Anger as dog found with tail sawn off in Abu Dhabi

Attack in Abu Dhabi is latest in a series of abuse cases

Animal welfare campaigners have described their anger after a dog was found wandering the streets of Abu Dhabi with a sawn off tail.

Animal Action UAE said they believe the dog, which they named Lucy, was held down while someone severed her tail in a gruesome act of abuse.

She was found in the Mushrif area in June 30, five days after another dog, named Halle, was found with one leg partially attached.

“The vet is certain that the tail was in fact cut by someone and that it would have taken more than one person to hold her down and do so,” the animal welfare group said.

“Lucy is doing well now considering her injury. The female dog is still very scared and so we hope that over the next week she will start to relax and learn that no one wants to hurt her,” the animal welfare group said in a statement on Facebook.

The other female dog, Halle, will remain on painkillers as her front leg is infected will likely need to be amputated.

“This is awful and disgusting. Why would anybody hurt a living animal? said Sarita Harding, a volunteer at Animal Action.

"In the past few months, animal welfare groups have seen about around six major incidents of animal abuse."

She said that they are still waiting for the final confirmation from the vet, but volunteers have little doubt it was a deliberate act.

“The dog would have had to be held down for the tail to be cut off and for the other dog it’s a clear cut. This is a clear abuse."

Harding said there is typically a spike in the number of animals abandoned in the summer as families leave pets behind when they go on holiday or move abroad.

“We normally find out about these cases from the public, who obviously care about animals and contact us to help animals," she said.

“Animal abuse is a crime in the UAE. The UAE government is taking animal abuse seriously. If we can find who they are, we’re going to take the issue forward."

In September 2016, an Emirati teenager was filmed throwing a cat against a wall but was released without charge by Ajman Police. Two months later, a five-month-old cat was found with its ears and tail cut off in Dubai's Al Wasl area. Last month, a cat suffering cuts around its neck and arrows carved on its back was found near Coral Boutique Villas in Dubai.

In March, three men were ordered to complete three months of community service and were ordered to clean Dubai Zoo after they were filmed feeding a cat to their two Rottweiler dogs.

Individuals found abusing animals will be fined up to Dh10,000, according to article 432 of the Federal Punishment Law.

Individuals who are found guilty of abusing or the illegal hunting, buying or selling of animals will face a one-year prison term and a fine of Dh200,000, according to Federal Law 18.