Posted on June 21, 2017 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
We had never thought that such a little creature could steal our hearts in just a matter of days. Last Wednesday, our friends from Anima informed us that they had been contacted by a family that wished to give Argos up for adoption, as they couldn’t take care of him anymore. And it wouldn’t have been a problem as all of us are used to receiving numerous appeals for help of the kind, if Argos hadn’t been completely blind. The only reason that Anima reached to us is that blind cats need to live in a controlled environment, for the sake of their own safety.
During the first conversation with his owners/caretakers, we found out that he was a young stray living on the streets until he got hit by a car approximately a month ago, so they picked him up and took him to the local vet. They live in a small city and the vet in question didn’t seem to be very interested in an injured stray. Argos received just minimal treatment that helped stabilize him, but nothing more, so he arrived at the shelter on Thursday and was immediately taken to our vet.
He tested negative for FIV/FeLV and his blood work was more or less normal, except for his eosinophils which were low, the vet suspected he has a parasitosis, so Argos was dewormed and deflead right away. Unfortunately, he still has a cerebral contusion and huge hematomas behind his eyes. His lower jaw was broken and is currently healing on its own, so right now he can eat only liquid food and soft cat pate’. He is under aggressive treatment because of his brain edema and is being given injections every day plus two different kinds of eye drops as a topical treatment. Sadly, his eyesight has been lost forever. Had the local vet who treated Argos right after his injury done something, anything, to try and reduce his brain edema and had he been able to at least begin solving some of the numerous problems this lovely kitty boy had at the time, Argos would have had at least some chances to see again one day – but as the vet failed, Argos will remain blind for the rest of his life.
Nevertheless, he is still cheerful, lively and enjoys eating Gourmet cat pate’ and kibble for baby cats, as it’s easier on his broken jaw. He’s gotten accustomed perfectly to his new surroundings and we are almost certain he’ll soon be having fun with all of the shelter kitties. But until he recovers, he needs to spend most of his time in a cage so that he heals well, he is being taken to the vet every day and is regularly receiving vitamins and supplements to boost his immune system. As soon as he gets strong enough, he will be vaccinated, microchipped and neutered and he will finally become an owned cat.
If someone wishes to donate diapers, cat pate’, sauce/gravy and cat litter or to make a financial contribution towards this sweet little creature’s recovery, he will be extremely grateful! We are sorry you can’t see Argos purring and cuddling, as he would surely melt your hearts!!
Many people think of the small Southeast Asian country of Laos as paradise on Earth, but for many of our four-legged friends it is truly nothing but hell.
In a recent report Laos was singled out as one of the worst countries participating in the wildlife farming industry. Where small ramshackle cages filled with tigers and other endangered animals await their fate. Usually that means they will end up on a tourist plate.
You’ll be shocked and appalled to learn about secret monkey shipments on Air France passenger flights that we’ve discovered.
The monkeys were flown 5,979 miles from Mauritius to Paris, where they were held for a further nine hours, before being flown 4,138 miles to Chicago. Their ordeal lasted over 37 hours.
Tragically, the monkeys were destined for Charles River Laboratories, a company that profits from carrying out cruel poisoning tests on animals.
While holidaymakers were enjoying their flight in comfort, they would’ve been totally unaware of the suffering just below their feet. 120 monkeys, torn from their families and imprisoned in small wooden crates, were suffering in the dark and noisy cargo hold.
Air France are the only European passenger airline still transporting monkeys for research. This must stop!
Foie Gras is not allowed to be produced in the UK on animal cruelty grounds, but is imported as a so called ‘delicacy’ by selected stores. The aim of this petition is to demand that the UK bans the importation of all Foie Gras.
Foie gras is a ‘delicacy’ made from the diseased liver of ducks or geese who have been repeatedly force-fed. Animal Equality investigations in France and Spain have revealed the extreme suffering that millions of ducks and geese endure on foie gras farms
Please sign the petition demanding a UK import ban on foie gras.
Posted on June 12, 2017 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
This is typical of the problems so many animal welfare organisations in Serbia have with authorities. They try to do everything correctly and every time the authorities and government just want to threaten them and take further actions, with the constant threat of closing them down and turning animals back onto the streets; or simply taking them and killing them all.
We are being informed of ongoing updates to this situation. At present we are not becoming directly involved as many supporting groups from Austria, Germany, France, Slovenia and Switzerland are already involved. We will add out voice if necessary.
I am writing you in the hope that you can help us to realize our rights and protect the rights of those who cannot do it for themselves. We have, since 2013, been running a ”Lassie dog shelter” project, designed as a temporary shelter for the most vulnerable dogs without a home, with no intention at all to work in the field of veterinary and utility services of zoo hygiene or anything similar to that, providing emergency accommodation for dogs instead. In addition to that, we have worked on educating the population and spayed/neutered a large number of privately-owned dogs and cats.
