As Iranian missiles struck the United Arab Emirates, some residents made a calculated choice: save themselves and leave their pets to die.

Animal rescue centres and veterinary clinics across Dubai and Al Ain reported a sharp surge in abandonments in the days followingIran's bombardment of the Gulf, which began on Sunday 1 March 2026.

Dogs have been found tied to lampposts without food or water, boxes of kittens dropped at shelter doors overnight, and, according to rescue workers speaking to LBC, at least twodogs were shot dead in the desertas their owners attempted to cross into neighbouring Oman. The crisis has put Dubai's well-manicured image as a safe, cosmopolitan hub under a harsh and unexpected spotlight.

Claire Hopkins, a British volunteer from Newport, Wales, who operates a dog rescue network in the UAE, toldLBCthat the pace of abandonment accelerated as soon as airspace closures began trapping residents. 'We've been seeing a lot of stress and panic, as you can imagine, amongst pet owners,' she said. 'A lot are wanting to give back their adoptive pets. There are dogs starting to be abandoned.'

Hopkins confirmed that veterinary practices had received inquiries about euthanasing healthy animals, something she described simply as 'disgusting.' Her own rescue network, already operating at capacity, could take no more.

Anso Stander, a South African national who runs the Six Hounds animal sanctuary in the UAE, described the scale of requests hitting her operation. In a single day, she told LBC, she received 27 messages from pet owners threatening to put their animals on the street if no one could take them in.

'We're talking about some people with 20 cats who are trying to leave the country,' she said. Stander also reported that she had received two confirmed accounts of dogs being shot dead in desert terrain between the UAE and Oman, where border authorities had refused to allow animals across.

A separate anonymous volunteer, speaking toThe Telegraph, said they had tracked around 200 social media posts, across WhatsApp and Facebook groups, showing dogs abandoned on streets, tied to poles, their owners untraceable. 'Some vets have even confirmed that owners are coming in to euthanise healthy pets because they don't want to deal with relocation costs or paperwork,' the volunteer said. 'On average I personally receive around five messages a day from people saying that they're leaving, and will put their pet on the street if no one takes it.'

They spent years showing off their Dubai lifestyle. The moment it got dangerous, they abandoned the one thing that loved them unconditionally.After Iranian missile strikes hit the UAE in early March 2026, thousands of expats rushed to leave Dubai. But as flights filled, a…pic.twitter.com/hsTJhPie13

One Al Ain resident found a cat and four kittens abandoned in a cage on her doorstep, accompanied by a handwritten note from their owner explaining that they were unable to take the animals when they fled. The cats were in good health and were subsequently offered for fostering in the area. A separate picture, shared widely on social media, showed a dog tied to a lamppost in the Al-Nahda neighbourhood of Dubai, reportedly left there on the Saturday the conflict began, before a local resident took it in temporarily.

Source: International Business Times UK