We can't let this shelter's 200 dogs starve !

1. In Serbia, Svetlana will soon have no more kibble to feed the 200 dogs of her shelter, they will starve if nobody intervenes!

"Recent world events have put a strain on the economy of homes: they can no longer afford to take care of their animals, they abandon them on the street, and they can't give us donations... Today there are 200 dogs in my shelter! This is a very heavy workload, especially for a woman of my age. And the more dogs I rescue, the more precarious the situation becomes, I can't afford to pay all the vet fees, and I can't afford to buy enough food to feed them all properly.

It doesn't matter if I have 50, 100 or 200 dogs, the amount of donations I receive is unchanging. I can't leave my dogs hungry, but I have no choice today but to ask for your help. I usually give my dogs pig intestines, but with the heat of the summer they quickly become poison because I don't have anything to refrigerate them... So it's imperative that I find kibble to feed them quickly, because I only have kibble for two days, without the success of this campaign, they won't survive!"

2. For lack of means, Svetlana has to refuse to save the dogs from the streets: if she doesn't find kibble quickly, they will die in the street!

"I absolutely have to keep the dogs in the shelter from starving, to keep them calm, and to keep them from fighting over the kibble....  I already can't take in the most vulnerable dogs at the shelter, those that are weak or bleeding, because other stronger dogs might kill them. This behavior will get worse as the kibble shortage gets worse and I am increasingly concerned that they will kill each other.

The lack of kibble also prevents me from rescuing more stray dogs, why would I bring the animals to the shelter to starve to death? In Serbia there are many dogs in the streets, most people are afraid of them, they don't even want to look at them, let alone feed them or adopt them.

High summer temperatures make the situation even more difficult: waste becomes poison because of the heat, dogs get dehydrated, and when they get too hungry, they start killing farm animals, then people panic and poison them back. Starving dogs on the streets cause even more stigma and further alienate the population from them!"

3. Junior is so young that without kibble she has no chance to survive!

"Junior arrived a month ago, she showed up at the shelter doors by herself.... She must have been abandoned out of town when she was born because she is so young. I would love to have her adopted but she needs to gain weight first by eating kibble... She is still growing, growing up on an empty stomach is dangerous for her, she might get sick very easily because her immune system is still too fragile... I am afraid for her survival!"

4. Svetlana's meager income is not enough to counter the increase in the price of kibble since the beginning of the war in Ukraine, this campaign is her only hope.

"I don't have electricity at the shelter, we lack human and material resources, so I have to take care of a lot of tasks: cleaning, grooming, feeding, posting on social media for adoptions, dropping everything in a hurry to go catch a stray dog before it runs away... Which doesn't leave me much time to deal with the food issue. We have a lot of expenses, between veterinary care, spaying and neutering, repairs, and of course: kibble. Unfortunately, since the war in Ukraine the prices have increased and this only makes the situation worse because I receive less donations than before...

From time to time I receive additional donations, a person from Novi Sad sometimes brings me bread, a supermarket sometimes gives me leftovers for example, but they can go a whole month without calling me.  In the meantime, I can't leave the dogs hungry! I accept everything, everything that people offer me, I make sure that the dogs benefit from it, and any help is welcome. Today, without this kibble campaign, I don't know what will happen to my dogs..."

5. Svetlana is not asking for money, only kibbles to keep the dogs from starving.

"My association has existed for 12 years. It is a legit, registered and non-profit organisation. I am doing everything from rescue to administration, I make sure all requirements are met, I keep track of everything.

I am getting old, but this is keeping me alive. Even though I complain from time to time that I am exhausted, or that my legs hurt, I would not know what else to do if I stopped and would lose any willpower to live. I am 100% dedicated to this.

I fought with all my resources and power to make this possible and I am proud of that. I love each and everyone of the dogs I rescue, and will never leave them, no matter what, I will always be there for them. And I strive every single day to fight for them and make sure they are well taken care of."

6. If this campaign succeeds, Svetlana will not receive any money but 1600 kg of kibble, delivered by Animal Webaction's logistics platform in Serbia.

Animal Webaction has a logistics platform directly in Serbia, which enables us to intervene quickly and deliver kibbles.

7. Nobody supports Svetlana, neither the governmental authorities, nor the international foundations, nor the local population: the success of this kibble campaign is vital for her dogs!

“I reach out all the time to organisations, send applications, project proposals, to international foundations, the Serbian government, to the municipality, the city etc... But animal welfare is not taken seriously here, they think they should give to other causes, but not for the animals. Previously, the Brigitte Bardot Foundation has helped me as far as the sterilisations are concerned which is wonderful, but I haven't yet received a reply for my last application. 

I’m also posting the photos of the dogs at the shelter online, so people would adopt them, but the problem is that people are not coming at the shelter to see the dogs, potentially connect with them and then adopt. Frequent adoptions would decrease the number of the dogs I need to take care of, and therefore help a lot with the food issue as well."

8. Campaigns launched on Animal Webaction often fail.

When a campaign fails, Animal Webaction cannot deliver the products. The beneficiary doesn't receive anything and the buyers are refunded.

9. In Serbia, street dogs are hunted by the State and ignored by the population, volunteers like Svetlana are their only hope!

If you know of a foundation or NGO that could help Svetlana, please invite them to contact us so that we can put them in touch.

If you represent an animal welfare foundation or NGO, please help Svetlana's dogs, please contact us and we will put you in touch!

If you would like to come to Svetlana's shelter to help her or if you would like to send her kibbles or a check directly, please contact Svetlana via the association's Facebook page. (Note: direct help is your own responsibility.)

10. If you make a purchase on Animal Webaction, it will be protected by our guarantees.