During these four years we have been trying to resolve the administrative part of the whole story, we have finally reached the end, the most disputable moment was that of legalization of facilities, we have submitted complete documentation, paid due fees per square meter of facilities, etc. … In any case, the local government REFUSES to issue us a decision on legalization. As to his political opponent, the president of the municipality has, in public, before witnesses, told me that as long as he was in office, I would not get that decision. It is, directly, an obstruction for me in the process of registering the dog shelter with the Ministry of Agriculture, and he knows it.
On the other hand, he keeps sending a municipal inspector who sends us to a magistrate and that goes on in circles. In this way, the local government hinders us from registering the dog shelter although it meets all the legal requirements and we have paid all the fees.
I am sending you this link so that you know what it is that we do.
Austria, Germany, France, Slovenia and Switzerland have participated in this project, we are the only ones in the Balkans who do this.
The Croats and the Macedonians have similar projects, working with cats, and we are the only ones who work with dogs.
Of course, as it often goes in the province, all the local self-government does about the problem of abandoned animals is either done the way it used to be done back in 1946, or contrary to the Constitution, the law and common sense.
The local government has an unlawful contract with “Avenija MB“, a firm from Vrnjacka Banja which is 700 km away from Bač, to provide veterinary and utility services of zoo hygiene. A large number of animals and a lot of money dissapear. My concern is that I would like our project to succeed, so that three or four years of joint efforts of a number of dog protection associations from several European countries do not, just like that, remain burried under a bunch of bureaucratic negligence and forgotten.
Thank you in advance for any advice or contact details of institutions or persons that could help us. Thank you for your time.
Posted on June 9, 2017 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
Spring is now quickly turning into summer and keeping a cat shelter with around 130 residents going is still a full-time job and then some.
All of the cats are fed wet canned food once a day and then their dishes need to be thoroughly washed and filled with kibble alongside bowls of clean drinking water that are kept full all day long. T
he litter boxes that are kept inside and the two spacious outdoor litter boxes have to be cleaned two times a day, the floors of the cats’ rooms are being washed every morning and all of the kitty beds and pillows are shaken out. The chronically ill cats are constantly being given drugs and require being fed a veterinary diet; moreover, taking the sick kitties to the vet every day has already become a routine.
All in all, the expenses of keeping the shelter afloat are enormous and donations (which are usually few and far between) aren’t able to cover even a significant part of the sum needed every single month. We are forced to ask, beg and plead for help to purchase the canned wet cat food regularly, as we spend around 600 euros on wet cat food alone every month. Also, there is a worker who comes to the shelter twice a day and needs to be paid 200 euros per month, and in the case that we couldn’t afford to pay for her valuable and hard work, there would be no way to keep the shelter as clean as it is right now. We’ve exhausted our personal resources a long time ago, so now the shelter relies on the generosity of cat lovers from all over the world. If we are going to survive, we simply have to raise 800 euros each and every month for the maintenance of the shelter kitties.
Please, consider a donation of any amount and make a difference in their lives today! Every little bit really means a lot!
A couple of days ago, we first learned of Ebony’s existence from an e-mail we received which said that she was a young and cuddly stray that had been hit in the street and had “some broken bones” in the pelvic area, but the person who had found her couldn’t take care her for much longer, so we were supposed to step in.
The first news we received when we talked to the vet wasn’t good, as the X–ray exam showed that Ebony had a spinal fracture, several broken vertebrae and a dislocated pelvis. However, by the time we got to the ambulance to see her, she was able to stand up on all four legs and even took a few unsteady steps. Her spinal fracture is old, caused by either a hard blow she may have received when she got hit by a car or she even could have been kicked by somebody, and it’s highly probable that the same thing happened to her again when her pelvis got dislocated, as it’s usually the result of a traumatic injury.
In order to recover, Ebony will need at least eight weeks of cage rest, high quality cat food (she isn’t exactly in great shape at the moment) and Gabagamma capsules given regularly as a supplement. Luckily for her, she tested negative for FIV/FeLV.
If you could help us cover the costs of Ebony’s care please do so!
This tiny kitty girl and everyone here would be sincerely grateful!
Above – Help us get essential repairs done with a donation please !
Posted on June 4, 2017 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)
I had a very nice e mail from Erika last week thanking me for putting the videos of the rescues by AAU (India) onto SAV. They are more than welcome for promotion of their great work and I said this to Erika in my response mail. (Mark – SAV)
So here is another couple of videos showing many of the excellent team at AAU – we know you will enjoy it and we hope that it will be a great inspiration to many the world over to get out and do anything they can to help animals.
Watch what it takes! A tribute to the loving caregivers at Animal Aid Unlimited.
You can see the video of AAU work which we posted recently by clicking on the following link – there is also a donation link here so that you can support their rescues if you wish:
Serbian Animals Voice (SAV) 