MOSCOW, February 17 (RIA Novosti) - Authorities in Moscow are planning to open 12 animal shelters with space for 22,400 cats and dogs in the near future, a city government official said on Tuesday.
"We have adopted a regulation on counting, catching and sterilizing stray animals. Under it, Moscow will build a network of animal shelters in eight administrative districts with 22,400 places," said Andrei Tsybin, head of the city's housing and public utilities department.
As of November 2008, there were an estimated 30,000 stray cats and dogs in Moscow. "Now around 5,000 animals have been sent to shelters," Tsybin said.
Every year the number of strays in Moscow increases by 2,000-5,000 animals.
