Zarmina Khan
Several policies have been formulated in Pakistan to manage the issue of stray dogs. A few of these include the Animal Birth Control (Dogs) Policy 2021 in Punjab, which provides a policy framework for the humane management of stray dogs. The 2024-2025 Trap-Neuter-Vaccinate-Return (TNVR) Program in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa aims to scale up humane stray dog population control through TNVR. Similarly, the Sindh Rabies Control Program seeks to implement province-wide rabies prevention through mass dog vaccination, public education, and humane stray dog management. The Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) Action in Sindh supports humane stray dog population control efforts through collaboration with NGOs. Moreover, in July 2025, the Islamabad High Court issued directions to establish a humane and comprehensive regulatory framework for stray dog management at the federal level.
The Lahore High Court has ordered authorities across Punjab to euthanize only those stray dogs that are incurably ill or seriously injured. The court commanded them to follow humane, medically approved methods for carrying out this process. This order came during a hearing of petitions filed by Eiraj Hassan and others, who called for proper enforcement of the Animal Birth Control (Dogs) Policy 2021 and an end to cruel culling practices. The court focused on the fact that all relevant departments, including Local Government, must fully implement the policy as intended.
Recently, Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz has taken active steps to manage the stray dog issue in Punjab. In December 2024, she instructed that pet dogs must wear neck collars and called for the implementation of a comprehensive vaccination and registration system for pets. In July 2025, following a stray dog attack on a child in Lahore’s Ichhra area, she strictly directed authorities to submit detailed reports and take swift action to protect citizens, especially children. In October 2025, while reviewing district administrations, Maryam Nawaz expressed serious concern over the recurrence of stray dog bite incidents, calling them “absolutely unacceptable”. She emphasized the need for immediate and effective measures to control such incidents. These actions underline her commitment to improving public safety while promoting responsible animal management.
Pakistan is estimated to have over 3 million stray dogs, though exact figures vary due to the lack of a centralized census. In Punjab specifically, the number of stray dogs was reported to be over 460,000 by 2022, according to the Vice Chancellor of the University of Veterinary Punjab, Masood Rabbani, and this number would definitely have increased by 2025.
Some key challenges in addressing the stray dog menace and rabies are as follows:
- Overpopulation of stray dogs: Lack of effective birth control plans leads to continuous growth in stray dog numbers.
- Aggressive behavior and dog bites: Stray dogs often bite due to hunger, fear, or territorial instincts. These factors pose serious public health risks.
- Absence of coordinated control systems: There is no unified or systematic approach across departments and local bodies for managing stray dogs.
- Limited funding and infrastructure: Insufficient budget allocation, shortage of shelters, veterinary facilities, and trained personnel hamper control efforts and are also responsible for stray dog attack incidents.
- Public fear and resistance: One of the prominent factors is public fear and resistance. Fear of dog attacks leads people to resentment, sometimes resulting in cruel or illegal culling practices of stray dogs.
- Inadequate vaccination coverage: Disease transmission to humans and animals often increases due to low rates of rabies vaccination among stray dogs.
- Poor waste management: A crucial factor, as open garbage dumps provide food sources, encouraging stray dog population growth and congregations near human settlements.
- Inadequate Implementation of Laws and Policies: Insufficient monitoring and weak enforcement of policies hinder compliance with animal birth control and vaccination mandates.
- Lack of public awareness: Limited education on responsible pet ownership and safe interaction with stray dogs perpetuates the problem.
To address the issue of stray dog overpopulation and rabies control, comprehensive support is required including strong government backing, adequate veterinary services, active public participation, and the specialized expertise of NGOs. Well-planned and strategic recommendations are essential to effectively address the stray dog and rabies threat. To this end, the following measures are recommended:
- The effective management of the stray dog population and rabies control begins with a strong and unified legal foundation. There is an urgent need for a unified federal law to guide rabies prevention and humane stray dog management across Pakistan. This legislation should be introduced under the Ministry of National Health Services, Regulations & Coordination (NHSRC), in close collaboration with the Ministry of Climate Change (for animal welfare), the Ministry of Local Government, and relevant provincial departments of health and livestock. It is also important to clearly define responsibilities like local bodies should handle population control and waste management, health departments should manage rabies surveillance and treatment, and animal welfare departments should ensure that ABC procedures are implemented ethically. Strong enforcement is key; therefore, penalties for pet abandonment, mandatory pet registration, and clear rules around feeding strays in public areas will be helpful in addressing the stray dog issue.
- According to the 18th Amendment, health and governance have been devolved to the provinces, and local governments play a key role in this. Therefore, provincial authorities must enact laws and allocate sufficient resources to fund and manage ABC and vaccination programs, establish and maintain shelters and mobile sterilization units, and train municipal staff in humane dog handling.
- Focus on areas where there are lots of stray dogs and the most dog attack cases have been reported, such as near schools, hospitals, slums, markets, especially near meat shops. While it’s important to sterilize both male and female dogs, particular attention should be given to unspayed females, as a single female can potentially produce 40 or more puppies over her lifetime, depending on factors such as health, breed, and reproductive span. However, sterilizing males helps control behavior and supports overall population management. You don’t need to sterilize every dog all at once; just getting about 60-70% of the dogs fixed can effectively slow down the population growth.
- Develop apps, use drones, and prepare community reports to figure out where dogs are concentrated. Then roll out sterilization and vaccination programs area by area instead of trying to cover everything at once. This helps use resources better and makes it easier to track progress.
- Even if sterilization takes time, try to vaccinate stray dogs as much as possible, especially aggressive dogs, to control rabies. Mobile vet vans can visit neighborhoods in phases. This helps calm public fears quickly, even if the dog numbers don’t drop right away.
- Instead of trying to shelter every stray dog, which isn’t possible, set up shelters for aggressive dogs. These places provide temporary care while the dogs are treated or sterilized. If any dog is found aggressive, people must inform the authorities immediately so it can be isolated from other dogs promptly. Without public support, this would be impossible.
While human lives are undeniably precious, we must not forget that dog culling is an inhumane and ineffective practice. Rabies is a deadly disease, and dog attacks especially on children, women, and the elderly cannot be ignored. Addressing the issue of stray dog attacks and rabies requires humane, strategic, and science-based solutions such as sterilization, vaccination, and community engagement, not cruelty. Compassion and public safety can go hand in hand, but it requires sincere and sustained efforts.
