Sponsor an Animal at VSCPA
VSPCA has one of the most comprehensive animal shelters in India: dogs and cats, cattle and birds, and wildlife that was being illegally kept to be sold dead or alive. As if that wasn't enough work to do, we also have our ambitiously eco-friendly 100% organic farming and renewable energy projects to run, plus our medical facilities for the animals!
As much as we'd like to take in every needy animal in Visakhapatnam–and trust us, there are plenty–we have neither the space nor the resources. However, there are some truly distressed individuals we come across that we just cannot turn away. The dedication of our volunteers is boundless, but the funds available to cover the costs of caring for our animals are not. Meet some of our family below and consider donating $20 a month (less than $1 a day!) to cover some of the costs of an animal's care so that we may expand our family even more. All of us at VSPCA greatly appreciate your support–especially the animals!
Profiles by Scott Feldstein, VSPCA volunteer - thanks Scott!
Lucky
As difficult as it is to understand why people treat animals poorly, we know that this world will never be free from cruelty. VSPCA works very hard to help as many animals as we can and it is encouraging when we approach this goal with the assistance of the community. Lucky was found tied to this tree with all this garbage all around, presumably by his owner. As if abandoning an animal in 40°C (100°+ F) heat isn’t bad enough, tying it up so that it can’t search for food or shelter is inexcusable. The next day, a shop-keeper found the dog and fed it for a week before calling us. We are so grateful to the shopkeeper for caring for the dog when he had no obligation to do so. Sadly, the dog problem in Visakhapatnam is so overwhelming that the shelter is quickly becoming overcrowded. So it so important for Lucky and all the other dogs at the shelter and in our city that everyone pitches in to make this world a better place for our animal companions.
Kennedy
Each of the many types of animals whose lives we touch and provide with a happy home has taken a different path getting to our shelter. They are all similar in one way - people and animals living together often causes problems — usually for the animals. The most we can hope for is that the harm done was not intentional. Kennedy was injured by a scooter. In India, that cannot always be avoided with so many people, vehicles, and yes, stray animals roaming the streets. As the word about the work of VSPCA spreads around our city, more and more good Samaritans are helping us with our cause. A student found Kennedy and brought him in. Fortunately his injuries should heal well enough to get him “up and running” shortly. In the meantime, he must be closely monitored to avoid any infections or illnesses that puppies are so vulnerable to. Kennedy and all of us at VSPCA thank you all for your help over the years!
Yuvraj
If you are ever fortunate enough to visit our shelter, you may wonder why many of the animals which seem so happy and healthy are there in the first place. They were all sick, injured, abused, or abandoned at one time. The sad fact is that many people in India either don't want a sick pet or simply don't have the money to care for them. When Yuvraj, or “Prince,” was brought to us, he was one of 31 abandoned kittens and cats with a serious disease affecting their lungs. With the loving care of the vets and volunteers to whom we are so grateful, you can see that Yuvraj, along with all the other cats, were cured and are destined to live a long and and happy life at the shelter. We definitely plan on treating him like a prince!
Guddi Guram (means “blind horse”)
Sometimes we tend to forget that many animals are forced into non-stimulating and often solitary lives, strictly for our entertainment. Guddi Guram is a half-blind,old horse who was used at weddings and festivals to carry people around in the hot Indian sun. We were constantly warning its owner that Guddi had passed the “retirement” age for horses.
Eventually, this strenuous labor was taking its toll and we seized her before she would have collapsed. She is one of 3 wonderful horses who have joined our extensive family of dogs, birds, cattle, monkeys, cats and others. If we find animals in trouble, we will do all we can to give them all better lives, regardless of what type of animal they are, or how they were mistreated by people.
Ram and Rahim
[SPONSORED!] Though there are many more beautiful cows at VSPCA that still need your help! Unfortunately, many of the ancient festivals in India involve traditions which excuse acts of cruelty towards animals, even if illegal. Because some of these practices are hundreds or thousands of years old, villagers and local authorities do not always sympathize with our protests. As Eid (the Muslim festival that marks the end of Ramadan and the month of fasting) approached, a man saw two young men walking down the road with two bulls, bloodied from beatings and mistreatment. Apparently, after years of loyal service the bulls had been sold and were on the way to a local illegal slaughterhouse. This man reported these transporters to the police. The police, as is too often the case in these situations, looked the other way. While the people who get paid to deal with these problems (or sometimes paid to NOT deal with them) often have other priorities, we are known in the area for going above and beyond the call of duty for the welfare of animals. The heroic, concerned citizen called us and we took the bulls to our shelter and their new family of over 650 cattle. We have named them Ram (Hindu) and Rahim (Muslim), which translates to Peace and Integrity.
