Updated: June 2024
Dear donor and friend, recently we had to say farewell to our dear buddy Beto. Let me share our most heartfelt homage to him, knowing that his spirit always will be with us.
Beto passed away. Our companion for seven years, our not-mellow-bear, our free-thinker.
You arrived emaciated, grumpy and very distrustful, condemned for the first few years to be alone, because all the other dogs bothered you, and you became a hermit by your own choice. As soon as we moved to another shelter, your safe haven, your behavior changed completely, both physically and behaviorally, your fur never shined as much as in recent years. For the first time you received attention and affection, you revitalized and rejuvenated, enjoying the company of an entire harem. You gracefully skipped grooming days, because vanity was not your thing.
But when it came to the flying-cookie game, you were always in the front row. You were so generous, an old soul with a huge heart, lacking selfishness, you lived fully and shared the best of yourself, and now simply you left, giving space to another being, needy of love and care. You don't know how much we're going to miss you. Your life on earth is over.
But somewhere over the rainbow, far above, our love for each other continues to nourish us.
Updated: Junio 2024
Dear donor and friend. This story is too good to not to be told. We live in the countryside and there is one strict rule: wildlife stays outdoor. But lately we noticed, in a blink of an eye, strange shadows scurrying by, crumbs like cumin seeds on the floors and a subtle rustling in the drawers.
OMG!!!! Ratatouille declared himself chef de cuisine and invited his family to make themselves comfortable in the house. We had a problem. And at that point, you might say “get a cat and the mice will disappear”. Good point. Well, we have three cats. We recently adopted two kittens and their excuse is understandable. They are still too young to go hunting, but they are willing to start training lessons. They already mastered the first prep class, which includes jumping, hiding, catching and vomiting spiders. You can’t expect more. And then, there is Inti, our 14 years old retired cat. To be honest, since we adopted him ten years ago, he has been a pensioner and animal protector. Never killed a living being, but loves tuna. His devotion for our mice is generous and unlimited.
You won´t believe it, but at nights he snuggles with Ratatouille’s great-grandfather. In the meantime, Ratatouille and some of his sisters are busy preparing the meal. Finally we bought a special trap that won’t kill our intruders, and let me tell you, it’s still true that you catch mice with cheese. Every time I set one member of the Ratatouilles free, early in the mornings, far away from the house, I feel somehow sorry and I wish them good luck. May you always find a way to feed your family, tiny little Ratatouille!!!
Updated: October 2023
Dear donor and friend! There was that message, that changed so many lives. “We found an extremely malnourished puppy, can you help?”. When we reached the place and saw that tiny pup, we were so shocked, that we refused to trust our eyes. She could barely walk, a mere skeleton with big honey colored eyes, so frightful, so desperate. Many tears were shed during the drive to the vet, tears of impotence, indignation and compassion.
We called her Malala, as a symbol for courage, resilience and survival. She stayed at a foster’s for one month, gained weight and learned that there are still loving and caring humans in her world. We found out that she has a far too big heart, supposedly due to her advanced state of malnutrition, which does not affect her wellbeing so far, but has to be observed during her first year of life. Malala is a pup of four months and wanted to play, but at the foster’s only were seniors who forgot puppy language, and the cats weren’t very enthusiastic about her invitations to play catch, neither. Which changed, when Mila came into her life, another abandoned and neglected puppy.
Same age, same vibes, same size, one heart. Soul mates, ready to start a new life together. They became inseparable, and even sleep together, hugged tightly. But who would possibly adopt them? And then the real wonder happened. We made a video call with a family interested in Malala and when they saw them together, they opened their hearts and made space for both. Just two days ago they moved into their new home!!! A fairy tale came true for Malala and Mila.
Updated: June 2023
Dear donor and friend. You are doing such a wonderful job and we are so excited to share our progress with you. So far, 320 dogs and cats got neutered, and counting!! The whole project has turned into a great lesson for all the participants. At first, we felt so sorry to return the dogs to the street, but we learned that the majority of the strays are well adapted to their life and happy to continue making new friends, begging for bread and meat and barking at the motor-cycles. The very convincing example is Rocky, who spent his postoperative week with all the luxury he as a stray could possibly dream of. But in spite of enjoying his vacation, he lost weight and got depressed. When we finally opened the door to let him out, he directly went to a puddle for a tasty gulp. And then he put a big smile on his face and went directly to the bakery to ask for bread. Not every stray wants to be rescued, but they all want to be noticed, they love a friendly word or a juicy piece of sausage. However, there are the vulnerable and the tiny ones, which we can’t return to a dangerous or hostile environment. They stay at a foster home, until we find their perfect match. Thank you so much for your support, for being so generous, for making the difference. You are already an important part in the hearts of 320 dogs and cats, ….. and counting!!!!!!
