UAE rescuers say they endured a relentless summer marked by abandoned pets, emergency medical cases, stretched resources, and a shortage of volunteers and donors.
For many UAE residents, summer means packing a suitcase, boarding a flight and taking a well-earned break. For animal rescuers, however, there is no such pause.
As temperatures soared and residents left the country for holidays or relocated, rescuers across the UAE faced a relentless summer of abandoned pets, emergency medical cases, stretched resources and fewer volunteers and donors.
For independent ground rescuer and consultant Chiku Singh, the work continues long after a feeding round is over.
“You may leave the feeding round, but the feeding round never really leaves you,” she said.
Singh said she has personally noticed more abandonment cases this summer, particularly involving cats, dogs and other domesticated pets.
She said the situation appears more difficult than in previous summers, when pet abandonment was often linked to residents travelling during the holiday season.
“This year, with the regional tensions and more people relocating or leaving the UAE completely, it feels much worse,” she said.
As an independent rescuer, Singh does not keep formal statistics but said she has seen an increase in the number of animals requiring feeding, trap-neuter-return (TNR), emergency assistance and medical treatment.
“The cases also never really stop. One case finishes, and another message comes in,” she said.
‘They have no idea how to survive outside’
Among the cases that have stayed with Singh are abandoned pets found trying to survive among established stray colonies.
She described one affectionate, microchipped cat she recently found living in a feral colony in a park. Attempts to trace its owner were unsuccessful because the contact details linked to the microchip were no longer active.
“He has gone from having a home to living in a feral cat colony in a park,” she said. “He has adapted because he had no other choice, but that does not mean this is the life he was meant to have.”
Singh said she recently spotted two dogs — a puppy and a medium-sized dog — among a colony she feeds. Both appeared clean, fearful and unfamiliar with life outdoors, leading her to suspect they had been recently abandoned.
“Sometimes you see an animal once, you immediately know something is wrong, and then it disappears before you can help,” she said.
The summer heat adds another layer of difficulty.
Singh noted that some fluffy-coated pets struggle more in the heat, particularly animals that have spent most of their lives indoors. To help animals cope, she freezes bottles of water, wraps them in towels and leaves them near some colonies. She also creates shaded areas to keep food and water out of direct sunlight.
Rescuers stretched to the limit
Rescue groups are also feeling the pressure as more animals need temporary or permanent shelter.
Claire Hopkin of RescueMe described the past few months as “relentless”, with a significant increase in animal surrenders.
“We are seeing so many dogs we can’t cope,” she said.
Hopkin said her group, which is run by just two people, took in more than 20 dogs in five days — compared with the handful of animals it would normally take in over an entire week.
She said the shelter could accommodate more animals, but its capacity is limited by the availability of veterinarians and foster homes. Finding foster families has become increasingly difficult, while adoptions have been particularly slow over the summer.
“Adoptions have been very slow over the summer. Almost dead,” she said.
Hopkin attributed the increase in surrenders to people leaving the UAE, economic uncertainty and what she described as a rise in unlicensed breeding. She added that some rescue groups are also seeing more animals from the pet trade as purchasing patterns change.
“We all use our own funds. There’s no rich rescuers here,” she said, adding that sponsors are also becoming harder to find.
The work people don’t see
Not all animal welfare work takes place inside shelters. Rafah Arjeh, an office manager and pet-grooming business owner, supports community rescuers as an individual volunteer.
During the summer, she regularly checks, cleans and refills community cat feeding and water stations, including one near her villa. For Arjeh, much of this work happens quietly and away from public view.
Through her pet-grooming business, Rwoofi Pet Grooming, she also provides free grooming for rescued cats and dogs that require treatment or are being prepared for adoption.
“I believe even small, consistent actions like fresh water, proper food, clean feeding areas, education and supporting rescuers can make a real difference,” she said.
‘Can’t switch off mentally’
For Singh, the biggest challenge is not just the growing number of animals in need, but the inability to switch off mentally. Independent rescuers often fund much of their work themselves, she said, covering the costs of food, veterinary treatment, TNR and emergency cases.
Summer travel can also shrink the pool of volunteers and individual donors at a time when the number of cases is rising, she said. The impact can be both physical and emotional.
Singh keeps cat and dog food in her car because she never knows what she might encounter during the day.
Even during personal time, rescuers can find themselves thinking about whether an animal needs medical attention, whether it has a microchip, who might be able to help and where the animal can go.
“That is why rescue is not really something you clock out from,” Singh said.
More than rescuing
Both rescuers stressed that helping animals does not necessarily mean taking every stray into a home or shelter.
Singh said healthy community cats can sometimes remain outdoors safely when they have regular access to food, clean water and shade, alongside trap-neuter-return (TNR) programmes and consistent monitoring.
She also warned that taking in more animals than a person can realistically support, either financially or physically, can create another welfare problem.
“Rescue should improve an animal’s life, not simply move its suffering from the street into a cage,” she said.
Hopkin urged residents who cannot adopt to consider fostering or sponsoring instead.
“Please don’t buy. Please adopt. If you can’t adopt, foster. If you can’t do either, sponsor,” she said.
Arjeh said the need for community support does not end when summer does.
“Community animals depend on people throughout the year, not just during summer,” she said.
