Family fundraises for poodles badly hurt in Iranian missile attack

Surgery for Tsili and Gili expected to cost tens of thousands of shekels, and owner Danielle Haroush ‘can barely make ends meet,’ says sister

By Sue Surkes

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16 March 2026, 8:03 pm

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Sue Surkes is The Times of Israel's environment reporter

The owner of two poodles seriously injured in an Iranian missile attack on Saturday is appealing for donations to help with major surgery costs, which are not covered by the state.

Danielle Haroush, 33, was working at her job as a store assistant in the southern resort town of Eilat over the weekend, while her cousin, Ben Avital, was looking after the dogs, named Tsili and Gili.

When sirens went off warning of an incoming missile, Avital rushed home with the dogs, but was unable to make it to the bomb shelter in time.

A parking lot next to his home was one of three sites hit by submunitions from a cluster bomb missile.

Avital, who sustained two broken ankles and missile fragments between his eyes and was still hospitalized on Monday, managed to pull Tsili, the female dog, from the rubble. Tsili tore a ligament in her leg and is already recovering at home from surgery, according to Haroush’s sister, Inbal Habari.

Tsili and Gili before they were injured in an Iranian missile attack on the southern city of Eilat on March 14, 2026. (Courtesy)

Gili, the male, had to be extracted from deeper under the rubble. He broke both back legs and his pelvis and will undergo surgery once he has recovered from the effects of the shockwaves.

“We understand that Gili’s recovery will be long and that Danielle won’t be able to work for a while,” Habari told The Times of Israel, explaining that the dog would have to be kept immobile for recovery to take place.

While the veterinary surgeon has agreed to treat both dogs without payment at this stage, there will be a bill, which Habari expects to run into tens of thousands of shekels.

The dogs are not covered by insurance, and if they were, they would not have been covered for war-related damage, Habari said. There was no provision for state support.

On Sunday night, the family posted a crowdfunding appeal (in Hebrew).

“Danielle can hardly make ends meet. The dogs are her life. None of this was expected,” Habari said.

Danielle Haroush with Tsili and Gili. (Courtesy)

Yasmin Sacks Fridman, a Knesset member for Yesh Atid and an animal rights campaigner, said she had written to the Finance Ministry and the Tax Authority, urging them to find a way to compensate pet owners for injuries sustained during war.