Updated: June 2023
Dear donor and friend, let me present our new member, Uncle Tom. His story begins on the side of the road, and almost ends there. They left him there to die, and when Martha found him, he was agonizing. There was no time to think twice, he needed veterinary attention immediately!! Due to an old injury, dehydration, the lack of muscle mass and a dramatic weight loss, he was in a lot of pain and had to be hospitalized during one week. Like any human anorexic patient, he was connected day and night to a cocktail of physiological serum, painkillers, and medicines to stabilize his kidneys. One week later he was ready to start his next adventure and a new life in the shelter. We were so excited, when we welcomed him, we didn’t expect such a brave, sweet oldie. Effortlessly, he limped and hobbled into our hearts, his honey-colored eyes full of gratitude and wisdom. Actually he enjoys his life as a pensioner, he loves sunbathing, he loves his soups á la carte, he loves being petted and he loves gossiping with the elders. The others look at him with pity, opining “it’s time for a wheelie, ol’ boy”, but he proudly shakes his head “not yet, buddies, not yet”.
Updated: September 2021
Dear donors and friends, Every dog and cat has its own story, which might be forgotten when we accept them into our spay/neuter program and they turn into numbers once it is officially registered and microchipped.
That is why we don’t practice mass sterilizations, because we want to know our buddies and it is so amazing to witness that our project really changes lives. Only one dog picturedbelow had to be sent back to the street, a survivor, a modern Steppenwolf. Let me introduce our June-to-September-group and let me tell you that we are so proud of you for being a part of this project.
051: A homeless tabby cat had a litter of kittens, which easily were given away into forever homes. A local vet also found adopters for the mom and we spayed her before she went to her new home, enjoying tuna and her gym.
052-053-054: Two female puppies and a female poodle mix, abandoned on the parking lot of a restaurant. A famous place not only for hungry tourists, but also a meeting point for all the stray dogs left there. The puppies presented complications after surgery, but after their recovery they luckily found forever homes. So did the poodle mix!!
055-056: A male and a female puppy were found hidden on a construction site. With the help of caring neighbors and our publications, they were q adopted. Their new families signed a compromise to get them neutered and two months later we all met at the vet’s.
057: They didn’t want her anymore and left her at the vet’s. The groomer gave her a lady-look, she was spayed and she got adopted in a wink.
058: A champion of the streets, an impressive big yellow female dog, who was released after being spayed. It’s a shame that we forgot to take a pic.
059: Pittielove!!!! Though she has a family, she was destined to give birth every so often. After various tries to convince her owner, he finally gave in and she was spayed before he could change his mind again.
060: Enana, a beautiful Jack Russell mix, didn´t have an easy life. She was reported as an abandoned and injured senior dog, hit by a motorbike, and stayed about two months hospitalized, recovering from a hip fracture. Everyone fell in love with her, she is such a sweetie, who after sterilization finally found a loving family.
061: Barbas has quite a story to tell. He was abused by his former owners, beaten and tortured because he was a feared chicken-killer. We got informed by the community and he came to a foster home, was neutered and sent to a groomer, just when a family showed up willing to adopt him. The first nights were glorious, because he slept in the same bed together with his human brother, a boy of six or seven. But then again some naughty chickens stepped into his life and the family’s dream was over. Poor little boy. They lied to him in order to explain the inexplicable. Barbas was luckier. A “city woman” (no chickens!!!) saw his pic on Facebook and now he lives in an apartment with two sister cats and a loving mom. And they lived happily ever after.
062: A peasant came to ask if we could help him to spay his Beagle , because she had puppies twice a year. We were happy to help her to have a better life. There was no time for a photo, sorry.
063: The creole Spaniel lives with our local recyclers, and as they told us, it has been quite a productive life so far. A volunteer fostered her during some postoperative days and now she’s back with her family, no worries, no more puppies!!
064: This sweet Yorkie is a recent puppy mill rescue. One of our volunteers saved her from an urban puppy mill and adopted her right away. Surgery proved that she must have had a lot of litters. She is safe now, a sweet little whirlwind ready for a new life.
