Imagine a call comes in. A dog has been found badly injured, unable to move and left abandoned on a street in one of the roughest neighborhoods of the Uruguayan capital of Montevideo. The volunteers at APA El Refugio animal shelter drop everything — as they always do. They head for the animal ambulance. And then it fails to start. Again.

This is the reality right now. There are an estimated 300,000 street dogs in Uruguay, an exceptionally high number for a country with only 3.5 million people.

The dogs get no help from the authorities, so when someone finds an injured or sick animal, it’s our partner they call. Their animal ambulance, which has served the animals through years of tireless work, has finally broken down beyond repair.

The street dogs of Montevideo are often found badly injured, abandoned and left to suffer in conditions no animal should ever have to endure. Source: APA El Refugio

A vehicle is absolutely vital for the street dogs and cats of the city. Right now, the injured dogs, the abandoned litters and the animals left to die are on their own.

APA El Refugio has never abandoned an animal. But without an ambulance, they may have no choice.

We can get a good second-hand ambulance and equip it for $10,000 (£7,500). It will be stocked for emergency rescues, including first-aid supplies (blankets, gauze, disinfectants), muzzles, leashes and a humane trap cage for street or abused dogs. Please donate if you can, it’s for a really good cause.

For over a decade, APA has been the last line of defense for vulnerable animals in Montevideo’s most difficult areas. It cares for around 300 dogs and more than 30 cats in its shelter, every single one rescued from abuse, neglect and street life. The animals rely entirely on the generosity of supporters like you.

In 2025, animal lovers like you helped APA through one of its most challenging periods. Your generosity helped clear a significant portion of APA’s veterinary debt and kept the shelter running through month-after-month of continuous crises.

For Montevideo’s injured and abandoned dogs, help has always been on the way. But with their rescue vehicle beyond repair, that is no longer the case. Source: APA El Refugio

Sick animals keep coming. The need does not pause.

This year, there has been no respite, as animals continue to arrive, requiring immediate treatment. Luana arrived with devastating wounds caused by a rope tied tightly around her neck. Then there is Chama, wasting under severe mange and distemper, diseases that had gone untreated for months. There have been dogs with untreated tumours. Newborn puppies abandoned to die.

Beyond emergency rescues, the ambulance is central to everything APA does. It transports animals to veterinary clinics for the treatments that keep them alive. It carries food and supplies to the shelter. It is how our partner reaches the calls that come from across the city every single week. Without it, animals wait longer — and some will not survive the delay.

Meet Chama (Left) and Luana (Right) — one wasting away from months of untreated mange and distemper, the other arriving with a rope wound tightly around her neck. Two dogs who needed someone to finally show up for them. Source: APA El Refugio

A replacement ambulance will restore everything.

Every day without a vehicle is a day when animals in crisis cannot be reached. Veterinary runs stop. Emergency calls go unanswered. The animals keep suffering and our partner cannot get to them.

A reliable replacement vehicle costs $7,000 (£5,300) and equipping it costs another $3,000 (£2,300).

Your generosity has made a real difference before — and right now, the animals need you again. Without a rescue vehicle, the next dog in desperate need may not get help in time. Source: APA El Refugio

You helped APA before and your generosity made a real difference. Now, the animals need you again. Please help us put this vital animal ambulance back on the road before it’s too late. Without it, the next Chama or Luana may not get the help they need in time

Your gift today keeps the rescues underway. Please donate now.