Animal rights activists have secured an inspection of a dog shelter in Derbent.

In March 2023, Dagestan Deputy Prime Minister Nariman Abdulmutalibov ordered the completion of a shelter for homeless animals in Derbent by summer. Commenters on the VKontakte public page criticized the contractor for having been building the shelter for two years, despite the project's high cost. In March 2024, Dagestan Head Sergey Melikov instructed his subordinates to resolve the issue of building shelters for homeless animals by May 2025, as the problem, according to him, has been a long-standing issue in the republic.

An inspection was conducted at the Derbent shelter for stray animals following citizen complaints. The Regional Control Center received complaints from local animal rights activists about the poor conditions of dogs, the Dagestan Center for Control reported today on its Telegram channel.

Specialists from the Dagestan Center for Control passed the complaint on to the city administration. Derbent Deputy Mayor Agamirza Agamirzoev visited the site and inspected the enclosures, medical room, and food facilities.

According to the shelter's director, Farid Alkhasov, the facility has dry food and by-products, and the medical room is stocked with vaccination, castration, and sterilization medications.

Agamirzoev, in turn, warned the shelter's management to clean the enclosures regularly and replace the dry hay bedding daily. He also ordered the installation of kennels to keep the dogs warm. "If repairs are necessary, appropriate proposals should be prepared, taking into account all requirements and regulations, for the subsequent allocation of funds," the deputy mayor noted.

Agamirza Agamirzoev also announced that the facility's financial and economic activities will be audited soon.

"Caucasian Knot" also reported that in mid-September 2025, Dagestan law enforcement agencies opened a criminal case against animal rights activist Irina Karpova following a complaint from a man who fatally ran over four puppies with his car in Makhachkala, as she had published the driver's full name, photo, and phone number. Later, Irina Karpova's criminal case was dismissed at the initiative of the prosecutor's office. Karpova believed that the publicity surrounding the situation and her appeal to the head of Dagestan influenced this decision.