Abu Dhabi cat rescue: How two women saved over 70 cats in Al Sideirah — ‘They had nowhere else to go’

If the cats of UAE could speak, they could tell stories that would outlive any Netflix show at this point. Their tales would mostly trace the trajectory of abandonment, days of cursing humans, trying to avoid cars, and sometimes, just sometimes, a story where the same species that abandoned them shows up to save them instead.

Humans are a peculiar lot, cats would probably agree. So would humans, but that's another story.

Perhaps, not every stray or abandoned cat in the world can be saved. But when someone manages to rescue more than 70 cats from illness and injury, those 70-plus lives tell their own story. That is the story of Maria Sanchez, who, together with her friend Aira, rescued dozens of cats from Al Sideirah Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, as demolition crews were nearby.

Maria recalls, "A lady had posted about the cats, explaining that demolition was taking place in the area and that they urgently needed to be saved."

Realising the cats were at risk of being left behind, she rushed to help, and grasped the scale of what lay ahead. "I knew that I wouldn't be able to manage it alone," she says. Catching more than 70 cats would take manpower, time, and stamina she couldn't supply, just by herself.

At this point, Aira joined her. “Her help made such a huge different, especially, because we were working long hours in the middle of summer.” 

It was a structured process: Obviously, they couldn’t catch all 70 at once. “So, we worked in batches of around 8-11 cats at a time,” explains Maria, adding that she used her annual leave, and dedicated time, needed for the mission. “Once we had a batch, we would transport the cats from Al Sideirah Abu Dhabi, to Pet Avenue Veterinary Clinic in JVC, which was quite a distance from the area,” she says. 

At the clinic, the cats underwent TNR, Trap, Neuter, Return, and Maria credits Dr Hesham and the Pet Avenue team. "They carried out their TNR despite the number of cats and the logistical challenges involved." Once treated, she would drive the cats back from JVC to Al Sideirah Abu Dhabi, and release them in locations safely removed from the demolition site.

Then the cycle would begin again. "After releasing one batch, we would return and start catching the next group. This happened repeatedly until we managed to work through as many of the cats as possible," she says.

It was a punishing routine, carried out at the peak of summer. "I would spend hours outside, sometimes from around 10 AM until 3 PM, catching cats. Then came the driving to JVC, waiting for the cats to be treated, driving them back, releasing them safely, and returning again for the next batch," Maria says. It was, by her own account, physically and mentally exhausting. But she kept going, knowing that once the demolition began, the cats would have nowhere left to go.

Todays, the cats are safe and are in the clear. And, Maria is grateful to Aira for being her pillar of support, and the Pet Avenue for accommodating the cats, and supporting them throughout the TNR process. “It was a long, exhausting process, but every batch we managed to get through meant another group of cats had been given a safer chance. And for that, I’m truly thankful to everyone who helped make it possible,” says Maria.