ALKHOBAR, 18 May 2007 — For the last four months, the domesticated animals of the Eastern Province, a metropolitan area with a human population of over 3 million, have had no access to veterinary care after local clinics were shut down for not complying with government regulations. The situation is now critical. With no veterinarians available, sick animals cannot be aided or even put out of their misery. Expatriates leaving Saudi Arabia are abandoning their pets as they cannot obtain the health certificates required by airlines for animal transport. Voluntary spay/neuter programs have also been suspended and consequently, the feral cat population is exploding.

The desperation of Sharon and Jay Fagan from Jubail vividly illustrates the magnitude of the crisis. A cat that has been a part of their family for two years is extremely ill.

“At the present time, our cat has an infection in her gums,” explained Jay. “We know that she needs immediate dental care which requires anesthesia. However, there is no vet clinic that can clean her gums, give her antibiotics and watch her for the required length of time to ensure that the infection has been eliminated. We know that if no one comes to our aid soon, our cat will experience a very painful and unnecessary death.”

The family is keeping the cat alive by giving her daily doses of an oral pediatric antibiotic, which reduces the severity of the infection. But they are losing the fight. The cat is not eating well and there is an additional concern that constant, and less than ideal antibiotic dosing, will harm the cat in other ways. Sadly, short of smashing the cat over the head with a shovel to permanently put her out of her misery, there is nothing else to do. There are reports of ill animals throughout the Eastern Province.

“I live on Rushaid 1 Compound. We have a few cats with cat flu. They have basically been ill since January. They seem to recover, then it comes back. I have two cats. One of my cats got so ill that when he sneezed, he sprayed green stuff everywhere and eventually blood was mixed in with it,” said Yvonne Boocock. “Due to the lack of vets, I asked two local pharmacies for an antibiotic to treat a cat with and neither had a clue. I eventually bought one that had worked for me and gave him half a dose for six days, till he stopped sneezing green stuff. He has however started sneezing again.”

What should this worried pet owner do next? And just imagine what faced another family after their cat was mauled by a larger animal.

“Our cat’s ear was badly bitten and was bleeding profusely. I did the best I could to stop the bleeding as well as applying a bandage. After a day I looked at the damaged ear and knew that she needed a vet. There wasn’t one to be had. It was a bad time for us and the cat,” said M. L. Kimberly.

Through dedicated nursing the cat recovered. Another family that had a hamster who developed a tumor, wasn’t as fortunate. Their children had to watch their pet die.

The lack of veterinarians is affecting not just individuals, but businesses too. Pet shops have no access to care for their animals and housing compounds are making difficult choices.

“We rely on vet services to get our feral cats neutered in order to control the cat population,” said Alan Holden, O&M Manager, Al-Bustan Village. “Without vet services we have only two options — either get overrun with strays or trap and destroy them. I’m sure you will know which option we would prefer.”

Frightening as well is that no pet has been vaccinated in the Eastern Province while the veterinary clinics have been closed.

“One of the important reasons why there should be accessible veterinary facilities are the public health concerns. There are many people in Saudi Arabia, both Saudis and expatriates, who keep pets,” said Elaine Perzanowski. “These animals have contact with the environment in general and are exposed to various diseases, which may or may not be communicable to humans. If veterinary facilities are available, then any incident can be easily monitored.”

“The authorities should realize that some animal complaints such as ringworm, can be passed on to humans unless treated quickly,” commented Jean Chapple. Numerous people mentioned that with no veterinary clinics in the area, there is no way that pet birds in the early stages of the H5N1 infection would be identified and appropriate quarantine measures could be taken.

The veterinary crisis began when the two public veterinary clinics in the region were closed. The Ministry of Agriculture closed one clinic due to the “total disregard of the owner to any of the ministry’s requirements including the proper licensing of its veterinarian.” The other clinic was closed by Alkhobar’s Municipality because the owner opened the clinic in a new location without prior approval.

The Ministry of Agriculture stated that the Green Crown Veterinary Clinic has solved its location problems and should reopen in Alkhobar within the month. Problems persist with the reopening of the other clinic.

The Ministry of Agriculture is aware of the difficulties in regards to animal health care in the Eastern Province and has decided to offer loans without fee to any Saudi who is interested in opening a new veterinary facility.

The standard of veterinary care is less than state of the art at the two clinics in operation and the ministry would like to see not only more clinics, but better clinics open in the area.