In October, we told you that the USPCA will have exhausted their budget by the end of October and we needed your help to get them through November and December. And you came through-you helped! You donated enough money for the USPCA to cover shelter running costs at the "old" Haven through 2022, including spay/neuter of ~50 Haven cats and dogs awaiting surgery, but who, due to the budget shortage, hadn't yet been sterilized. THANK YOU!
Part of USPCA's (and our) challenge is that during this transition period, the USPCA is keeping two shelters running, the old Haven and the new Haven, which isn't yet fully operational. Issues beyond the USPCA's control (mainly related to bureaucracy involved in permitting) has slowed down progress at the new Haven. But as quickly as the bureaucracy will allow, the USPCA will forge ahead with construction at the new site (we'll keep you posted).
Of course, during this transition period, the USPCA continues to rescue and find homes for cats and dogs throughout Uganda. Here are some of their stories, picking up from last we reported, in July.
In a previous AKI Blog post, we told you about this very skinny boy, rescued in July, having lived on the streets of Muyenga:
Three months later, he was looking very good. He had put on weight, and was just waiting for his forever home:
This boy was rescued in mid-October with a badly injured leg:
Dr. Steven from Vetpal Clinic volunteered to come to the shelter to see what could be done, but sadly, he couldn't save the leg. Dr. Steven successfully amputated (thank you Dr. Steven!), and now this sweet dog-still at The Haven- is living pain-free:
On August 7, the USPCA team rescued yet another kitty from razor wire. Her tail and hind leg were stuck in the wire. We hate to think of how many don't get rescued-but the USPCA sure has helped many cases like this:
On October 1, a woman drove up to The Haven and dumped 7 puppies right outside the gate. Initially, the USPCA staff didn't realize what happened; they thought she just stopped and turned around. But then they saw the puppies. Thanks to their quick thinking, they were able to catch her and she told them that she can't keep the puppies and she didn't have the mama dog. The USPCA figured that the best thing for everyone was to keep the puppies at the shelter and be glad that she hadn't just thrown them out to fend for themselves:
At the very end of October, two USPCA friends reported this boy with a bad case of mange living on the street in Kabalagala and on October 31, the USPCA team rescued him. He not only had mange, he was full of ticks and fleas. As always, the USPCA bathed him, gave him flea and tick meds, he had a check-up, and he was started on mange treatment:
On the night of October 6, the USPCA team rescued this dog, who had been hit by a car along Entebbe road near Nkumba University. His spine was injured, but at The Haven, he soon responded to treatment and began walking again:
On August 16, during a heavy rain, Duncan called the USPCA to report 3 puppies in a ditch running full with rain water. The ditch was near Duncan's home in Makindye and he was able to save the puppies from drowning and get them warmed up.
The 3 puppies just after Duncan rescued them from the ditch:
The ditch, from where the puppies were rescued, running full during a heavy rain:
The USPCA went to Duncan's home and brought the puppies to the shelter. That same day, also during a heavy rain, the USPCA team rescued a very skinny mother in Ntinda with her 3 puppies. The mama dog (pictured below) is taking care of all 6 puppies now!
This dog's name (below) is Survivor. You can see why from these pictures. He was rescued at the end of October-having been left for dead. He revived and survived thanks to the good care given him by the USPCA team:
Alex rescues Survivor, not knowing if he will survive or die before they can get him back to the shelter:
This is Survivor today:
On October 3, the Kampala City Council Authority received information that 2 dogs were left behind when their owner moved away. The community asked KCCA to poison them-the dogs were leaving the compound and community members were afraid of them. Instead, KCCA's Dr. Katumba Haningtone informed the USPCA about the situation and along with the police, they went to Mbuya Plot 5 to remove the dogs and bring them to the USPCA Haven. What a difference this is from the past when KCCA would just poison the dogs and the USPCA might hear about it after-the-fact--or more likely, would never be informed. The relationship between KCCA and USPCA has improved so much thanks to the tireless efforts of Haven Manager Alex Ochieng (shown below during removal of the 2 dogs).
The police assisted in the rescue of the 2 abandoned dogs:
At the end of September, these 2 kittens were left outside the USPCA Haven gate in a box! They were brought into the shelter and given a safe place to stay:
This puppy had a tough start in life. I met her when I was visiting the USPCA in April 2022:
The puppy soon after she arrived at The Haven:
But her luck changed when she was adopted from The Haven. This is Sassy now--only the black nose looks the same!
On one day at the end of August, the USPCA got 2 phone calls about 2 dogs abandoned in 2 different places. The first dog was found outside the caller's gate in Mbuya Hill. She had a bad case of mange and was so frightened when she was rescued:
The second one was abandoned at Jiko's house, a dog trainer, who brought the little dog to The Haven. He was given a check up, shots, neutered, and soon after he was put up for adoption, he was adopted (see Ben's new pet, below).
Sometimes rescues don't end happily. Like this boy, who the USPCA rescued in August. He had been hit by a car in Kirinya Bukasa, and he was in bad shape. The USPCA was able to end his suffering-this is just as important as undertaking a successful rescue. We always want to remember those who didn't make it:
In early October, a woman carrying a plastic bag came to The Haven:
What could be inside?
She was welcomed to the shelter and given a comfy spot in one of the catteries.
On the morning of September 10, another rainy day, the USPCA rescued 3 abandoned mama dogs and their puppies from 2 different places. One mother with 9 puppies:
And 2 mothers with 7 puppies:
And that's not ALL the rescues over the last few months! Imagine what would happen without the USPCA!? Thanks to your help, we don't have to. We are grateful to you that the USPCA has the funds to operate through 2022. The USPCA relies on Animal-Kind International donors to cover a significant portion of their operating costs, including rent of the old Haven, salaries, cat and dog food, and transportation costs so the USPCA can continue to rescue cats and dogs like those above.
Several USPCA pets were adopted in the last few months, but nowhere near as many as entered in the shelter. These are a few recent adoptions.
In early August, Willy adopted Honey:
On October 16, Roberta the cat was adopted:
In August, Safura and her family adopted this little kitty:
In early September, 4 USPCA animals went to their forever homes. Camille and Tabitha adopted 2 kitties:
Ben adopted this SWEET pup:
Bichen adopted this SWEET pup:
At the end of August, Hanna was getting ready to take her new USPCA pet back to Holland. Life for our Nemo, who had been a 5-legged dog(!), was about to become a fairy tale, and we're sure he and Hanna will live happily ever after:
This is Nemo in 2019 at The Haven. You can see how his front leg is split into 2 legs. It was dangerous-it could easily get caught on something and end up horribly injured, so instead the leg was amputated as you can see above. That didn't stop Hanna from wanting to take him home (thank you Hanna!)
