We cannot let the 174 dogs at Svetlana’s shelter starve!

1. In Serbia, Svetlana will soon be out of kibble to feed her shelter’s 174 dogs. They will starve if no one helps! 

“I have 174 dogs at the shelter and unfortunately, there are more abandoned dogs than ever! I feel very pessimistic, as the number of dogs is increasing and the low adoption rate doesn’t help create a balance… Covering the shelter’s daily expenses and meeting the dogs’ needs is really hard: I’m facing many issues, but the biggest ones are definitely my growing debts at the vet and kibble scarcity…

Providing the dogs with kibble in these inflationary times is a huge, challenging source of concern… It’s the biggest item, as tons of it are required each month so they can all eat! But with such high prices and insufficient donations, I barely have room for manoeuvre to keep them healthy and fed… I’m worrying a lot: right now, I only have two days of kibble left!

This is a very difficult situation for my dogs, the shelter and myself… I can’t sleep at night, I always worry a lot, I often cry, overthinking how I can manage to find kibble and keep my dogs safe… They really need help and I can’t let them down! That’s why this campaign must succeed, it is so crucial for them! I don’t even want to think about what would happen to them if I can’t get any kibble…”

2. Cheap kibble makes the dogs sick and tensions will rise as the stock dwindles: Svetlana fears for their safety if this campaign fails...    

“I can’t buy anything better than the cheapest, most basic kibble… The dogs only seem to get enough to eat - visually, what may appear as a good amount of kibble does not bring the essential nutrients and proteins in proper quantities, when it’s such cheap food! They’re affected in terms of both behaviour and health…

The poor quality of the kibble has already taken a toll on their health, with many of them suffering from diarrhoea - they have a hard time getting used to this type of food… They’re also very nervous when I feed them! This diet only leads to aggressiveness and fights among the dogs - I don’t want to experience that ever again!

Taking care and rescuing fragile dogs from the streets is also a big responsibility for me: they’re absolutely vulnerable to food shortages and the consequences can be severe on them! The weakest of them are in danger the most… I worry so much about my dogs getting sicker and/or more aggressive if I can’t provide enough quality kibble… This campaign is essential for their survival!”

3. Little Mica is almost blind and deaf: reliant on Svetlana, he won't survive without kibble… 

“I recently rescued Mica from the streets… He was very thin and weak, so I knew I had to take him to the shelter to help him recover... Despite being very young, he already has quite a few health conditions: he’s semi-blind and has trouble hearing! 

He recently had surgery for cherry eyes, but it is sadly already coming back… He needs eye drops daily and he’ll probably have to get another eye surgery… But he’s so puny, he really needs to put on weight to be in better shape… 

His limitations would have made it too hard for him to find food and survive on the streets - it’s even more obvious when I see how much he depends on me! He needs constant care and help. To be healthier, stronger and start to have a normal existence with the other dogs, he needs this kibble delivery!“

4. Inflation hits Svetlana's finances hard: with heavy debts and scarce donations, she only has this campaign left to feed her dogs...   

"At first, it was much easier to manage kibble supply with just a small number of dogs and funding solely from my salary... But now, with so many more dogs and limited resources, it's become increasingly difficult! My debts for kibble and at the vet are high and growing, and the lack of donations has only made things worse… I do my best to keep the shelter running and provide for the dogs, but the high inflation makes it so difficult! 

I've even had to put a lot of things on hold - from repairs to new houses to surgeries - just to make ends meet! Even the online fundraising is not enough to only partially cover my debts and the cost of kibble, let alone anything else… The lack of resources is emotionally overwhelming and affects my motivation to continue rescuing dogs in need… Yet I keep fighting for their survival and I just can't bear the thought of what might happen if this campaign fails…”

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

“My focus has always been on rescuing the most endangered dogs, and over the years, the number of dogs in the shelter has increased. At the beginning, I could only rescue a few dogs, but now, there are many dogs who are still recovering from their misfortunes… Despite the difficulties I face year after year, my love for dogs and my desire to help them keeps me going! I keep doing sterilisation actions, which are essential and I also managed to vaccinate all the dogs around the New Year!

Still, many people don't understand my actions: they don't see why I would do something like this without any benefit…. I continuously have to explain that my actions and running a shelter are a reflection of my love for dogs and my desire to help them... Here, abandonment and animal welfare issues aren't dealt with, which is the biggest problem… Despite all this, I will continue to do what I do because I believe in it: the dogs need me, so I need to do my best for them!”

6. If this campaign succeeds, Svetlana will not receive any money, but 1600 kg of kibble, delivered from the Animal Webaction logistics centre in Serbia.

Animal Webaction has a logistics centre in Serbia which allows us to intervene quickly and deliver kibble.

7. Despite her supporters' help, Svetlana is unable to collect enough donations to feed the dogs: this campaign must not fail!

“I collaborate with a Dutch organisation and recently a Czech one - they’ve helped me collect some donations and food… Their help is really precious to me but it remains sadly insufficient to cover all my dogs’ needs.

If only I had more adoptions… But they’ve been tough lately, probably due to the bad economic situation and the trend of buying dogs instead of adopting... I feel lucky to be currently preparing 2 of my dogs for adoption - good and trustworthy adopters were found, much to my relief! 

This Animal Webaction kibble campaign is extremely important to me: although I try my best, my calls for help aren’t successful enough, contrary to these campaigns… They allow me to secure the kibble issue and are life-saving for my dogs!”

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 a foundation or an NGO for animal protection, please help Sveltana's dogs, contact us and we will put you in touch!

If you wish to go to the association's shelters to help or if you want to send her directly some kibbles or a cheque, contact Svetlana  (note: direct help is done on your own responsibility).

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