SOS Charity by Tania Coates August 2008 

Last year we decided to drive down to Spain in our camper van, taking our dog with us, to celebrate my brother’s wedding. Just outside Madrid we stopped for petrol. It was very, very hot and lying on the side of a motorway we found a dog. Apparently he had been there for 3 days, with no food or water. He had no shelter and was just waiting for his owners to come back. A local said a family had driven past and just thrown him out. We were told that this happens all the time in Spain and especially during the holiday season.

He was terribly thin, his ribs showing and very timid. He was scared when we approached him and we think he was previously kicked or beaten. He cowers when you go to stroke him and is frightened of loud noises. If we had left him I doubt he would have survived. Of course we couldn’t leave him and we picked him up.

We called him “Pedro”. At first he wouldn’t eat and was very distressed. He didn’t know what to do with normal dog food. He had terrible diarrhea too. However, after a few days he started to eat and seemed much happier.

Of course our holiday was coming to an end and we had to decide what to do with our new friend. Leaving Pedro there really wasn’t an option for us. He would have either got run over or ended up being put down at the dog pound. We went searching for a shelter that could help us.

This is when we heard about SOS [Spay Our Strays] near Malaga. They said Pedro could stay with them for 6 months whilst he got his pet passport and that they would also bring him back to the UK for us as they were bringing other dogs back for rehoming. We couldn’t believe our luck.

Pedro stayed with us in our hotel for a few days. We wanted to spend time with him encouraging him to eat and feel more confident around us. He was so lovely and really started to come out of his shell during this time.

We dropped him off at the shelter before we left which was very upsetting for us as we were so attached to him already. However, I knew this was the only option [other than quarantine] and in 6 months he would have a lovely life back with us in the UK.

I am so grateful to SOS for agreeing to look after him, especially when they have so many animals to care for. They currently have over 200 animals to care for.

They do a fabulous job. It is very difficult for them at the moment as it is so hot out there so water is scarce. Ticks, fleas, mosquitoes and sand flies are also a problem. The volunteers that give their time to SOS are so dedicated to helping these animals find new homes. However, they get no support from the Spanish government. I was also shocked to hear that many of the dumped dogs are left by English people who no longer want them. The shelter had two Alsatians dumped at the gates recently. The English couple that left them fled so quickly they didn’t even leave a donation. It seems to me that the English residents are setting a really bad example to the Spanish and leaving SOS to deal with their problems.

Even though SOS are under so much pressure, they still make it essential for any dog in their care to be neutered, vaccinated and micro chipped. Of course this is another huge financial cost for them but essential for the health and welfare of the animals for the future.

Pedro will be getting the ferry across in December and all being well should be with us for Christmas. We are so excited about getting him home. We are also bringing some of the other dogs back on the pet passport scheme, especially those that have been at the shelter for a long time. They need to find kind and loving homes and we are going to help them do so.

SOS desperately need our help and support. Tania is trying to raise funds and taking donations of food, old baskets, toys, bowls and leads over to Spain. If you have anything you can donate please contact Tania on taniacoates@mac.com 07939 025485

If you are interested in supporting SOS or even offering a loving home to one of their dogs or cats please see their website www.sos-animals.org

Friends or Food?

At 7am on Saturday morning I drove to Birmingham and then voluntarily spent the day at Crufts! “Are you mad” I hear you cry!!!

I spent the day supporting Animals Asia by getting signatures on a petition and raising funds to try and stop the awful slaughtering of dogs and cats for food in China.

There was a video playing on the stand and the noises of those poor animals being tortured are going to haunt me for a long time. I couldn’t bear to look at the images, just the sounds turned my stomach.

Unfortunately it is getting worse as the Chinese economy strengthens and people have more money. Affluent Chinese businessmen believe that eating dog and cat is good for virility as well as being a delicious delicacy. They also believe that the more the animal suffers whilst it is being killed the better it tastes.

Animals Asia are doing a great job with educating and trying to get the government to stop this trade. They rescued a dog from a gruesome fate and “Eddie” now visits schools and hospitals trying to educate people on the benefits of pet ownership.

If any of you can SPARE £10/20.00 please can you send a cheque payable to Animals Asia Foundation to me at 91 Friday Hill West, London E4 6JJ.
I will send it on to help stop this terrible cruelty going on much longer.
Currently 50,000 dogs and cats are slaughtered every day

  
Caged dogs await their fate           Unloaded outside a market in China

It is estimated that up to 10 million dogs are slaughtered every year in China, many deliberately slowly and cruelly in the belief that "torture equals taste", whilst all suffer the stress and pain of being farmed in concentrated numbers before being killed in a variety of ways which rarely ensures a quick and humane death.