Giving sanctuary and rehabilitating animals left out in the cold
Albert Kleyn, co-founder of the Cork Animal Care Society, explains the importance of these procedures, and says they need become a requirement for pet owners, sooner rather than later.
He says: “The recently introduced Protection of Animals Act 2012 [which replaced the century-old Protection of Animals Act 1911] is too weak. Again it missed out on the neutering and micro-chipping requirement.”
Jennifer Headlam, from the Cork Animal Welfare Group, agrees.
She says: “You see the same problems come up again and again. People who aren’t neutering their pets, unwanted puppies, people not tagging their pets or minding them properly… Animals that are tagged or chipped are easily found when they get lost.”
Jennifer also explains mandatory micro-chipping would help in cases of animal cruelty, it would force owners to take responsibility for their pets, and would help enable authorities to take the proper course of action cases of animals being mistreated.
Marie Quirke, sanctuary manager at Limerick Animal Welfare (LAW), said she hoped to see micro-chipping become a requirement for all pet owners in 2014.
She said: “This would ensure protection and accountability for dogs found in a state of neglect or straying and would result in hefty fines for those found with stolen animals.”
The biggest challenge facing the Dingle Wildlife and Seal Sanctuary in 2014 is simply to keep the door open, says spokesperson Ally McMillan.
With volunteers on call 24/7, she says there’s very little room for time off. “We provide a service to the public, and if someone comes across an injured animal after 5pm we have to respond,” says Ally.
The shelter cares for rescued wildlife and seals, releasing them back into the wild once they are deemed fit and healthy.
Each year, an average of 50 seals are admitted to the sanctuary that are found in various states of distress around the entire coast of Ireland. They are often found starving, sick, injured and orphaned and are in need of rehabilitation.
“With very poorly or very young seal pups under a week old, we need to feed them overnight to keep them hydrated to prevent them from crashing. This requires feeding them every four hours,” explains Ally.
“It’s exhausting of course, but it’s worth it in the end. The saddest part of the job is when you lose an animal if it is too sick, or severely injured and needs to be put to sleep.”
Ally says that seeing the animals slowly recover to the point of releasing them into the wild is the most rewarding part of her job.
“You watch them flourish and thrive and become strong, fit and healthy animals and then are privileged to be able to return them back to their natural habitat — nothing beats that.
“We have to pinch ourselves every day that we are lucky enough to be working with such amazing Irish wildlife that you can never normally be so close to. It’s pretty special.”
This Christmas, the sanctuary is offering adoption packages. You receive a certificate, story and photograph of your seal pup and all the funds go directly back to helping the animals. They are also interested in hearing from anybody who would like to volunteer either at the sanctuary or as a coastal volunteer for rescues.
* For further information, follow Dingle Wildlife and Seal Sanctuary on their Facebook page. To make a donation, visit www.dinglesanctuary.com or email the sanctuary directly on info@dinglesanctuary.com.
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There has been a huge increase in phonecalls requesting help with animals lately, according to sanctuary manager Marie Quirke.
Unfortunately, it demand is the main issue that Limerick Animal Welfare are finding it increasingly difficult to cope with due to a lack of resources.
“Sadly, our animal welfare re-homing unit is unable to take a fraction of the animals due to lack of space,” explains Marie.
Despite this, she remains positive about the situation and outlines various plans for the new year.
“Our hope for 2014 is to see mandatory micro-chipping. This would ensure protection and accountability for dogs found in a state of neglect or straying and hefty fines on those found with stolen animals.
“We also hope to begin phase two of our building project which will house many more animals. We need to raise €300k to finish this next part of the sanctuary,” says Marie.
Looking back on the past 12 months, Marie remembers countless cases of neglect the sanctuary has dealt with and explains that rehabilitating animals is the most rewarding part of her job.
“Rodger, a mixed-breed dog, was found in a Limerick city housing estate in a collapsed state. He had little or no hair on his body and his skin was red raw and covered in open sores.
“Rodger had no energy and no will to live. It took many months of treatment, care and careful feeding to bring him to full health.”
Recently, after just over a year with the sanctuary, Rodger found his perfect foster family and is happy and healthy in his new home.
A particularly harrowing case for Marie was a small terrier named Penelope who was knocked down by a car and left on the side of the road to die.
“Penelope was taken to the vets where X-rays revealed two broken legs, a broken hip, and a broken pelvis. After three operations to stabilise all her bones, Penelope’s carer in the sanctuary made her a cart to help her move around,” says Marie.
Penelope has since been adopted by one of the staff members of the sanctuary and won best rescue dog at this year’s dog show.
* For further information about LAW, or donate, visit limerickanimalwelfare.ie or email the sanctuary directly at limerickanimalwelfare@gmail.com.
Run by Petra Meyer and Mary-Jane Fox, Orchard Greyhound Sanctuary (OGS) has been active for 10 years and specialises in finding responsible homes for unwanted greyhounds.
OGS is a bit different than other rescue centres, as the greyhounds live in a home environment instead of staying in kennels with plenty of open space for exercise and fresh air.
According to Mary-Jane, the hardest part of running a greyhound re-homing programme is the negative impression people have of greyhounds.
She says: “Most people in Ireland can’t believe greyhounds are adopted as pets by thousands of people all over the world. Anyone here wanting to adopt a pet greyhound gets a lot of criticism from their friends, family and co-workers and anyone else who has never had a greyhound as pet.”
