Regarding my South Africa trip I have to say that I never saw any animal cruelty at all. In Cape Town I saw a few dogs, mainly when I visited the Shanti towns but even here they were all looking well with good coats. Only saw a couple of cats around the hotel. Went to a Cheetah sanctuary which was very special!!
We went to Sabi Sabi Game reserve within the Kruger National Park. It has no fences so the animals come and go as they wish.
We saw all the major animals there, apart from Cheetah so it was great to see them at the sanctuary. They rear them to help breed their numbers up. They use them to go round schools and educate people about them etc. This was down near Cape Town in a place called Stellenbosch, part of the wine growing area. The sanctuary is part of a winery tourist place called Spiers.
Mark & Carol April 2008
Eqypt www.ace-eqypt.org.uk
Animal Care in Eqypt.
Please see www.ace-eqypt.org.uk and support the fantastic work of this worthwhile charity.
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Meet Kim the Animal Care in Egypt centre manager in Luxor and find out about a typical day at Animal Care in Egypt. |
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Veterinary success at Animal Care in Egypt for the working animals of Egypt. |
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How Animal Care in Egypt is making giant leaps in stopping the practice of firing. |
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Our care of the animals is reducing the incidence of Bilharzia in humans. |
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Fitting the correct tack is so important. |
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Rehoming the abandoned and unwanted animals of Luxor. |
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Animal Care in Egypt and the care of dogs in Luxor. |
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Education is the way forward. |
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Donkey with an ulcer from a badly fitting harness. |
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This donkey has a nasty sore on its back but it was the string embedded into the ankle that was most worrying. |
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A donkey with an all too familiar pressure sore from over work. |
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This is beyond belief. The highs and lows of a day at Animal Care in Egypt. |
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A donkey rushed to Animal Care in Egypt after an accident with a car. An Animal Care in Egypt success story. |
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Tourists4animals supports the work of Animal Care in Eqypt. If you are visiting Eqypt please visit and support ACE in Luxor and buy and wear a TShirt from this site supporting our belief that “the future of tourism is kindness to your animals.”
The picture on the right shows the veterinary centre within ACE on a typical morning and the excitement when new "second hand" tack arrives from England. |
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On the left a recent birth from a mother that had been staying with us to ensure everything went okay and on the right a camel arrives for a check up. |
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The sand pit is being put to good use here and allows the horse to cool down before having a shower. |
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www.thebrooke.org
‘Healthy working animals for the world’s poorest communities’
Both charities can be visited whilst you are on holiday.
You can also help by donating or getting involved in fund raising.
www.ace-eqypt.org.uk
Julie@ace-eqypt.org.uk
Swimming with Dolphins
Of course this is a life time ambition for many people. However, before you hand over your cash for the priviledge consider the implications for the dolphins themselves.
Most of these dolphins will have been captured from the wild. They would have experienced a life of freedom and will now be living in captivity. During the capture they will have experienced stress and may have been injured during transit. Some will die.
Their removal will have impacted on the breeding of future generations and possibly resulted in the death of young if a mother has been captured and the babies left behind.
Source Marine Connection www.marineconnection.org
These dolphins are trained with food used as a reward method. If they do not perform their food quota is removed until they do.
The “smile” on a dolphins face is a genetic feature. Even dead dolphins “smile”
Dolphins in captivity have a shorter life expectancy and suffer from many stress related diseases and illnesses.
Entrepreneurs have quickly seen the huge money making opportunity in encouraging tourists to swim with captive dolphins. Do not visit Sharms “Swim with Dolphin” facilities.
Instead these beautiful creatures can be seen in their natural and wild environment, where they belong, free and wild in the Red Sea .
For further information please visit www.marineconnection.org
Africa
"Whilst traveling by 4x4 through Zimbabwe, Zambia, Malawi and Tanzania during 2006, it struck me as to how poor the local people are in all of these southern African countries. You get the usual contrasts between the larger towns and the rural villages with the wealthier living in the towns and the subsistence farmers barely eking out a living in the outer lying communities. And yet they all have dogs - townies and farmers alike. You can expect to see a dog which looks like a breed unto itself. They all look the same, mostly in varying shades of tan and sometimes black. All the female dogs I saw were either pregnant or already had pups. Their general health varied from emaciated to thin. I recall seeing just one healthy looking specimen during the entire three months. There doesn't seem to be much interaction between people and their "pets", and the dogs seem to just lie around the front of the huts when they're not scavenging for food.
Strangely enough, I only saw one kitten, crying outside a mud hut, terribly thin and flea ridden. The lack of cats in general reminded me of once being told by a local South African that they eat them - this could well explain their absence."
Jackie Cranke Diary extract from travels in 2006.
The Brooke Equine Charity is doing a fantastic job in Africa as well as in other countries.
There are working on a welfare programme in Ethiopia and Kenya to provide long term relief to milions of horses, donkeys and mules. These animals endure a daily struggle as they valiantly try to support the livelihoods of some of the poorest communities in Africa. The people in these regions rely almost entirely on these animals for their transport needs. They plough the land, drag carts laden with produce to markets and also work as full time taxis.
The Brooke in Ethiopia aims to help over a million equines in the next few years. They will equip animal owners, government vets, farriers, saddlers and animal health workers with the skills needed to care for these animals.
This means not only improving welfare for millions of animals but it also protects the livelihoods of the people who so desperately rely on them.
Poor welfare often arises from lack of knowledge on how to care for their animals. Fundamental to the aims of many charities is education.
Please support charities such as the Brooke in their excellent work.