Russia is already on the Dog Desk Animal Action Global Stray Dog Crisis Map Watchlist, but developments in Karachay-Cherkessia are giving us new reasons to look closely at what is happening there. Regional legislation has changed, emergency powers have been introduced and authorities can reportedly now capture street dogs even when they have previously been sterilised and tagged.
According to reporting by Caucasian Knot, amendments adopted in Karachay-Cherkessia introduced provisions covering unmotivated aggressiveness, temporary holding facilities and emergency situations. This was followed by an emergency order in August after authorities reported an increase in incidents involving unowned animals. The order reportedly permits the capture of all unowned dogs during the emergency period, including animals which have already been sterilised and permanently identified.
That is an important shift. Sterilisation, identification and return are supposed to provide a means of managing a street-dog population without continually removing the same animals. A tagged dog has already been through that system. If those dogs can now be collected again, there needs to be a clear record showing where they are taken and what happens to them afterwards.
Those questions have become more urgent following reports that piles of dead dogs, including puppies, were discovered on the outskirts of Cherkessk. Animal advocates have alleged that the emergency arrangements are being used to facilitate large-scale killing and have raised concerns about the assessment of captured dogs, the temporary facilities being used and the level of independent oversight. Complaints have reportedly been submitted to Russian prosecutorial, investigative and auditing authorities.
The allegations surrounding the deaths still need to be independently established. The discovery of dead dogs does not tell us how every animal died or demonstrate on its own that an officially sanctioned mass killing programme is taking place. What we can establish is that the framework governing street dogs in the region has changed and that previously sterilised and identified animals can now be brought back into the capture system.
There is also public money involved. Caucasian Knot reports that a state contract worth 10 million rubles was awarded in February 2026 for the capture and handling of stray animals in Karachay-Cherkessia. Animal advocates have questioned aspects of the procurement and expenditure and have asked Russia’s Accounts Chamber to investigate. Those concerns need to be tested against official records, but they add another reason why the fate of each captured dog should be traceable.
For our Global Stray Dog Crisis Map, Russia remains on the Watchlist. The current evidence comes from one region of a vast country and is not enough for us to classify Russia as Crisis. It is, however, enough to strengthen our concerns and establish what we need to watch next.
We need to know how many dogs have been captured under the emergency arrangements, how many were already sterilised and tagged, where they were taken and what outcomes were recorded. If evidence emerges of systematic killing following capture, significant deaths within the holding system or similar policies spreading into other regions, we will reassess Russia’s position on the map.
This is why numbers and traceability are important. A government can publish how many dogs it has collected and a contractor can record how many capture operations it has completed, but neither figure tells us what ultimately happened to the animals.
Once a dog is taken from the street, the record should follow it.
Russia remains Watchlist. We are now watching what happens after capture.