But adoption can be rewarding too, she says. “There’s nothing like matching up the right dog to the right home, and getting back photos to see the greyhound has really become a family member. Some have even become Pets as Therapy dogs in nursing care centres.”
OGS in Offaly expanded in 2013 with a sister sanctuary in Co Clare.
Petra explains: “There always needs to be a certain minimum number of greyhounds available to adopt the right dog to the right home. There is a real need for a dedicated greyhound re-homing centre in the West of Ireland. So many more people would adopt if they could come and visit a greyhound in a real home environment.”
Prospective owners are invited to visit the sanctuary and stay to get to know the dogs. Great care is given to try and match up the right dog with the right home with plenty of post adoption support available.
* For further information or to make a donation, visit orchardgreyhoundsanctuary.com or email the sanctuary on orchardgreyhounds@yahoo.ie.
“Things are going to get worse in 2014. The amount of animals coming in is increasing all the time,” says Jennifer Headlam who runs the West Cork Animal Welfare Group.
“You have people losing their jobs and losing their houses, moving abroad or moving into apartments, and they have to give up their pets because of that.
“You see the same problems come up again and again. People who aren’t neutering their pets, unwanted puppies, people not tagging their pets or minding them properly… Animals that are tagged or chipped are easily found when they get lost and it would certainly make our job a lot easier.!”
Despite the significant challenges facing the organisation, Jennifer says 2013 hasn’t all been doom and gloom.
“It’s been a really good year for re-homing pets,” she explains. “It’s a great feeling getting nice homes for them and for the ones that aren’t in good shape, getting them healthy and rehabilitated again.
“We’ve had great support this year from a lot of people and we’ve had some really good fundraisers. A few people have had collections for us, sold our cards and calendars and the like, and others have run mini marathons to raise funds. We really appreciate it.”
Jennifer stresses the importance of educating people about animal welfare and urges the public to make an informed decision before getting a pet.
She says: “People really have to think long-term about things and sit down and ask themselves if they can deal with one. In a lot of cases it’s a 15-year commitment.
“One thing I’ve noticed is that people will get breeds that aren’t suitable for them. Huskies, for example. People will get a husky puppy because they look cute. But they’re working dogs really and they’re used to being very active and having a lot of space to run in and use up their energy. They don’t really make great pets, they’re not suitable for a back yard.”
* For further information or to make a donation, visit www.westcorkanimals.com or email the sanctuary on info@westcorkanimals.com
More money is needed to continue the rescue of abandoned donkeys from the forests, bogs, and pounds of Ireland, according to the PR manager of Liscarroll’s Donkey Sanctuary, Paddy Barrett.
Paddy explains the majority of donkeys saved by the sanctuary have usually been subject to “appalling” conditions and are very emaciated with contorted, overgrown feet.
“The most rewarding part of the job is getting these donkeys back to good health and finding suitable homes for them in pairs.”
The donkey sanctuary’s biggest highlight from 2013 came in the form of a presidential visit from Michael D Higgins accompanied by his wife Sabina.
The President visited the sanctuary last month to open a walkway extension and said: “Long before I was elected President I had wanted to come here and pay tribute to Paddy Barrett and those original people who had the idea of a donkey sanctuary and all who made it possible to expand and provide the extraordinary care that it does now.”
Noting that his mother was born and raised in Liscarroll, President Higgins said the sanctuary provided a “wonderful education and experience” for an increasing number of people who have only “tenuous” links with the rural world.
Paddy Barrett said he was delighted to play host to the president and his wife. “It was a privilege and an honour for us.”
* For further information or to make a donation, visit thedonkeysanctuary.ie or email the sanctuary on info @thedonkeysanctuary.ie.
“There is no compulsory spaying/neutering requirement. There is no micro-chipping requirement. There is no compulsory requirement for vaccinating your pets.”
These are some of the main problems in animal welfare today that need to be addressed and highlighted, according to the co-founder of the Cork Animal Care Society, Albert Kleyn.
Albert also raises the cautionary point that media coverage can sometimes result in a negative impact on animal welfare groups.
He said: “We have had bad experiences due to being mentioned in the media,” says Albert, referring to the increase in the numbers of people arriving at the centre trying to offload unwanted animals in the wake of any mention in the media.
“What publicity does sometimes is exactly the opposite of what we need. It results in endless phonecalls and emails and people at the gate trying to dump animals on you.”
Shockingly, Albert also recalls a time someone said to him: “If you don’t take these puppies I will throw them on a bonfire” and that people regularly resort to this type of blackmail to get shelters to take their unwanted animals.
“Every reputable sanctuary and/or group is bursting at the seams,” explains Albert.
“Animals are still seen as disposable items and taken in on a whim. When the truth dawns after a few weeks, the animal is gotten rid of.”
Albert says that a huge change is needed in order to deal with animals not being neutered or micro-chipped.
“The recently introduced Protection of Animals Act 2012 is too weak. Again it missed out on the neutering and micro-chipping requirement. Do we now have to wait another century before that omission will be rectified?” asked Albert.
* The Cork Animal Care Society endeavour to promote a responsible approach to pet ownership and a positive attitude to animal welfare. They have re-homed about six thousand animals since their foundation. They also operate a help line service and run a charity shop in Togher, Cork.
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