Croatia
For most dogs who live in the Roma villages of northern Croatia, life is a living hell. Chained, starved and thirsty, Roma animals endure unimaginable suffering. To make a bad situation worse, Roma criminals run dog-fighting rings in which huge sums are gambled on which dog will be savaged to death by another. The criminals also run puppy mills, where dogs are selectively bred for viciousness.
Our partner, the Cakovec shelter, regularly visits the Roma villages to rescue, rehabilitate and rehome suffering dogs and currently looks after 600 rescued animals in their inundated shelter. To support their life-saving work, we helped them feed and care for the hundreds of dogs in their care, who have been saved from lives of trauma in Roma villages.
Spain
In Spain, hunting dogs, known as galgos and podencos, are tortured and killed in their tens of thousands each year. These poor creatures are frequently subjected to the horrifying fate of being exploited for a single hunting season before being cruelly tortured and discarded like trash. The depth of suffering they endure is unimaginable; they are starved, hurled into dark wells, savagely beaten, targeted in shooting practices, poisoned or, possibly worst of all, hung from trees until they slowly suffocate to death. We cannot stand idly by with a clear conscience as this abuse persists.
We are working with three organizations, Foundation Jadoul, Galgos del Sur and PACMA, who work tirelessly to provide the best possible care to animals in need, like abused, traumatized and discarded galgos. With your support for this project, we have helped treat, rehabilitate and rehome these animals so they never again have to feel the brutal hand of abuse.
Compounding the plight of galgos is the fact that they have no legal protection. These dogs are classified as agricultural animals, exposing them to relentless abuse and death. With the support of our donors, we are fighting this ruling in Spanish courts, petitioning the government to amend the laws to give galgos the protection they deserve while shining a light on the dark underbelly of the Spanish hunting industry.
Spanish hunting dogs are one of the most abused breeds in the world. Credit: World Animals Voice
United Kingdom
In the United Kingdom, we support the HUGS Foundation, an equine rescue charity in a rural area in Bodmin. HUGS is a haven for abused, abandoned and neglected horses and ponies. HUGS always tries to find homes for rescued creatures, but more often than not, they remain at the sanctuary for the rest of their lives due to their histories of mistreatment and need for long-term specialist care. HUGS tries to never turn away innocent creatures in need.
An excellent example of HUGS’ work is the case of a group of animals – six miniature Shetland ponies, a moorland pony and a donkey – who were at risk of being slaughtered when their owner became too old to care for them. With our support, the HUGS team was able to save all eight of them, including Igo, a tiny white pony who suffers from dwarfism. Igor is now part of HUGS’ wellbeing program, providing support to children, veterans and the elderly.
In another distressingly similar example, three rescued donkeys were destined to starve to death or worse – be slaughtered for their meat to feed to zoo animals – after their owner suddenly fell ill. We were able to help fund their specialized nutrition, medical treatment and stabling, saving them from the slaughterhouse.
An NFA team member visits a rescued pony at the HUGS Foundation in the UK.
Ukraine
In 2022, Russia initiated a brutal military invasion of Ukraine, sparking a devastating conflict that continues to affect countless people and animals in the region. Network for Animals was one of the first animal welfare organizations on the ground, and we remain dedicated to providing emergency aid to innocent, four-legged victims amid this ongoing crisis.
Your donations are used to provide critically needed food, shelter, medications and vital veterinary care for the vulnerable dogs and cats of Ukraine. At the time of writing, we are actively working with four partners on the ground in Ukraine to reach animal war victims in desperate need.
The Animal Guardians Program (AGP)
Anzhela Sheveleva is the coordinator of the Animal Guardians Program (AGP), a project that aims to provide food and veterinary care for thousands of street animals in and around the regions of Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk and Dnipro. The good-hearted ‘guardians’ who assist Anzhela are pensioners (the oldest is 80!), disabled or very poor. They emerge from shelter when there is a lull in the fighting to help animals, often taking numerous cats and dogs into their own homes to care for them.
NFA supports the AGP by covering the cost of pet food, medicine, sterilizations, other emergency veterinary treatments and fuel to transport animals to and from clinics. We have also helped provide the AGP with building materials to repair infrastructure affected by shelling and household items such as refrigerators and water tanks so that the animals can continue to have access to fresh food and water.
One of the Animals Guardians of the Animal Guardians Program carries a severely injured dog towards shelter and treatment. Network for Animals supports and funds the work of the Animal Guardians in the Ukraine.
Animal Rescue Kharkiv (ARK)
ARK rescues animals from the frontline. Most of the animals they save are dogs and cats, but at time of writing, they have also rescued 70 goats, 40 sheep, 10 horses, some rabbits, chickens, ducks and a pregnant donkey.
It has a cat haven in Kharkiv where volunteers care for 236 cats rescued from the war zone, with only one vet to care for them. The cats now live in a converted bomb shelter, where they are so happy the shelter sounds like a purring symphony. We are supporting the cats with food and medical supplies.
Pluriton
Our longest-term partner in Ukraine is Pluriton, which started as a pet food manufacturer in Khmelnytskyi. Now, they rescue animals from the frontline using a vehicle we purchased for them, while distributing crucial pet food in extremely dangerous areas that have been hit hardest.
Pluriton is now building a shelter with capacity for about 100 animals near Dnipro, because there are so many displaced animals – both domestic and wild – who have nowhere to go. They would also like to complete an on-site clinic.
It is renting land for the shelter, but like so many other animal welfare organizations in Ukraine, it is struggling because donations are dropping.
Pluriton receives between 100-200 animals every month, providing them with food, medicines, veterinary care and supplies.
The shelter presently has two horses, 25 dogs, 11 pigs, six donkeys, a llama, a goat and a duck.
Pavlina Harasym
Dr Pavlina Harasym, a veterinarian based in Lviv, risks her life to rescue animals from the war zone, saving lives while bullets fly and bombs explode around her. A Russian sniper even tried to kill her while she was operating on a cat rescued from a bombed-out building. She kept working and saved the cat. To support her incredible work, we purchased an animal ambulance to help her save even more lives, and provide funds to feed the animals she rescues.
Credit: Oleksandr Ratushniak/UNDP/Ukraine
NOWZAD
As Russian forces advance and donations dwindle, the NOWZAD-supported animal shelter in Kramatorsk is facing total destruction. With the frontlines a mere 20 miles from the shelter, the proximity to the fighting puts the shelter and the animals we've promised to protect in immediate jeopardy.
Supply lines in conflict-heavy zones are increasingly hard to secure. But with our supporters’ help, we were able to raise emergency funds to rush critically needed food and medical supplies to the countless cats and dogs in their and our other partners’ care.