On my trips to Spain, it never ceases to amaze me at the dedication of the wonderful volunteers who work tirelessly on behalf of the abandoned dogs and cats of Spain and the Spanish islands. And I am always impressed by the good condition of the animals (obviously counting out those just rescued or with medical problems and needing treatment), and the dogs are generally so happy. Anything has to be better than life on the streets or at the hands of uncaring owners.
Volunteering is one of the ways people outside of Spain can help the refuges too. There have been stories on Galgo News of people who have travelled to Scooby Medina to work for a week or two at a time in the refuge – holding 600 dogs at the moment! Faye recently told her tale about working for a week at the PAWS refuge in Almeria on behalf of Ibizhan Hound Rescue, and SARA Lanzarote would also be grateful for volunteers to com forward to help with over 300 animals in their care.
Besides taking a holiday break to help at a shelter, if you are a student and would like to gain hands-on knowledge and experience of animal care, sheltering, management, behavior or training, or if you just love animals and want to offer your time and energy to their care, why not consider a volunteer work placement or internship with a shelter. PAWS in particular say they receive numerous queries regarding these possibilities,and their ‘volunteer page’ gives plenty of information many questions.
If you would like to consider spending a week or two working in one of these refuges, contact them direct.
Comments
2 responses to “Take a holiday – work as a volunteer in a Spanish animal shelter”
What a great idea. We were recently looking for Cheap Spanish Property and found great offers on the La Perla Golf website, even though we weren’t looking for a golf holiday. I would suggest you check them out when searching for a holiday spot.
TypePad HTML EmailHmmm, Not quite sure why you suggest I promote golf holidays! My suggestion is that people devote their holidays to helping the overworkd volunteers and staff in Spanish animal refuges and shelters, and thereby learn what life is like for Spanish animals, and in particular the horrendous treatment meted out to galgos and podencos. And hopefully as a result of that, support all the campaigns to get a better life for these deserving dogs. It’s all about giving something back, especially to those who suffer in silence.
I hope you will consider helping at a Spanish shelter for a week or two. You can read several reports on Galgo News written by people who have done just that, and intend to go back to do the same again.
Amities
Beryl
http://www.galgonews.com
Helping to make a difference
A person who has never known a dog’s love has missed a wonderful part of life. Bob Barker
The dog has no ambition, no self-interest, no desire for vengeance, no fear other than that of displeasing. Count of Buffon