New Vet Sara Joins Aanifeira Veterinary Team

We are delighted to announce that Sara Latourrette Alves has joined the Aanifeira veterinary team starting work this month.

Sara obtained her degree in veterinary science at the Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas Abel Salazar (ICBAS) in Porto before going on to do an Erasmus Student Exchange programme at the Università di Bologna Facoltà di Medicina Veterinaria.   She completed her Masters Degree in Small & Companion Animals obtaining a final average of 18.

She also participated in a three month internship (Sept – Dec 2011) at the University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine, U.S.A., carrying out extracurricular activites in a wide area of veterinary science i.e.:  soft tissue surgery, animal health, opthalmology, oncology, orthopedics for small animals, anesthesia, etc.

Prior to her joining Aanifeira, Sara worked at a veterinary clinic in the Porto area where she worked with the Animais de Rua project in spay/neutering of street animals in Porto.

Sara joins Claudia at the Aanifeira veterinary clinic to continue our work in saving animals and we would like to extend a big welcome to her in jorning our team!

Saving Four Lives at Once

My work often takes me into the Douro valley, east of Porto, where Port wine is made and whilst on my way home last week, driving through the fairly remote mountain region, I spotted a small cream coloured dog wandering aimlessly along the side of the road and then walking straight into the path of three huge oncoming trucks.  I jumped out of the car and held my hand high for the first truck driver to stop and fortunately he did!  Then came the quick decision that I had to pick up this animal otherwise it would have meant a sure death.  As she appeared a little nervous and hesitant at first, it took a few minutes to coax her close to me until I could finally scoop her up in my arms before any more traffic appeared.

What I found in my arms was a beautiful little long-haired, lactating, podenga who had quite obviously recently given birth to pups.  My heart went out to her as I am a huge fan of podengos (read here for more on the Portuguese podengo) and I wondered if I had made the right decision to pick her up but with the fact that she appeared lost and not within her own territory lead me to believe that her pups had met with some misfortune and that she had been discarded!  I walked over to a small house not far from where she was and managed to call the house owner who said that he hadn’t seen her before and that this sadly was commonplace in this area where he lived.  We both sadly lamented the fact that this is a growing problem in Portugal and so I took the decision to rescue this little dog and bring to Porto with me in my car.

From the moment I put her in the car on the front seat beside me where I could talk to her and stroke her head, she warmed to me immediately and proved to have a quite character.  She immediately decided that she would much prefer to travel down with her two front paws parked on the dashboard in front of her and the rest of her little body standing on the seat!  So for the next hour and half or so I had the pleasure of her company staring out at the road ahead through the front window observing all going on around us.

It was quite obvious that this little dog was fretting and missing her pups so I quickly drove straight to Aanifeira for her to be checked out.  On my arrival I could hardly believe the news when Paulo told me that Aanifeira member, Ana Rita, had come in just that morning with three tiny puppies, still with their eyes closed, that she had found in the trash can near her home that previous night and that she was desperately trying to find a surrogate mother!  It seemed like all our prayers had been answered to save four lives at one go!  We immediately contacted Ana Rita and the following day she brought in the puppies to try to see if they would be accepted.  To our delight, after some perseverance, our little podenga (now baptized Bia) adopted her new family and we are happy to report that mother and pups are doing just fine!

Joana Seeks New Horizons

We were very sorry to see our veterinarian Joana Rolo de Sousa leave Aanifeira at the end of last month when her one year professional internship came to a close.

Joana joined Aanifeira in April of 2011 (read more here) with an enviable background of experience that she gained both in Portugal and in the U.S.A.  She quickly became part of the Aanifeira team proving herself an extremely responsible veterinarian with all those who came in contact with her.

Her enthusiasm, perseverance and speed with which she carried out her work was contagious and many a time I found myself running after her in the clinic trying to catch a word with her, whilst she treated this and that as well as giving instructions to our vet interns to follow up with medications etc.!

We have been very used to having her around with her good spirits and huge empathy for people and animals and Joana, WE WILL MISS YOU, and wish every success with your future.   Thank you for sharing your time with us at Aanifeira, we and all our animals appreciate it!

Plight of Aanifeira Rescue Dog Brought to Life in New Novel by Barbara Zach-Miller

We are sure that everyone will remember the story of dear Lady May, the small elderly dog that was rescued from a pile of rubbish and restored back to life at Aanifeira and subsequently adopted by a wonderful family in Switzerland.   Aanifeira is very proud to announce that author Barbara Zach-Miller has just published her new novel  “Lady May: Memories of an Old Dog” where she tells the story of Lady May’s rescue and second chance at a new life in another country.

