South Africa – De Doorns
South Africa hosts a huge population of both stray and pet dogs. With limited access to medical care, and increased exposure to starvation, dehydration and disease, we are supporting teams that are dedicated to providing communities with outreach support, education and free veterinary care. The vast and increasing stray population have become a hotbed for illnesses, most prolific of these is distemper. Though easily prevented with vaccinations and education, distemper is a cruel virus that affected the central nervous system, and several different organs in the body including the guts, heart, immune system, lungs, brain and nerves. Leading to paralysis, painful seizures, pus secretion and eventually death, no living being deserves to suffer so unnecessarily.
A large proportion of the companion dogs across South Africa live in townships, where people keep cats to catch mice or dogs to use as watchdogs. But the majority of people living in these townships don’t have the financial resource to provide proper care for their animals, meaning many roam the streets in varying states of health and, with nearly all of them unsterilised, stuck in an endless breeding cycle.
Sidewalk Specials
The team at Sidewalk Specials is headed up by incredible founder, Rachael Sylvester, who has created something quite unique: unlike similar initiatives, Sidewalk Specials has no shelter, relying solely on foster homes to care for the dogs they rescue from euthanasia lists, abusive situations and township outreach programmes.
We were first introduced to Rachael and her work through our previous Adoptions Coordinator, Sami. Sami lived in Cape Town for a while where she volunteered at sterilisation drives, witnessing firsthand the positive impact such initiatives have, not only on the welfare of the dogs but to the communities who are the first to be affected by booming stray populations. She continued to tell the powerful stories of Sidewalk Specials to the team of Wild at Heart Foundation and we are proud to offer our ongoing support to this project.
Sterilisation drives
The sterilisation drives run by Sidewalk Specials target communities where financial means are limited. Not only does the team provide free sterilisation, but also a complete veterinary check-up, blood smear, flea and tick treatment, deworming, inoculation, mange treatment and a bag of food. The team even arranges transport pick-ups and drop-offs to neighbouring townships, reaching as many animals in need as possible.
Their most successful sterilization drive of 2020, treated 670 animals over four days, all while maintaining social distancing. Even more impressive is that the drives are run solely by volunteers, including veterinarians, all of whom donate their time and expertise to helping these animals.
How we're supporting
We’re delighted to be supporting Sidewalk Specials and started 2020 by funding bags of nutritious, healthy food that each dog goes home with following treatment. This free bag of food is often what encourages communities to register their pet and bring them along on the day to be sterilised. It’s a small gesture but enough to prevent tens of thousands of unwanted puppies being born into hardship.
We’re incredibly proud to be supporting Sidewalk Specials’ sterilisation initiatives and ongoing mission to help the dogs of South Africa, and look forward to working with them more in 2022.