Advocates work to get animals off the streets and into loving homes
Print Edition
LIKE many cities in the world, Prague has its share of stray animals. Yet, it also has many dedicated volunteers working for the welfare of these unfortunate critters.
Known as “útulku,” a volunteer-based, privately-run dog shelter, gets five to ten calls weekly about homeless dogs.
“Some are just lost, but the majority have been abandoned by their owners who no longer want them because they’ve moved, they’ve had a break-up, have new-born children, or have no time to keep them,” Andrea Petrikovitlova, a veterinarian at Prague’s veterinary clinic “Petriny,” said.
Under Czech law, homeless animals should be taken to shelters. Across the country, there are more than 200 shelters for homeless dogs and cats.
The shelter “útulku” rescues about 30 dogs annually, most of which will eventually be placed in permanent homes.
It also focuses on educating the public on responsible pet ownership. This means encouraging animal adoption from shelters and urging owners to spay and neuter their animals. Toward this end, the shelter hosts regular visits from local school children, who come to hear more about animal protection.
Still though, many shelters struggle to secure funding. Volunteers at “útulku” had to pay for its day-to-day operations out of their own pockets before they became better known to the public.
“We managed to gradually attract donors — individuals, as well as businesses — by organizing fund-raising events, publishing articles in magazines and having short TV spots. We also struck up cooperations with endowment funds to cover our expenses for dogs’ surgeries, food and other expenses,” Azyl Liben said.
Another non-profit organization “Nadace na ochranu zvírat” gets funding from public charity collection. It also participates in online charitable projects that coordinate with e-shops, such as LevneElektro.cz and Zoohit.cz.
Still, advocates say there is more that can be done to protect pets from harm. For instance, they have called for legislators in the country to create measures that curb the operation of puppy mills and impose harsh punishments on animal abuses.
“I believe the future for animals in the Czech Republic will be brighter,” Petrikovitlova said.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