PRESS RELEASE

New novel reveals the tragedy and astounding potential of abused dogs

“Lady May: Memories of an Old Dog” by Barbara Zach-Miller introduces readers to Lady May, a homeless dog that suffered horrific abuse before finding a loving home

PLAGNE, Switzerland – “Lady May: Memories of an Old Dog” (ISBN 1470092131) by Barbara Zach-Miller, tells the story of a small, gentle dog who – at the point of death – is miraculously rescued and given a second chance at life.

Portugal, a stormy day in March: the hissing wind makes an unsuspecting driver stop by a rubbish dump where she finds a seemingly lifeless bundle of fur – an old dog, still breathing! At a nearby animal shelter, the dog – Lady May, as she is later named – is given emergency treatment, and Fate finally smiles on her. For the first time in her long life, she has a basket in a warm room, is given decent food and makes friends. Against all odds, there is even a family abroad that want to adopt her. But will she regain her health and her will to live?

“The spirit of the book strikes a balance between happiness and sadness, kindness and cruelty, hope and despair,” says Zach-Miller. “It is a fantastical, magical, yet real story in which readers enter into a canine world to experience all the hardships and small joys that typify the life of a homeless dog.” The book evokes tears of pity and laughter, as Lady May and her eccentric new dog companions tell the vivid tales of their lives and encounter strange and wonderful adventures.

Told in alternating voices of a narrator and Lady May, the book reveals the inner dialogue of the dog, sharing her heartbreaking and hopeful reactions to a world that had no place for her. Written to entertain and inspire an abiding sense of compassion for abused animals, the book is based on Zach-Miller’s own experiences as an animal advocate.

“Lady May: Memories of an Old Dog” is available for sale online at Amazon.com through this link Lady May.

About the Author:

Barbara Zach-Miller is a writer and professional translator. She enjoys 19th century literature, art and gardening, but her greatest passion is the protection of animals. She lives with her husband and their five dogs in a small village in the French-speaking part of Switzerland. This is her first book.

MEDIA CONTACT:

Barbara Zach-Miller

Phone:             +41 (0)32 358 15 01

E-mail:              barbarazm@datacomm.ch

REVIEW COPIES AND INTERVIEWS ARE AVAILABLE

Update on Dog Pound Rescue Dog, Shine

Everyone will remember Shine who was rescued from the local dog pound with nine puppies in tow by Victor (Aanifeira’s  President) when he dropped past there and saw her in a miserable state (click here to see story), well just look at her today!

We put Shine up on The Humane Society’s Spayday Campaign along with her puppies where she was spayed however she suffered a setback when it was discovered that she had vaginal cancer but our vets perservered with her chemotherapy treatment and she pulled through fantastically.

Today Shine, now Flo, lives in Belgium and was recently adopted by our volunteer Belgian vet Eva Claeye and Eva very kindly sent us some new photos of her romping on the beach.

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Breaking the Puppy Trade – Time to Act

Most of us have heard something at some stage or another about the puppy mills or factory farmed dogs that exist in many countries around the world.   For many unsuspecting animal lovers this seems unthinkable that animals are kept in such cruel conditions to supply the demand for puppies, yet still they are totally mislead into buying an animal from a disreputable breeder or farmer.

Puppy mill or factory farmed dogs is mass breeding of dogs and they live in horrific, filthy conditions without any form of veterinary aid sometimes in small cages stacked on top of one another or others in large dirt pens surrounded by electric fencing wire to stop them from escaping.  All of these are conveniently hidden from the public eye.

There can be anything from 40 to 700 animals that face a lifetime of cruelties such as:-

• Dark cells without access to daylight
• Painful paws from walking on wire floor cages
• Inadequate food or water
• Constant breeding throughout their lives
• A loud wall of noise from other dogs barking around them
• Coats matted from faeces and stained with urine
• Ear infections and ear mite infestations
• Painful gum and dental disease
• Eye problems and/or blindness
• Continual confinement
• Deprivation of any social, psychological and basic needs

The final sad result being that these creatures shy away from any human touch, pace back and forth or turn in circles and some even go insane.   When they are no longer productive they are then killed.

The façade that pet shops and internet sites puts out when advertising cute fluffy puppies coming from a loving environment to the unsuspecting public, is incredibly misleading and deceptive and in the long run, very sadly, many people and organizations profit from this extreme cruelty.

What is frightening from all of this is the fact that these puppies end up having behavioral and health problems and that owners are forced to spend even more money on an animal.  Certainly in some cases, if the animal does not fit in due to a behavioral problem or becomes too expensive to treat then it are just abandoned and it is here that we have a vicious cycle occurring with many animals ending up on the streets!

