What makes Rifugio Fata different?

In Italy, municipal dog shelters receive government funding on a 'per dog' basis. This means that the more dogs a kennel is housing and the less they care for them, the more money they make. Unfortunately, in many cases, this leads to horrible cases of overcrowding and neglect in the dog pounds for our four-legged friends. 

Francesca and her team at Rifugio Fata are doing things differently. Rifugio Fata does not receive any government money. Instead, they are part of a dynamic, loving, non-profit organization and they are funded entirely by donations. The dogs are well looked after by a dedicated team of volunteers, and they place great emphasis on promoting education initiatives and attitude changes in the local community. 

Unfortunately there isn't much of a culture of local adoption in Southern Italy, and so the team work hard to promote their adoption program. Every dog that finds a loving home means not only a happy ending for that dog, but also a new space at Rifugio Fata for another stray in need. Rifugio Fata uses social media outlets such as Facebook to help raise funds and to post dogs who are ready for adoption. Francesca also helms community outreach programs. taking her team of volunteers out onto the streets and opening up Rifugio Fata to visitors. 

Sadly, many of the dogs brought into the shelter are suffering from psychological issues. Rifugio Fata runs a rehab program to help traumatized dogs rebuild their trust in humans. Once the dogs have gained confidence, they are given formal training to help prepare them for adoption.

The team at Rifugio Fata are dedicated to raising awareness and promoting responsible dog ownership. They make their training programs accessible to the local community to help foster caring, positive relationships between owners and their dogs. They also host special events at the shelter and they run campaigns to promote microchipping, vaccinations and, above all, neutering.

So many of the dog-related problems in Southern Italy are rooted in cultural attitudes. One of the biggest goals at Rifugio Fata is to educate the community and provide resources, so that the bond between humans and their dogs can be maximized, and, ultimately, less of our four-legged friends will end up suffering on the streets.