Gomanta (cow mother)
[SPONSORED!] This sweet cow was seized by the government authorities for being cruelly treated. We agreed to accept her deliver and 40 others in the middle of a stormy night. We just could not turn away. A total of 6 were dead when we unloaded the jam packed vehicle with Gomanta lying on the floor with a bad fracture. However she really had the will to live. Despite her condition she helped herself to her feet. It made my heart sink as we had to decide whether to amputate the leg or to euthanize her. But because of her will to live we decided to amputate. She cooperated beautifully during the operation and because of her special strong and loving nature she allowed us to do the subsequent dressings and the treatment. This was the main reason that the wound healed very quickly within a month. She does not let the handicap undermine her now and even started to run once she got the strength and feeling of freedom. It was a success that we all enjoy. After she healed up so well, we were grinning and laughing, thanking each other and, of course, the vets were very happy! But the credit goes to the cow, who alone is responsible for her newfound liberty. (By Pradeep Nath)
Johnny
[SPONSORED!] Almost eight years ago, one of our volunteers saw a dirty white ball moving very awkwardly by the side of the road. It was difficult to tell what it even was, but she approached and saw it was an abandoned dog with severely deformed legs. She rushed him to a nearby animal hospital, which was one of our temporary shelters at the time. Soon after, Johnnie became one of the first dogs at our current shelter. Johnnie's bone deformity is a birth condition so it is still a bit disheartening to watch him try to walk. Johnnie is an energetic and happy dog who loves people, but can get awfully frisky when the other dogs try to take his food!
Blackie
Not so long ago, the owner of the cutest little black Pomeranian puppy brought her to our shelter with a badly broken leg. She had fallen down a hill. We would nurse the puppy back to health and return it to him. Some days later, a lady who worked at the Pomeranian's house came by to check on Blackie's condition. She told us the ugly truth about Blackie's leg. The owner had come home drunk one night and threw a bottle at the puppy. We decided that Blackie deserved a better caretaker. Now Blackie has many loving caretakers and a bunch of brothers and sisters!
Tabu
[SPONSORED!] Tabu's story truly demonstrates how cruel some people can be to animals and why our shelter must exist in the first place. A little more than a year ago, a van approached the entrance of our shelter. Some of the workers approached the van to greet it. The door opened and a beautiful black and brown dog, not so big at the time, flew onto the dusty road leading to the front gate. The owner took off. Knowing that Tabu is a pure breed, we can only assume that the owner was appalled by his crooked legs and didn't want such an animal. We were glad to welcome Tabu before the owner had a chance to do anything even more horrible to him.
Chiranjavee
Chiranjavee's story shows the benefits of the public's cooperation towards our cause. Two years ago a lady called our shelter about a dog in front of her house with a broken leg. We took him in and our vets examined him. We put a cast on the leg, but it didn't heal and was too badly broken to perform surgery. Chiranjavee can't walk that well but he loves freedom and refuses to go into his kennel at bedtime. He is just one of many animals at our shelter with physical imperfections because we are often the only ones who can see that a dog with 2 or 3 legs is just as loyal and lovable as one with 4. So our family grows...
The Original Blackie
The original Blackie has a very funny story. We took him in after getting complaints from the city about his "vicious" behavior. We sterilized and vaccinated him and his demeanor was fine so we released him. Twice more the city called us. It seems the only place Blackie is happy is in our dog paradise. He adopted our night watchman and follows him home 2 km every morning. When the watchman goes out on errands, Blackie comes to the shelter to look for him, eats lunch, and returns home or waits all day for the watchman, patrolling the shelter himself. He is our only four-legged volunteer.
