Animal "Rights" in Kuwait

... lack thereof.

Kuwait is not the animal rights capitol of the world. The list of abhorrent abuses is long and generally not often discussed. To bring to light some of the abuses happening here:

• No regulations for animal pet shops. Cats and dogs are often kept in tiny cages for months at a time in dirty conditions.
• Dog fighting. Although betting/gambling is forbidden by Islam, it happens. There are a large number of pit bulls and Indian-breed dogs in the country used for dog fights.
  Poor treatment of race horses. Lack of proper medical care, lack of conditioning often leads to inhumane euthanization by government-approved lethal injection of T61 – a terribly inhumane way for an animal to die.
  
• Overwhelming cases of animal torture and cruelty, mostly due to lack of education.
  
• Hunting of wildlife in government “protected” areas. “Kill anything that moves” philosophy when it comes to hunting.
  
• Neglect
  ­ Use of inappropriate feed.
  ­ Lack of proper sheltering -– often in temperatures upwards of 100 degrees Fahrenheit
  ­ Lack proper vaccinations and grooming
  
• Import of endangered species: Monkeys, orangutans, tigers, and others.
  
• Sheep import trade: inhumane shipping and slaughter conditions. Sheep arrive in Kuwait from Australia on ships holding up to 80,000 after weeks being crammed together – often leaving their home country in winter, arriving in blazing heat of Kuwait summers.
  
• In-humane conditions in slaughter houses: Livestock is brought to slaughter houses where they see/hear/smell animals before them dying while they slip on bloody floors. They are not stunned before their throats are slit, leaving a 30-40 second delay to death while choking on their own blood.
• Strays: Large stray cat population throughout the country. Stray dogs are often either poisoned or shot by authorities.
• Zoos in Kuwait are full of animal abuses. Animals are caged in improperly sized enclosures. They have no activity, so they often display “kennel stress” by pacing up and down.
  
• Animal shows/circuses. The Little Jungle is probably the most notorious, but Kuwait brings in several circuses where animal abuse is high, as is the case in the dolphin shows which are regularly brought to small swimming pools throughout the country.