Phuket stray dog shelter says B5mn budget falls short as population stays above 1,000

Phuket’s government stray dog shelter says the more than B5 million budget proposed for fiscal 2027 is not enough to properly run the facility, which is caring for more than 1,000 dogs and continues to receive new arrivals each month.

Figures presented at a Phuket Stray Dog Shelter meeting with Vice Governor Teeraphong Chuaychoo last month showed the province has allocated a proposed budget of B5,001,230 for 2027 to care for 1,004 dogs. But Phuket Provincial Livestock Chief Suthat Niyomthai said the real operating cost is higher.

“Actually, it’s not enough,” Mr Suthat told The Phuket News. “To properly manage the shelter, we probably need around B7-8mn per year.”

The shelter in Mai Khao, on Thepkrasattri Rd south of Phuket International Airport, currently houses 1,056 dogs in 14 enclosures on four rai of land. Officials said the population has remained above 1,000 for months, with an average of 20 to 30 new dogs arriving each month from municipalities across Phuket.

Records presented to the committee showed 1,103 dogs at the shelter in October last year, 1,101 in November, 1,102 in December, 1,077 in January, 1,054 in February, 1,051 in March and 1,056 in April. Wichit, Ratsada and Chalong municipalities were among the areas sending the highest numbers of dogs.

During the same six-month period, 55 dogs died, 53 were adopted and 69 were transferred out for medical treatment, with 38 later returned after recovery. Officials said the figures showed pressure on the overcrowded shelter as dogs arrive faster than the population can be reduced through adoption and sterilisation.

Mr Suthat said the entire operation is run by nine staff members: one manager and eight workers. “That means each person is taking care of more than 100 dogs,” he said.

Under the current system, municipalities and local administrative organisations must certify and financially support dogs from their jurisdictions at a rate of B13 per dog per day. If all 18 local authorities, including the Phuket Provincial Administrative Organisation, paid in full, the shelter would receive roughly B5 million a year.

“But last year we only received 52%,” Mr Suthat said, adding that some local authorities paid in full while others paid only half, with the balance having to come from donations.

He said food is the shelter’s main expense. The facility uses about 300 kilogrammes of dog food a day, or around 15 sacks, with monthly consumption of 9,000-9,300kg. Each sack costs nearly B700. Mr Suthat said shortages are worst from October to December while staff wait for new government budget approvals, and that at times the shelter has had to halve food portions.

The facility is also facing infrastructure strain. Water shortages mean staff cannot clean all kennels at once and must rotate cleaning using well water after mains supplies proved insufficient. The shelter is also running out of space to bury carcasses and dispose of waste because surrounding land belongs to the Treasury Department and has not been made available despite expansion requests.

Mr Suthat said disease control has improved since last year’s canine distemper outbreak, which forced a temporary suspension of dog intake. He said all incoming dogs are quarantined for 21 days, vaccinated against rabies, distemper and other diseases, and sterilised before joining the main population. “Currently, there are no distemper problems inside the centre,” he said, while warning that unvaccinated stray dogs outside the shelter still pose a risk.

The government shelter receives weekly veterinary support from the Soi Dog Foundation, which also said rising costs are putting pressure on private animal welfare work. The foundation said it treated 24,125 dogs and cats, handled 17,593 emergency rescue calls and performed 24,239 surgeries in 2025. It currently houses 1,428 shelter animals and operates 21 mobile sterilisation units across Thailand.

Mr Suthat said many dogs entering the shelter were once owned pets later abandoned after owners moved away, returned overseas or could no longer care for them. He said the shelter’s most urgent needs are food donations, cleaning supplies, hoses, leashes and foster homes.

“The biggest problem now is no longer disease,” Mr Suthat said. “It’s the growing number of animals and the resources needed to care for them.”