More than 700 dogs may be euthanised by British shelter after 'government orders'
In the north of Iraq, in Erbil, War Paws cares for a large number of stray dogs both inside and outside its shelter.
But back in January, the charity were told the local government had said they needed to relocate. However, discussions over the move were halted as the US-Israel war broke out against Iran.
And now, the British shelter is facing the possibility of euthanising more than 700 dogs if they are ‘forced’ to move.
War Paws are desperately trying to raise funds to move and rebuild the entire shelter from scratch. But the charity also do not know just how much time they will be given before they have to move.
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If they do, and the development continues in the current area, the stray animals will ‘lose their only source of food, water and shelter’.
Louise Hastie, who travels to work at the shelter in Iraq, currently remains there with airspace completely closed.
“Whilst I could look at a road move via the land border with Turkey to get out there is not a chance I will abandon my team and the animals, if the shelter goes down we all go down with it,” she tells LADbible.
Hastie adds that they aren’t a ‘direct target’ but are in danger of ‘being hit by mistake’ or by a drone.
“Just this morning 2 drones hit a huge oil installation about 5km away from the shelter and we have been seeing fighter jets all day long,” she explains. “The dogs are massively stressed and all we can do to help them is give them cuddles.”
Hastie says the shelter was ‘semi-formally’ offered land 300 metres away but a 25-year contract couldn’t be offered and negotiations were put on pause until Eid had concluded.
However, the war halted this and she says: “The bottom line is that whilst we have no timeline at this stage and we are employing delay tactics as far as we can there is going to come and point where we are told to go and we are not likely to have much time to move. So it really is important that we raise the $300,000 we need as soon as possible.”
There are roughly 130 dogs living inside the shelter walls and hundreds more on the outside.
She told Metro previously: “If we are forced to, we are looking at having to put down 700 dogs as they are unable to live as strays in the area.”
It is believed it would be ‘kinder to put them down’ rather than leaving them to ‘likely starve to death’.
The dogs outside the shelter, receive meals and medical care from War Paws and leaving them behind ‘is not an option’.
Hastie adds: “Until recently the area we are in has been a dumping ground for dead livestock so there has always been plentiful food sources but since development started in the area the dead livestock dumping is slowing down and it will eventually stop.
“There is also NO access to water in the area, we have built 13 pools in our driveway area that provide water not just for the dogs but also sheep that local farmers graze in the area, birds and other wildlife.”
Facing the ‘gargantuan task’, War Paws has set up a GoFundMe to raise funds immediately so it can: “Secure safe land for the future, rebuild the shelter if we are forced to move [and to] protect hundreds of animals who depend on us every day.”
“These animals have already survived war, abandonment, and unimaginable hardship and cruelty,” the page adds.
“War Paws became their safe place, a place where they learned love. Now we must fight to protect and their home.”
You can donate here.
Jess Battison