We can't let these abandoned dogs starve!

1. In Serbia, Ivana is almost out of kibble to feed the street dogs, abandoned by the dozen. They will starve if nobody intervenes!

"Stray dogs have never been in a worse condition than the one they are now, and their number is constantly growing at an alarming rate despite our best efforts to keep it stable, I feel terrible because of it. The cases of dogs hit by cars have grown significantly. Only in the last two weeks, there has been one dog whose three legs and jaw were broken, another one with a broken pelvis and a third one with an open fracture of his thigh bone. 

There are many dogs I wish I was able to save and bring to my shelter. However, I am unable to do so as I might not be able to nurture them and feed them enough, I don’t have enough resources and I can barely make the ends meet with the dogs that I already have in my shelter.

Right now I have around 27 kilograms of kibble that I use to feed all of the dogs, both in the shelter and on the streets. I have had so many sleepless nights as it is always very difficult for me to provide the dogs with food every day. They are also living beings that need food as we do. It wasn't their choice to be left on the street, it was done by people and that has always been so wrong and painful to me, I just feel the need to help them."

2. Rajko has been living on the streets for several years, at the mercy of disease and abuse. He will not be able to survive on his own if Ivana cannot bring him any more kibble.

"Rajko appeared on the streets about 2 years ago. He was struggling to interact with people at first, as he had been mistreated before. Like many others, I can't take him to the shelter as I don"t have enough resources to keep him, even if I would love to have him at the shelter. 

He is as healthy as he can be on the streets, he has a lot of ticks as he is exposed to them all the time, and along with them to a certain number of diseases. He is a friendly and calm dog of about 4 years old. 

If I can't provide these dogs with food anymore, their health will worsen, and they could start fighting with each other. Fights and noise always scare the locals and then the dogs are treated badly and hunted down by the dogcatchers"

3. At the shelter and in makeshift shelters, some 60 dogs also depend on Ivana for food, they, too, are threatened by the shortage of kibble.

"We currently care for 47 dogs between the shelter and a makeshift one in an abandonned house, without counting 13 additional dogs hosted at my friend's house. We are only two volunteers, there is Jelena and I, all of these dogs rely solely on us, which is terrifying. 

Right now my biggest issue and fear is that I won’t have enough resources to feed these dogs and that’s something I can’t let happen as they are our responsibility.  It wouldn’t be fair to save them from the streets and bad conditions, and then just treat them poorly ourselves in the shelter, it is my duty to keep them happy and healthy.

I fear that we will have to stop helping dogs to this extent as we will not be able to do so both financially and also mentally. Still, our help mean so much for these animals, a huge number of them wouldn't be alive if I wasn't there to help them and nurture them. This whole situation is very hard on our mental health."

4. Crni was hit by a car a few months ago and suffered multiple fractures and a head injury. He is still vulnerable and needs kibble to survive.

"I rescued Crni back in November, after he was hit by a car. His head, his tigh bone and his tail were fractured, I immediately took him to the vet to save him. He recovered, but one of his legs that was fractured is now shorter, so he doesn't use it as much as the others.

Crni needs high quality food, his bones and joints will never recover properly from this accident, and he is still having some issues. Any lack of food could worsen his health as he remains fragile, he is a good and happy dog, he needs us to care for him."

5. Donations in decline, adoptions on hold, debts that keep on growing... The pandemic has had a heavy impact on Ivana's resources, she can no longer buy kibble.

"The other volunteer and I manage our rescue solely from our own earnings. We generally don't receive much help, the number of donations has dropped as many people have lost their jobs or are in a difficult situation due to the pandemic, that is understandable. Also, adoptions got stuck for a while as the customs were closed, which has caused us more financial problems as we had more dogs to feed and nurture.

It is very hard to finance myself and my needs, which always take a back seat, and the needs of all of these dogs. We simply don’t have enough resources to even cover some basic needs for them. I've been unable to buy kibble for quite some time now, I am very lucky that pet shops have been willing to give me food on instalments so far, but I owe more than 1200€ now, it is only a matter of time before they stop providing me with food without paying the debt first. Same goes for veterinary costs, as I owe around 700€ already. For our living standard here in Serbia that is too much and it is unbearable.

It would help me a lot if this campaign succeeds, I can't even imagine that my dogs don't have anything to eat. That would totally devastate me."

6. Ivana is not asking for money, only kibble to prevent the dogs from starving.

"It all started when I found 2 dogs that were sick and had distemper. When we nurtured them back to health we couldn't just carry them back to the streets. Gradually we started adding more dogs there as there were, and still are, many dogs that are homeless and that need medical help. 

I've been helping stray dogs ever since I was capable to do so, ever since I became aware of how endangered they are. Also, there are many dog owners that keep their dogs in inhuman conditions and sometimes we have to take those dogs from the owners and provide them with the normal and happy life that they deserve. I am very happy when I see a dog, that I saved from imminent death, happy and healthy with a new family.

I am also very proud that I have sterilized, with the help of my friends, of course, a lot of dogs. The number of dogs would be much higher if we didn't do that. And I am proud that the municipality has agreed to take a census of all the dogs in the area, and offer free chipping and sterilization to all of the owners. I have to dedicate a huge amount of my time to the dogs, but I also have a job that I need to provide for them, that leaves me with no time for myself. I need help from other people to lift some of the heavy load that I took upon myself. "

7. If this campaign succeeds, Ivana will not receive any money but 2300 kg of kibble, delivered from Animal Webaction's logistics platform in Serbia.

Animal Webaction dispose d'une plateforme logistique directement en Serbie, qui lui permet d'intervenir rapidement et de livrer des croquettes.

8. Ivana's few friendly associations have already done their utmost, her calls for donations are not working, she needs this campaign to succeed.

"I am in contact with the French association Les Gloutons Garoux, who have helped us tremendously over the past few years. There is another organisation in the UK that helps us to adopt the dogs to either UK or France. That help is also very appreciated, but it is also limited as they also need food for the dogs and sometimes lack resources themselves. Other than those two organisations I haven't managed to be helped by any other.

I did try to organise some fundraising to be able to pay off some debt, but the response is very bad and it never works. Most of the local people look at us like we are some weirdos, they are not so well-meaning or kind and don't help us. People that wish to help already have their own animals and don't want to take more responsibility upon themselves.

The whole uncertainty of whether I will have enough food and will the shops allow me to get more food from them is absolutely hard and stressful to me. I just hope that people will become more aware of their surroundings and that they will realise that they have to live with all of the living beings in harmony and not mistreat them."

9. Campaigns launched on Animal Webaction often fail.

Quand une récolte échoue, Animal Webaction ne peut pas Iivrer les produits récoltés, le bénéficiaire ne reçoit rien et les acheteurs sont remboursés.

10. In Serbia, street dogs are hunted by the state and ignored by the population, volunteers like Ivana are their only hope.

If you know of a foundation or NGO that could help Ivana, 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 Ivana's dogs, contact us and we will put you in touch!

If you would like to drop by Pongo's shelter to help Ivana or if you would like to send her kibbles or a check directly, contact Ivana via Facebook (note: direct help is your own responsibility).

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