“I will never give up on my pets. They are my own children,” an owner of two cats told Jusoor Post when asked about the probability of abandoning them amid the skyrocketing inflation crippling Egypt’s economy. 

As the economic crisis in Egypt continues to grow, many pet owners are giving up on their animals due to their inability to bear the extra financial burdens. Some owners are trying to be very cautious to secure a new home or shelter for their pets before bidding them farewell, while many others are just abandoning their pets in the streets to face their own destiny with no help. 

Jusoor Post talked with Mona Khalil, chairperson of the Egyptian Society for Mercy to Animals (ESMA), about how Egyptians are sacrificing their pets in the face of the ongoing inflation. 

“The number of deserted pets is mounting insanely,” she said, adding, “Previously, people were making up stories for giving up on them, like leaving the country, but now they say it frankly: ‘We do not have the financial capacity to look after an animal.’”

Khalil stressed that pet owners contact EMSA to take their pets or just abandon them in the street, leaving ESMA no option but to take them. 

According to Khalil, therapeutic food and medications for animals with chronic diseases such as diabetes are rarely available due to the unavailability of hard currency and the restrictions imposed on importing. 

“Even when the imported products are found, their prices are four times higher than before,” she said, adding, “The local alternatives do more harm than good. Some animals have been suffering from renal and hepatic failure after consuming local dry food, and some have even passed away.”  

She noted that although there are few high-quality local dry food brands, some animals, especially older ones, may still face health problems when switching to another brand. 

“We are currently facing a huge problem. Donations and funds are almost non-existent, and we are depending only on ourselves, which has caused us to be indebted to some suppliers who decided to stop dealing with us,” Khalil sadly told Jusoor Post.  

Moreover, some veterinary clinics are no longer accepting cases from ESMA, even though there are many pending surgeries. 

“To sum it up, the situation can be described as catastrophic,” Khalil said. 

Looking on the bright side, Jusoor Post talked with an Egyptian pet owner in his thirties, who preferred not to have his name mentioned, who has two cats and radically refuses to give up on them. 

“I am struggling with my finances, but how can I let go of my pets? They are family,” he said. 

Although one of his cats is suffering from chronic kidney failure, he told Jusoor Post that he is trying his best to secure its therapeutic food, the price of which has reached EGP 2,000 (about $40) for two kilograms. 

“I contacted the supplier days ago to find out that renal dry food is not available in Egypt,” he said, adding that “the absence of therapeutic food may cause complications to the cat, but I am following up with its veterinarian, who recommended to strictly follow a therapeutic diet until the dry food is available.”

He added that his other cat is sterilized and needs a certain kind of dry food that is smuggled from Saudi Arabia and costs EGP 6,500 for 10 kilograms. 

“I will never abandon them no matter what,” he passionately told Jusoor Post, adding, “They are souls, and I am responsible for feeding and grooming them.”