KUWAIT, April 24 (KUNA) -- Families visiting Kuwait's Friday market might look at the cute kittens and puppies found in its narrow crowded lanes, while others will notice stranger species uncommon to the household. This mix and match warrants care by both pet owners and state authorities.
One of these animals, a very large working dog, Saint Bernard, is on display for onlookers and potential buyers.
The man keeping the animal, Abu Abdulaziz, is keeping the caged animal - which could cost anywhere between KD 300-2,000 under the Kuwaiti market - in considerably good conditions, and his stall is one of the most eye-catching in the large outdoor, severely polluted market.
Abu Abdulaziz claims that he has veterinarians at hand in cases of emergency, and that he not only sells pets he once owned but pets owned by others, on a commission basis. "I only sell healthy pets," he also stressed.
Meanwhile, next door, there is commotion in another stall. After first-hand investigation it turns out Kuwait's Environment Public Authority have paid the market a visit.
The out-of-the-blue inspection resulted in the team confiscating endangered animals they had stumbled across.
Pointing to the stall in question, Mahmoud Al-Khabaz, head of the monitoring section of the department for preserving biodiversity said; "these animals and birds confiscated are endangered species according to UN CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species) of which Kuwait is a signatory state." The international agreement between governments aims to ensure that international trade in specimens of wild animals and plants does not threaten their existence.
"On a domestic level, we are also planning to implement EPA resolution 93/2003 - which entered into force in 2005, and is related to clamping down on the trade of endangered species." All of the endangered species found are being sent to the Public Zoo, he added.
"In case of an error, (the animal being not of an endangered species), we give the animal back to its owner," he pointed out.
All in all, despite the apparent shabby state of affairs at the flea market, a closer inspection rather suggests it is not all doom and gloom for our furry friends displayed in cages, or for other endangered species, due to public awareness and responsible state authorities fulfilling their duties. - Kuna