ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq - A completed shelter for stray dogs is set to open in Duhok soon, an official said on Saturday, claiming that it will stop dog attacks in the province as the Kurdistan Region struggles with a growing wild animal problem.

Sherwan Hassan, spokesperson for the Duhok municipality, told The New Region that “the stray dog shelter is complete and will be opened in the coming days, resolving the problem of attacks on citizens.”

In 2024, at least 20 people were wounded as a result of stray attacks, according to data The New Region has received from relevant authorities in Duhok.

Meanwhile, Rozhin Mohammed, Assistant Director of Duhok Veterinary Services, said they are ready to take on managing the shelter whenever it is handed over to them.

There are over 15,000 stray dogs in Duhok province, according to data from the Kurdistan Organization for Animal Rights Protection.

Shelters in the Kurdistan Region are underdeveloped, unhygienic, and lack the basic necessities for life, such as food and water. The shelters also lack proper shade and are usually constructed on barren fields, making it especially grueling for the strays during the scorching summer months.

In 2022, animal rights activists in Sulaimani protested a provincial campaign to collect stray dogs and place them in shelters, labeling the facilities as “slaughterhouses.” Instead, they suggested that the dogs be neutered and returned to the streets.

People regularly complain about the growing population of stray dogs in the neighborhoods across the Kurdistan Region. 

The Kurdistan Region passed the first-ever animal protection law in late 2022, deeming the killing of stray animals forbidden by any means.

However, on several occasions, people have shown no respect for the law, killing and poisoning stray dogs with impunity, deeming it a “cheap” and “easy” solution to the growing stray dog population as opposed to systematic neutering.

Over 300,000 stray dogs roam the streets of the Kurdistan Region, according to the Sulaimani-based Kurdistan Green Party.