Lahore conference calls for scientific dog management to improve public safety

A major conference on responsible dog population management was held in Lahore on 16 April 2026 at the Head Office of Alkhidmat Foundation Pakistan, bringing together community leaders, lawyers, rescue groups, and animal welfare organisations to discuss a long-term answer to Punjab’s growing stray dog problem.

The meeting made one point clear: this issue is not only about animal welfare, it is about public safety. Across Punjab, residents continue to face dog bite incidents, fear in streets and neighbourhoods, and growing concern for children who walk to school, play outside, or move through public spaces every day. Participants said these dangers will continue unless the province adopts methods based on science instead of temporary reactions.

Among those present were Ameer Jamaat-e-Islami Lahore Advocate Zia Uddin Ansari, President Public Aid Committee Qaiser Sharif, Secretary Public Aid Committee Shahid Naveed, and Altamush Saeed, Founder of the Alkhidmat Animal Rights Club and Founding Managing Partner of Environmental and Animal Rights Consultants Pakistan.

Representatives of several welfare organisations also attended, including CDRS Benji Animal Welfare Project, Pakistan Animal Rights Advocacy Group, Todd’s Welfare Society, Ruffles Animal Welfare Registry, Stormsheart Rescue, and Give Us Life Animal Welfare. The Punjab Police Animal Rescue Center was represented by Dr. Bilal, while Barrister Maqsooma Bokhari attended on behalf of the Farkhanda and Shohrat Bokhari Welfare Organization. Independent activists also took part in the discussions.

Participants strongly supported the Trap-Neuter-Vaccinate-Return (TNVR) model as the most practical and responsible way forward. They said years of culling campaigns have failed to solve the problem. Dogs removed from one area are often replaced by others entering the same territory in search of food and shelter, meaning the cycle starts again. Bite incidents continue, populations recover, and public money is spent repeatedly without lasting results.

By contrast, TNVR deals with the root cause. Sterilisation gradually reduces future births, while vaccination lowers the threat of rabies and improves public health. Once a stable dog population in an area has been sterilised and vaccinated, the number of animals begins to decline over time. This also reduces the arrival of new, unmanaged dogs into the same locations.

Speakers said this matters most for children, who are often the most exposed to street dog risks. Unless numbers are brought under control through organised sterilisation and vaccination, the same danger will remain in roads, parks, empty plots, and neighbourhood streets. They argued that population control is a technical issue and must be handled through planning, veterinary work, and sustained implementation.

The conference also noted that TNVR is already recognised under the Punjab Animal Birth Control Policy 2021, developed after the Lahore High Court proceedings in Hamza Khan v Government of Punjab. Participants further referred to Eiraj Hassan v Government of Punjab, in which a stay order was granted against illegal dog culling in 2025, reinforcing the need for lawful and humane alternatives.

Those attending said Punjab now needs coordinated action from local authorities, municipal bodies, veterinary departments, and civil society. Without province-wide implementation, isolated efforts will not be enough.

The meeting concluded with a collective call for sterilisation and vaccination programmes across Punjab so that communities can become safer, disease risks can be reduced, and families—especially children—can move freely without fear.

For many participants, the Lahore conference was more than a discussion. It was a sign that public policy on this issue may finally be moving away from failed old methods and toward solutions that actually work.