The credit is due to all of you!!! Thank you so much for your generosity.!!!
Updated: January 2022
Every rescue has a story. Some are risky, while others are tricky, funny, dramatic, traumatic or even cinematic. All rescue stories are worthy of sharing because they are strongly connected to our work and reflect our engagement and philosophy. Cat Felix represents painful rescue, at least for me!!
There is always a plastic house with some kibbles and a blanket in our front garden, which is visited by feral cats or opossums at night. By daylight, we never noticed any movements, until that day in September three years ago, when I saw a black and white furball hiding under the car. I didn’t even notice that the little house was permanently inhabited, but this stranger clearly had been using it as shelter for some time! In order to give him the opportunity of being neutered and adopted, I went looking for a cat cage and when I was sure that the cat was sleeping innocently in his temporary house, I prepared a challenging move from one cage to another. Though I knew that a panicking cat can quickly turn into an attacking panther, there was no time to hesitate. It had to be done. A scared thunderball came out and instead of jumping directly into the safest cage, he tried to escape and the attempt to rescue him would have been in vain. So I grabbed him, just like the mother cats hold their newborn kittens. But this one was no newborn kitten and I understood he would fight to free himself desperately. And he did. He scratched my arm and he bit my hand, until I finally could throw him into the cat cage and the wrestling match was over.
The next day we headed to the vetin order to get him neutered and found out that the fierce fighter still had some surprises for me: he was already sterilized and he wore a collar with his name and a phone number on it. What a lucky Felix!! How brave and determined he was!!! I immediately called his family who almost did not believethat their beloved pet who went missing for four months, had been found 50 km away from his home. After the vet cleaned a deep wound caused by the collar that had slipped under one of his arms, the family was happily reunited.
For me the story ended in a hospital bed, with a swollen hand and some badly infected bites and scratchesh wounds. The moral of the story: if you want to rescue a cat, be prepared!! … and use some leather gloves.
Updated: August 2021
Dear donors and friends!! May I introduce TOPO to you? He stepped into my life exactly one year ago, so brave, so determined to start a new life and enjoy it. Nobody knows his age, but he is arthritic, slightly deaf, completely blind and senile (Canine Cognitive Dysfunction). And he was a stray, then additionally with a strong vestibular problem that caused equilibrium loss, because of dehydration and malnutrition. He was a mess, terribly disorientated and no one would ever adopt him. So I took him in and made him my master. I learned that disability is a concept made up by humans.
I am so amazed by his willingness to adapt to a totally new lifestyle, by his endless joy and laughter, yes!!, laughter!!! And by his patience, when he butts against obstacles or gets stuck under the chair.
He inspired me to learn more about canine dementia, sundown syndrome and brain games, and eventually he encouraged me to create this very project Safe Haven. Topo is the lucky one. But there are so many strays out there and though they have learned to defend themselves while they are still young, becoming deaf, blind and confused altogether, is not the best combination to survive on the street. Thank you so much for your support, for opening your hearts for the most vulnerable elderlies and for being an important part of Safe Haven.
Updated: February 2020
They found him on the side of a rural road, among garbages, such as old mattresses and plastic bags. He was enclosed in a large trash bag, but a neighbor saw the bundle moved and opened it. Something monstrous came out, big, almost hairless, with terrible scabies, that disfigured his face, with swollen eyes, also with machete cuts on his face, legs and body covered by fungus. He spent two weeks lingering around, hiding from people, too gentle to even kill a chicken. He escaped twice from people who wanted to kill him, the first time with an injection, the second time with poisoned food, which another dog devoured, sacrificing himself for Tintín.
He became part of my life very humbly, because he simply laid down in front of my house, too weak and tired, waiting for his death and vultures flying around.
I finally got the message, that this monster was not a threat, but an opportunity.
I started to give him food, which he always celebrated with joyful leaps and pirouettes. With the help of a veterinarian we healed his wounds, his terrible skin problems.
For several years, all too few, that Great Manakin formed a very important part of my family. He never stopped doing his famous pirouettes before receiving his food, as a pure tribute to life.
When he died, a legend died, but his spirit remained, which still fills us with courage and tenderness. It all started with him, he is the real founder of VIVATMA, and each rescued dog carries his message of wisdom and unconditional love in their eyes, their soul.
Our first purpose in this life is to help others (Dalai Lama).
