DUBAI Two women who run a voluntary organisation for animals in Umm Al Quwain are calling for stricter laws against animal cruelty after ten donkeys and two dogs they cared for were shot dead by unidentified men earlier this month.
European expatriates Louise and Barbara who run the Animal Welfare Project UAQ that feeds and takes care of almost 200 stray dogs, donkeys, goats and cats say her animals were shot dead in two separate incidents.
“We really want strong laws to be implemented so that people who indulge in cruelty, in any form, against animals can’t get away easily,” said Barbara, a German national who has been running the project for over a decade. She and her project partner, Louise from Britain are now demanding more punitive action against animal abusers, throwing their weight behind an online petition “Enforce the law and punish animals abusers in the UAE” that’s gained over 4,000 signatures from around the world already.
Ghastly killings
“We have signed this petition and want others to do the same because we need to take a firm stand against all offenders and say no to animal cruelty in all its forms, from any physical abuse, negligence, abandonment, imprisonment mishandling, sexual abuse, and illegal trade let alone killing them,” added Barbara who says she discovered the ghastly killings on the evening of March 12 when she went out to feed her animals. According to her, ten of her donkeys – one pregnant and one only six months old – were missing while one of her dogs, Lara, lay dead.
She later found out from eyewitnesses that the donkeys were allegedly hunted by three men in a car, shot at and their carcasses were taken away in a lorry apparently as feed for tigers at an illegal farm elsewhere while the body of the dog was left behind.
“We must all come forward and help make this change for the wellbeing of these animals who have no voice of their own because what happened to them is criminal,” said Barbara. According to her there was a second incident days later that saw another three desert dogs shot at. Two survived but one was killed, leaving behind a litter of puppies.
Following the ghastly incidents, the two have also sped up their work on founding an UAE-wide ‘Animal Welfare and Rescue Council’ that they say is intended to collaborate and contribute to the welfare and protection of all animals.
YOUSPEAK: What should be done to prevent such incidents?