What is even worse is that many of these rescued animals have to be sadly put down as they are unable to cope with a normal life.

How can we help stop these horrors?   We all need to join together to make a difference:-

1. Warn relatives, friends and people in general to beware of buying puppies from pet shops or internet sites.  They are not tested for diseases or given any health check and once home in a different environment can often become ill and die.   They also often claim that the animals come from a home environment which can be totally untrue.
2. If you want to adopt an animal, choose a cross-breed and visit your local shelter to see what they have available.  At Aanifeira for example, it is quite rare that we rescue a pure bred dog but we do have an array of beautiful mixed-breeds that would eat your heart out.  They all would make wonderful pets and just need an opportunity to have a home.
3. Shelters such as Aanifeira with a no-kill policy work hard to save all animals and have recently begun rescuing litters of puppies from the local pound in an attempt to ensure that these youngsters are given an opportunity in life to have a responsible owner.  This again is a further option for those looking for a puppy.
4. If you are looking for a special breed of dog to adopt and prefer to go through a registered breeder then check that the breeder is in fact officially registered and is on the breeders’ register.  Look into the breeder’s background and visit the premises before making a decision.  Many countries have different forms of regulating breeders and this information is readily available to the public.
5. If you are looking for a special type of breed, there are those rescue shelters that specialize in saving one type of breed only and they do a wonderful job in taking these animals in.  For example, in the U.S. there is the non-profit educational organization called GREY2K USA dedicated to the welfare of greyhound dogs.  It is totally run by volunteers and this month they have a campaign running as ‘Adopt a Greyhound Month.
6. Another extra advantage of taking a dog from a shelter is that you will always be able to have backup advice to ensure that you have all the information necessary for adopting a dog into a new environment.
7. The best out of all this is that you are giving a dog a home that might otherwise not have this opportunity and it will make you feel so good!

In Australia for example, they have started a campaign called ‘Oscar’s Law’ (named after a dog that was rescued from a puppy factory in central Victoria and which had suffered extreme neglect) which enables people to stand up and tell the Government that  ”We do not want companion animals factory farmed anymore” and “We no longer want the pet industry to mislead us about what is acceptable for our animals”.

For those who have not seen the living conditions of a puppy mill or of how they come out from these horrific conditions, then check out these two videos below.  The first is from Oscar’s Law and the second is from Pets Haven who rescued two ex breeding dogs that were in such a horrific condition, they had to be euthanized due to their untreatable medical conditions.

Oscar’s Law

Take the step and think before purchasing a puppy from a pet shop or the internet and in this way we will help block this despicable trade and stop the suffering.

Today is ‘World Stray Animals Day’

Did you know that April 4th is the World Stray Animal Day to draw attention to the 600.000.000 stray animals worldwide?

This special day was started in 2010 when one hundred Dutch stray animal organizations got together for the first time ever at the first Dutch National Stray Animals Conference.  It was the brainchild of a Dutch marketing guru that a special day be held for stray animals worldwide.

We are now wondering why April 4th was chosen and it is for three reasons:

• It is exactly half of year after October 4th which is World Animal Day
• 4/4 is easy to remember.
• There are no other special holidays or celebration days and therefore people have more time and energy to organize events.

Then we are all thinking – well what can we do to celebrate?   There is now a Stray Animals Day website http://www.worldstrayanimalsday.org which gives loads of ideas on how YOU can help:-

If you’re an individual:

• adopt a stray dog or cat
• ask your local animal shelter how you can help
• share the cause of 4/4 Stray Animals Day with everybody you know

If you’re a stray animals organization:

• organize a pack dog walk
• organize a lottery for your cause
• hold a stray adoption day
• hand a petition to the community council
• hang 4/4 posters all around your city
• organize a free spay and neuter day
• get your shelter on local TV or in the newspaper
• collect stuff to support a shelter
• organize a demonstration, fair, or market
• see what others are doing on FB pages

It is up to each of us, either as an organization or an individual to help to draw attention to this cause.   Last year in 125 countries around the world, over 2,000 people joined the cause!

  

This year Cesar Millan, the Mexican Dog Whisperer, is the Ambassador for World Stray Animals Day.  Cesar has a true gift with animals and is incredibly compassionate to strays especially after being brought up in Mexico.  He has made an excellent video drawing attention to this cause which can be viewed on this link from the World Stray Animals Day website.

http://www.strayanimalsday.org/#!video

LET’S ALL JOIN TOGETHER ON THIS IS A DAY FOR COMPASSION, CARE AND ACTION FOR STRAY ANIMALS WORLDWIDE.