A few months ago I was contacted by a fellow resident, Gayani. She and her family, like any other, were facing a few financial challenges in life.
The working family consisted of the parents, a teenage son and 22 cats, adopted during their 10 years in the UAE. Many of the animals were rescued so as to provide medical treatment and loving homes for them.
Some of the pets that were initially rescued became new family members after they failed to get good homes.
The family and their pets were happily living in a villa in the Al Shahama area of Abu Dhabi. But during the last renewal of their yearly tenancy agreement, they were shocked when the landlord refused to charge the same amount as in previous years.
Instead, the new amount far exceeded their budget.
The family carefully studied all the available options and these were some of the options they came up with:
- Rent another villa: This, however, was still a challenge to their budget problem.
- Try to find new homes for their pets:
Adult stray cats are not so easy to place in new homes at such short notice. It was even more difficult to find homes for the large number of pets they had.
- Kill their pets: This was suggested to them by some people. However, the animals are healthy and loving pets, so this option was not even up for consideration.
- Send the 21 pets out of UAE to Sri Lanka, their homeland: It was a complicated, slightly costly option, but a possible one.
Without hesitation, they went for the last option. However, soon after the decision was made, an endless list of questions flooded their minds. Who would take care of the pets in their homeland? How much would the shipment costs be? How would they be able to organise the necessary paperwork?
After going through all the logistics and equations, they came up with a solution.
Gayani's husband would quit his job and return home with 13 cats to manage the situation in Sri Lanka. Gayani would continue to live in the UAE with her son and five cats with special needs. She would retain her current job until her son finished his studies. They all assumed the necessary sacrifices and took immediate action.
Difficult transformation
Friends of Animals, a non-profit animal rescue group in Dubai, was approached by them regarding three of the semi-domesticated, healthy garden cats that they also took care of in the shared villa.
The process of transforming adult garden cats into indoor pets is complicated and in the current time frame, seemed to be an irreversible death sentence.
The other 13 cats finally arrived in Sri Lanka. Gayani moved on as per her plans and the three outdoor cats were left behind in the garden villa for lack of an alternative solution. However, Gayani resolved to drive almost 100km a day, to and from the villa, to feed them, provide them with water and make sure they were fine.
Although we put out calls for help, no one seemed to be interested in the garden cats. Our worry was escalating by the day, as any minute, a new tenant could move in and ask the authorities to remove the cats from the premises. There was only one thing left to do — to raise money and ship them to Sri Lanka, where they would be able to continue as garden cats in style.
In order to complete the family's efforts to save all the pets, Friends of Animals offered its support by emailing all of its members, explaining the case, and requesting for financial support.
A respondent offered to keep the cats in an enclosed place at her desert farm until the time of departure.
People came forward with donations and in no time, most of the cost was covered by people who were determined to contribute to the story's happy ending.
On Friday, June 24, despite all obstacles, the three garden cats and an unwanted dog made the trip to their final destination: a welcoming and forever safe home.
This remarkable and humble lesson is in the sad memory of a cat abandoned at a villa in Abu Dhabi. He waited every night by the door in vain but there would be no water or food for him.
The attack of other feral cats made his experience a horrific before Al Rahma Animal Rescue group saved him and finally put him to rest.
— The reader is the founder of Friends of Animals, Dubai
Video: For the love of animals
This Abu Dhabi-based family lost their home. Yet they disregarded their own problems and focused their efforts on saving 23 animals.
