ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Nearly 5,000 stray dogs have been brought to the Erbil animal shelter over the past seven months as part of an ongoing collection and sterilization campaign, the facility's director said Thursday.
Since the beginning of this year, "4,802 dogs have been collected from central Erbil," Hassan Ismail told Rudaw's Solin Hamadamin.
The shelter was built in Erbil in 2023 at a cost of more than 480 million dinars (around $320,000). It sits on the Erbil-Gwer road southwest of the city.
Nearly 26,000 dogs have been collected since the shelter opened, with staff neutering the animals before releasing them back into the city because of housing and food shortages.
Ismail said sterilization surgeries were suspended "for a period" but resumed "a few months ago."
"Currently, around 30 to 40 dogs undergo surgery weekly, and after staying [at the shelter] for a period, they are released back into their environment," he added.
Four dog shelters operate across the Kurdistan Region, feeding nearly 10 tons of food to the animals daily, including chicken legs, heads, and wings.
An estimated 30,000 stray dogs roam the Region. Erbil health authorities recorded more than 700 dog bite cases in 2023.
Nationwide, Iraq's federal health ministry has recorded 46,600 injuries from dog bites and scratches in 2026, including cases in the Kurdistan Region. Eighteen people died of rabies after failing to reach a hospital in time following the onset of symptoms.
Strays are frequently viewed as a public nuisance and health hazard, and are often driven off, beaten, or killed by vehicles and gunfire.
