Greece – Lesvos
From boxes of tiny puppies, too young to fend for themselves without the care of a foster, to older dogs who have suffered abandonment, mistreatment or neglect, our partner shelters work tirelessly to give the street dogs of Greece the second chance at happiness they so sorely deserve.
The challenge
One of the largest challenges we face in Greece is a cultural aversion to the concept of sterilisation. For many orthodox communities, the act of spaying or neutering a dog is seen as “playing god”, or that it harms the dog. Our work takes us all over the world, and immerses us within a wide range of cultures and communities; and whilst it is never our position to judge or condemn, we’re always eager to seek opportunities to help or educate where we can, to the benefit of both the local community.
Thanks to early education campaigns, people have begun to recognise both the benefit of controlling local stray populations, and the role sterilisation inevitably plays in ensuring this.
Rescue is also an area in which Wild at Heart Foundation has made a significant impact. The treatment of dogs in Greece is not, by and large, actively cruel, malicious, or abusive. Rather unwanted puppies are seen as a “burden”. These puppies have done nothing more than be born, and yet without rescue initiatives in place, they would be resigned to a life of struggle, all to likely to be cut short.
Our partner shelter
Wild at Heart Foundation have been working on the Greek island of Lesvos since 2015, working alongside an amazing independent rescuer who has devoted her life to dog rescue – The amazing Vassilia!
On our most recent visit to Lesvos, Olivia and Meghan met with Vassilia to learn more about the running of the shelter, and to assess areas we can best support her as she continues to dedicate herself so selflessly to this project.
You can read more about Olivia and Meghan’s project visit on our blog.
2020 shelter improvement project
After years of running her homegrown shelter – much of which has been built and maintained by hand, expanding wherever possible to accommodate for the growing number of abandoned dogs – Vassilia reached out to us in 2019 and outlined the need for an improved facility.
We were only too happy to help, and thanks in a large part to funds raised from an exclusive art show selling pieces by Lesvos resident and friend of the Foundation, Matthew Usmar Lauder, we will be returning to Lesvos in 2020 to carry out essential repairs and improvements.
Thanks to the generosity of our supporters, hundreds more Greek rescue dogs will now have a safe refuge in which to experience love, safety and play, safe in the knowledge that Wild at Heart Foundation are working hard to find them their perfect forever home here in the UK.