Islamabad : As evening falls in parts of Islamabad, some residents change routes, carry sticks or quicken their pace to avoid packs of stray dogs gathering on quiet streets.
For Fouzia, a housemaid in a private housing society, fear of stray dogs has become part of her daily routine. “I sometimes finish work late, and by the time I walk home the sun has already set,” she said. “I have to be extra cautious on certain streets because dogs gather there to find food.” Last year she was bitten while walking past a pack. Since then, she said, even the sound of barking causes panic.
Islamabad’s growing stray dog population has become one of the capital’s most divisive urban issues. For some residents the animals represent fear and insecurity. For others, repeated culling operations raise questions about cruelty, legality and whether the practice addresses the root of the problem.
The safety concern is shared by others, such as Sanaullah, a delivery rider. “Encounters with stray dogs are now just part of working nights,” he said. “Most of the time they don’t attack, but it takes only one aggressive dog for things to go wrong.” He added that the government needed to do more to keep dogs out of densely populated neighbourhoods. “People who walk or ride at night need to feel safe too.”
Scale of the problem: According to data released by the National Institute of Health, more than 5,641 dog-bite cases were reported across Pakistan in a single week in February 2026, following an even higher figure of nearly 8,000 cases the month before. Health officials estimate that around one million people in Pakistan are bitten by stray dogs each year, contributing to approximately 5,000 to 6,000 rabies-related deaths annually. The NIH says the country requires more than two million anti-rabies vaccine doses each year, while shortages of vaccines and rabies immunoglobulin continue to affect hospitals in several regions.
Culling vs control: The response from authorities has largely been culling - dogs shot or poisoned in operations carried out by the Capital Development Authority as a public safety measure. Criticism of both the execution and effectiveness of these operations has grown steadily.
Dr Faisal Khan, veterinarian and CEO of Pets and Vets Islamabad, said the methods used were neither humane nor effective. “These cullings are carried out by non-professionals who are not properly equipped,” he said. “Ultimately it leads to pain and suffering.” He called for proper training in euthanasia protocols as a minimum standard, arguing that even where culling is necessary it should be done correctly.
The impact of operations has also caused conflict. In I-8, resident Maha Taher described being woken one night by screaming puppies as CDA workers attempted to remove a litter she cared for. She confronted the workers, who said complaints had come from a neighbouring street. The dogs were later released. “The neighbourhood takes care of these dogs,” she said. “They are vaccinated, they have collars. Everyone knows them.”
The tension Maha describes reflects a wider legal and policy gap that has remained unaddressed for years.
Policy and the courts: Animal rights activists say such incidents have fuelled legal challenges to culling. Across Pakistan, welfare petitions have questioned the legality of indiscriminate killings under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1890, signalling a shift in how courts are interpreting the issue.
Faryal Nawaz, an animal rights activist, filed a petition in the Islamabad High Court in 2018 against the shooting and poisoning of healthy stray dogs. She argued that indiscriminate culling violated animal cruelty laws and Islamic principles on the treatment of animals. Research prepared for the case, she said, showed repeated culling was often costlier than Trap-Neuter-Vaccinate-Return programmes, in which dogs are captured, sterilised, vaccinated against rabies and released to prevent unchecked breeding and territorial replacement.
In 2020, the CDA formally adopted the ICT Stray Dog Population Control Policy, which prioritised TNVR over culling. The policy also called for vaccination drives, public awareness campaigns and stray dog facilities, including the CDA-run shelter in Tarlai.
Advocates, however, say implementation has been inconsistent and culling continues. “When one group of dogs is familiar to an area, another group will not enter,” said Ameera Adil, an environmental activist. “But when you constantly cull dogs, others occupy the same area and learn to be more aggressive over time.” She points to waste management as the real issue. “We do not have an effective waste management system, so stray animals congregate where there is trash to find food.” Without addressing that, she argues, the cycle will repeat regardless of how many culling operations are carried out.
Unresolved conflict: For now, Islamabad’s stray dogs remain at the centre of an unresolved conflict between public safety, animal welfare and uneven policy implementation. Fouzia still changes her route on evenings when packs gather near garbage piles. Maha continues to leave food and water out for the dogs her neighbourhood recognises by name and collar. Community dogs wander through streets that cannot yet decide their fate.
The CDA was contacted for comment but did not respond by the time of publication.
Semira Khan, Sarah Bangash and Zunairah Khan are students Mass Communication at the National University of Sciences and Technology.
