care for animals and it is something that I practice whenever I have the opportunity.”
As for the cat, which has used up one of its nine lives, Al Qasimi posted a picture of it following the incident, where it looked well-groomed, hale and hearty.
Al Qasimi took the cat to a veterinarian on the same day.
He said: “I had him tested for any diseases — if he had any, he would have been treated. The following day, we got him neutered and groomed. He stays with me in my house and I’m taking care of him till I find his owner, and if not, then I’ll find him a home.”
Who is the rescuer?
Al Qasimi describes himself on instagram, as an activist, amateur chef and musician.
In a comment piece he wrote for The Views section of Gulf News in March last year, he highlighted the importance of animal welfare in the UAE.
The country has several laws protecting the rights of animals, including the landmark 2007 Federal Law No. 16 concerning animal protection, abandonment, abuse and care, which was implemented by President His Highness Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
Al Qasimi wrote: “However, people across the UAE are aware that there is a need to strictly enforce these laws. This is what I believe to be the biggest concern regarding animal welfare in the UAE, because it is inhumane, unethical and most of all un-Islamic to stand by idly as more cases pop up of animal mistreatment, abuse and abandonment.
"There is a lot of room for improvement and enforcement of these laws, but action needs to be taken.”
Following his rescue attempt, Al Qasimi had some advice for people who spot animals cowering along the highway: “If people are able to stop their cars and keep themselves safe from oncoming traffic, I believe they should take the initiative to save these poor animals’ lives.
"Otherwise, they could join social media pages that bring rescuers together and inform them. The news spreads like wildfire, and people closest to that area do try to help in whatever way they can.”
