IS DUBAI PET FRIENDLY?

With Dubai’s residential property market booming every year over the previous one, a lot of expats make Dubai their home. Investors, businessmen, influencers and many other expats move in from different regions of the world to settle down. When people from different cultures and countries move to another, there naturally is a culture shock that everyone experiences.

Understanding how to own pets is very important when it comes to Dubai. When an investor is in the market to find their next home, they want to know if they can have their family pet with them. Discussing owning pets in Dubai, the obvious question is; Are Dogs allowed? Being an Islamic Emirati, dogs are not considered as a domestic pet. Cats however are the go to choice of pet or even your street ‘pet’ who are loved and treated well since they are considered a sign of faith. Even though the culture only limits dogs to be used for security and hunting purposes, anyone who has been in Dubai recently has already seen people with their dogs, walking around.

How can one own a pet in Dubai?

The migration of expats mainly influenced the popularity of pets, a lot of dogs as domestic pets. But homeowners should go through a process to own pets. When it comes to cats and dogs;

• They should be registered with the municipal council, vaccinated, micro-chipped and should be wearing their registered tags on them at all times.

• Dogs should always be on a leash, only except in designated ‘off-leash’ areas.

Where can one take their pet out in Dubai?

People can take their pets on walks as long as they are leashed, there are a number of pet, or rather dog-designated parks in Dubai. There, they can be taken off the leash and allowed to play.

Even though most of the commercial spaces, almost every mall, cafes, restaurants and public transport is not pet friendly, few places specially made for a pet-friendly atmosphere have surfaced in the recent years.

Some of the beaches are designated pet-friendly beaches where pet-owners can take their pet for a day at the beach, but most beaches aren’t.

Dubai has pet-friendly residential communities.

Even though pets are not allowed to go off-leash or run about in most of the public areas, Dubai’s real estate industry has noticed the demand for pet-friendly lifestyles for its investors. A lot of recent residential real estate projects are with a lot of walking paths, parks, restaurants and other community elements.

With villas, and bigger spaces being offered, the following set of real estate projects in Dubai have communities that would fit families with their pets.

• The Greens: Located close to the Palm Jumeirah, almost half of this residential community’s housing is suitable for a pet friendly lifestyle.

• Palm Jumeirah: Being a world famous destination, this is one of the most sought out residential communities in Dubai. There are parks and even restaurants that are pet-friendly.

• Dubai Hills: A spacious community known for its green spread of parks, a dog park, green routes and more.

• The Springs: This residential community of lakes and green parks. It consists of villas which are a good environment to raise pets.

• Azizi Riviera: The community in the MBR city. This residential complex offers pet-friendly apartments, dog parks, and plenty of green spaces.

These are just a few examples of the latest real estate communities offering residential properties to accommodate residents with their pets. Most of the currently popular communities such as Jumeirah Lake Towers, DAMAC Hills, Jumeirah Village Circle, and JBR offer large living spaces as well as pet-friendly parks and walking paths.

Pet-friendly Beaches in Dubai.

A lot of residents and tourists alike visit the beautiful beaches in Dubai. When someone is a pet-owner, they usually would like to visit these beaches with their pets. Lucky for all the pets and their owners, Dubai has a set of pet-friendly beaches. 

• Dubai Islands: Open 24/7, dogs are allowed to swim and treat shops for pets are available.

• The Pointe, Palm Jumeirah: Pets are allowed on the beach, but leashed. No swimming for pets is allowed.

• Palm West Beach: Open on weekdays from 8:00 to 12:00 and weekends from 8:00 to 3:00. Here, dogs are to be leashed, no swimming is allowed, but there are pet-treat shops for all the visiting pets.

Other places like Al Sufouh and Jebel Ali beaches are also generally known for pets being brought. But the owners should clean after the pets, same as every public space where the pet is taken. If the beach does not indicate that it is not an off-leash beach, keep the pets on leash since not abiding the law can cost fines around AED 10, 000.

Pet Services in Dubai.

With Dubai boosting up in the residential property market, it only makes sense to accommodate the needs and wants for the pet-owners. There are a list of services that offer pet grooming, veterinary care, transportation, and also pet hotels!

How to bring pets into Dubai.

Pet owners will have to register with the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment. Here pet owners can understand the rules and regulations, limitations, prohibited pets or breeds and everything a pet owner has to know about having a pet in Dubai.

In conclusion to the subject discussed in the article, Dubai offers a range of real estate investments that looks very practical to the residential investors who are planning to move into Dubai with their pets.