In the southern Lebanese village of Kfaroue, Hussein Hamza now makes daily rounds through a shelter filled with the animals war left behind.

Dogs crowd the grounds. Chickens need feed. A camel waits among the rescued animals. Some were abandoned when families fled. Others lost their owners in Israeli airstrikes, AP News reports.

The war pushed hundreds of thousands of residents from southern Lebanon. Many left with almost no time. Pets, livestock, and stray animals remained in villages that suddenly became too dangerous to reach.

Lebanon’s war has left pets and livestock stranded in empty villages.

Animal Shelters Face A Growing Crisis

The problem stretches beyond one shelter. Animals Lebanon says families fleeing bombardment have left pets in empty homes, injured animals on streets, farm animals without care, and local wildlife at risk.

Rescue teams are trying to respond with veterinary care, transport, food, cages, medicine, and help for families trying to leave with their pets. The group says calls for help are already overwhelming available resources.

That pressure is visible across Lebanon’s rescue network. IFAW reports that local partners have rescued animals from conflict zones, reunited some pets with families, distributed pet food, and cared for animals hurt by falls, debris, shrapnel, and damaged buildings.

Many families fled so quickly they could not take their animals.

Dogs Cats And Livestock Need Food And Care

International animal welfare groups have also moved supplies into the country. FOUR PAWS says its emergency mission aims to deliver 10 tonnes of food, medical supplies, and urgent veterinary treatment to strays and shelters in Beirut and southern Lebanon.

The organization says the escalation has displaced thousands and left shelters short of food and medical care. FOUR PAWS reports that abandoned cats and dogs have been found starving among rubble, while shelters have absorbed more animals than they can reasonably handle.

For rescuers, every trip can carry risk. Some areas are still hard to access. Hamza told AP News that people asked him to bring chickens to safety after sudden evacuations, but fighting made some places unreachable.

Rescuers are feeding dogs left behind by displaced owners.

Families Return To Ruins While Animals Wait

Southern Lebanon has begun to breathe again in some places, but the return is uneven. Families are reopening businesses and clearing damaged homes, yet many still fear renewed fighting, Reuters reports.

That uncertainty leaves animals in limbo. Some may go home. Some may need new families. Others will keep depending on rescuers who are already stretched thin.

The war has also touched Lebanon’s broader animal and conservation world. Near Tyre, marine activist Mona Khalil, known for decades of work protecting nesting sea turtles, died after an Israeli strike wounded her at her home, The Guardian reports.

In Kfaroue, Hamza is waiting for owners to return where they can. Until then, the shelter remains a holding place for animals caught in a human war, dependent on the people still willing to come back for them.