Tiffin
[SPONSORED!] Taking in injured animals is always a little bittersweet. Bitter in that they were injured, often by cruel and thoughtless people, but sweet because we found them before further harm could be done. Our workers found Tiffin being attacked by the side of the road- by dogs.- and his back legs were (thankfully) only slightly injured. Now thinks everyone is his mother. When a worker enters the cat house, they really have to be careful not to step on Tiffin as he follows them around. We cannot release motherless babies, as we do the healthy adults dogs and cats, back into the neighborhood where we found them. Tiffin awaits adoption but is honing his feline instincts with the other 37 cats in the meantime.
Taffy
[SPONSORED!] Cruelties in the pet trade in Asia are not only limited to endangered species. While on patrol in one of the local markets notorious for illegal sales of restricted species, one of our workers found a little bundle in a dustbin. While we don't know the background of Taffy's abandonment, an increasing trend in this part of India reveals a disgusting practice. Dogs are much preferred over cats as pets in India. So, many of the cats sold in markets are not really for companionship- they are being sold for food. When nobody is buying, the cat is no longer needed. Whether this was Taffy's story or not, much of our feline family has been rescued from dustbins. Taffy has been with us for about two and a half years now.
Milky
One of our sharp-eyed drivers spotted little Milky when he was about 4 months old by the side of the road. At that time, about 4 years ago, he had avery bad eye infection. After some antibiotics and other routine remedies, the eye still didn't heal that well. Finally, the eye was so bad that the only option was to perform surgery and remove the eyeball altogether. Milky had to be kept in his own cage for 2 months, to protect his eye from other cats' claws while the eye healed. Milky will live out his remaining eight lives in the safety of our shelter, where his sight problem cannot endanger him.
Billy
In India, manu monkeys are thought of as pets, profit, or pests. About a year ago, we were called down to the police station. When we arrived, there was a little girl and her monkey in the holding cell! The monkey had been trained to steal people's cell phones, which the villagers then sold. The girl and Billy were both released, and we adopted one of them. Billy came to our shelter and has proven to be quite crafty even when not picking pockets. Although only here for a year so far, Billy seems accustomed to the way of life at VSPCA, which he teaches to the younger monkeys who he shares a cage with. However, as with all our wild animals, we hope that Billy can soon return to his rightful home in the forest.
Babu
Babu's story is one of right place, right time. Passing a truck stopped by the side of the road, a worker in our rescue mobile saw the driver beating a monkey. The monkey had torn up a wad of its owner's money. In his anger, the driver willingly gave us the monkey. When we got Babu, his ears were pierced and his teeth stained yellow from tobacco. When Babu came to the shelter six years ago, we didn't have any proper monkey enclosures and he loved playing with the dogs and cats. After we took more monkeys in he didn't get along with them. Being the biggest and naughtiest monkey at our shelter, he has his own cage to keep him from getting into fights. He's a cheeky little monkey but we love him just the same!
Twin Tortoises
One of the newer enclosures at the shelter is our space for star tortoises. They are just one of the endangered animals of India shamelessly poached for their meat and other body parts. One day a man who came to do some repair work at the shelter noticed the tortoise enclosure. Learning of this animal's dire situation, he told us that he had noticed some boys in his village using some baby star tortoises as marbles. This story is a bit innocent and cute, but the usual circumstances under which these animals are found is not as laughable. We now have 19 star tortoises, both children and adults, in a lovely shaded, grassy area awaiting favorable circumstances for their release.
Bannu
While one of our workers was visiting her friend's home, she noticed her friend was keeping two birds. Chinnu and Bannu were loose in the small house but were not flying around so much. When asked where the birds were kept at night, the owner pointed to a tiny cage. The dog in the house didn't like the birds, especially, and was harassing them during their "free" time. It was also stealing their food and the birds were malnourished. After some convincing, the owner let us take the birds. Chinnu and Bannu sat right next to each other and noisily chatted like boyfriend and girlfriend. One day, Chinnu got sick but recovered well after a week. When he relapsed, Chinnu passed away. Bannu was very lonely for a long time but eventually took a liking to our shelter manager, Sarada. Bannu doesn't mix with any of the other birds, but lets her foster mother handfeed her!
Sponsor the feeding of all the animals at the sanctuary for rs. 15,459, or $371 (USD) for one day to honor a special occasion, like a birthday, anniversary, or memorial. You tell us which day to commemorate with your donation!