Animal Rescue Sofia is a Bulgarian charity working to solve the - PDF document

Animal Rescue Sofia is a Bulgarian charity working to solve the stray dog problem in the country’s capital – Sofia. We manage the country’s biggest shelter – the municipal facility of Bogrov , where we house up to 450 dogs available for adoption and run our Spay/Neuter program. We work in close partnership with ARS-Netherlands and other animal welfare charities in Europe. Our main objectives are to improve the living conditions of shelter animals in Bulgaria; creating a general awareness related to responsible dog ownership; assisting the municipality in running a humane Spay/Neuter program; helping and re-homing as many dogs as possible. The shelter of Bogrov is a counterpoint of all other municipal shelters - our staff consists of animal lovers and caring profesionalists, the care and hygiene in the facility are kept up to the maximum standards. We try to set an example for the authorities in Bulgaria on how a shelter and Spay/Neuter center should be run. Animal Rescue Sofia works in close cooperation with the Municipality of Sofia , doing our best to help the dogs in the other municipal shelter in the city – the facility of Seslavci – where we feed and vaccinate the dogs, trying to re-home and save as many as we can. 1 www.ARSofia.com office@arsofia.com

As a charity, we rely on the trust and support we get from the public and animal welfare organizations and activists from abroad. Being the poorest state in the EU we struggle to support our animals on a daily basis. Food, medications and finances are of course the basics and at the same time the limits of our capacity. Nevertheless, having so many animals to care for - we have negotiated bargain low prices for our medical and feeding supplies with local importers and manufacturers. We try to engage as many volunteers as possible; the only people on paid position in ARSofia are the 2 vets, 2 veterinary technicians and 2 keepers - all of whom work in Bogrov every day of the week. Our volunteers and staff go to the municipal shelter of Seslavci every second day. We feed the dogs there 500 kg of food every week; we vaccinate the healthy and treat the ill ones. The images below present a regular day in life of the Seslavci dogs: 2 www.ARSofia.com office@arsofia.com

There are many things you can do to help the dogs of Sofia. You can support us financially via PayPal @ our website or directly through our bank-account: Animal Rescue Bulgaria Foundation ProCredit Bank BIC: PRCBBGSF IBAN: BG04PRCB92301433111011 (EUR) You can support us with food, medications and other necessary in-kind objects A full list of needed medications and medical equipment is posted on our website; Our bus carries up to 1,5 tones of food and objects from EU destinations; A wish list of needed daily equipment for the shelter is also available online. You can help us re-home some of the sweetest dogs in the Universe by fostering or organizing their admittance to your local EU shelters and animal welfare organizations. (Our dogs are re-homed vaccinated, microchipped and with a valid EU pet passport. Dogs over 6 months of age are spayed or neutered.) 3 www.ARSofia.com office@arsofia.com

For your information: In a years’ time Animal Rescue Sofia has re -homed over 700 dogs from Seslavci, Bogrov and the streets of Sofia. Our own Spay/Neuter program was launched July 2010; meanwhile we have spayed and neutered over 750 dogs at other clinics. The shelter of Bogrov has 450 inhabitants; we also have about 20 volunteer foster families working with our special cases. The population of Sofia is nearly 2 000 000 people with an estimated of 150 000 pets, of which only 3 000 registered. The stray dog population of Sofia is under 20 000, based on a count performed by the Sofia Municipality. The team of Animal Rescue Sofia sends you our best regards, hoping that you would find the time and resource to support us in our work. We appreciate your help and welcome you to our website: www.ARSofia.com Volunteer vets and keepers are welcome! Please, don’t hesitate to contact us with any questions! 4 www.ARSofia.com office@arsofia.com