Congratulations FOXY!

Little Foxy was one of the many puppies abandoned by the roadside in Southern Italy during the summer. Thanks to the fantastic team at Rifugio Fata, she was given a second chance. She was brought in to the shelter, microchipped, vaccinated and spayed. Not only that, she was posted on facebook and her unique charms caught somebody's eye. Foxy has now been adopted into a loving home, and her troubles are firmly behind her. Congratulations Foxy!

Brad says, SPONSOR ME...?

Remote adoption is a wonderful way to support the dogs at Rifugio Fata. If there is a particular dog that you want to help - like Brad (pictured above) for example - you can sponsor that dog for a nominal fee. Rifugio Fata will then send you photos and updates from your Southern Italian friend! They will love you forever! 

It is easy and fun. All you have to do is contact Francesca at Rifugio Fata via Facebook: Francesca Scerbo Rifugio Fata. OR send an email to:adozionirifugiofata@libero.it Once your adoption request is received, Rifugio Fata will send you a form to be filled out. You can let them know which lucky resident you have chosen (er, Brad, perhaps?) and for how long you would like to adopt that particular dog.

The cost of sponsoring a dog is:

10 Euros for one month

40 Euros for six months

100 Euros for a year

Any amount you choose will change your new friend's life for the better!

You can transfer the amount to Rifugio Fata's bank with the reference: Adozioni

RIFUGIO FATA

Ass FATA

BNL Lamezia Terme

IBAN: IT03P0100542840000000000271

SWIFT/BIC BNL II TRR

or PAYPAL: rifugiofata@libero.it

Once Rifugio Fata has received your form and your donation, your adoption will be confirmed and your new friend at Rifugio Fata will let out an ecstatic hoot! (Brad says his hoot will, without a doubt, be the loudest!)

Remote adoption not only provides your chosen four-legged friend with the support they so desperately need, it also helps Rifugio Fata shoulder the cost of feeding the rest of their 160+ residents. 

Remote adoption makes a lovely gift for a family member or a child. One dog can be adopted by more then one person. It just means they have a bigger family... all looking out for their welfare. Brad says, What could be better than THAT??!!

Make a new Southern Italian friend TODAY! And become part of the Rifugio Fata family...

Penelope: A happy story from Rifugio Fata

Penelope was found at the gates of Rifugio Fata. Sadly, every day, dogs and puppies are dumped on the road to the shelter. Even with their walls overflowing, the team at the shelter do what they can to take them all in, treat them for medical problems and find them loving homes. And every day, it is an enormous challenge to make ends meet and to find people willing to open their doors to a new four-legged friend.

Penelope was found, like so many, in a state of neglect. She was malnourished, suffering from skin issues and in desperate need of some TLC. The team took her in and cared for her, and slowly she regained her health and her confidence. 

Meanwhile, a family in Turin (Northern Italy) had spotted Penelope on Rifugio Fata's facebook page and fallen in love with her. In a happy turn of events for Penelope, the family decided to adopt her and she made her journey North, to a brand new love-filled life.

How you can help

We have chosen to support Rifugio Fata for a number of reasons. Not only did they help save Vito's life at a time when we could, literally, find no other options, but they are also operating in a part of the world where the stray dog problem is huge, and proactive organizations are rare. As you can see from previous posts, the team at Rifugio Fata work tirelessly to save dogs and give them a second chance. But they are also committed, through their grass roots efforts, to affecting change beyond their gates, out in the community and beyond.

It is hard to hear about the suffering of animals, but it is always inspiring to hear about people who are making a difference. By donating to Rifugio Fata we are helping those who are lucky enough to be living there, but we are also supporting a broader effort.

Every day, dogs and puppies are brought in to Rifugio Fata or left at their gate. Their walls are bursting, and their food and vet's bills are endless. In order to keep doing what they are doing, they need our help.

There are a number of ways you can support this wonderful mission. The quickest way is to click on the donate button on this blog and make a one time donation of any amount. Every little bit helps. You will automatically receive a 'grinning Vito' pic as a thank you! I am excited to see how much we can raise for Rifugio Fata on Vito's behalf in the coming days, and the final amount will be posted here.

Other ways you can help... 

MEMBERSHIP: Rifugio Fata offers memberships. By donating a chosen amount and signing up for a membership, you will receive regular emails, photos and updates from the shelter.

REMOTE ADOPTION: Remote adoption is a fun way to support the dogs at Rifugio Fata. If there is a particular dog that you want to help, you can sponsor that dog for a nominal fee. Rifugio Fata will then send you photos and regular updates from your Southern Italian friend!

MERCH: Rifugio Fata also sells t-shirts and jewelry in order to raise money, and you can order these lovely items through their facebook page.

You can find more information on these options on the Rifugio Fata facebook page. Just tell Francesca that Vito sent you! And for those who don't speak Italian, Francesca also has her own facebook page, Francesca Scerbo. One of Vito's lovely friends, Katharina, is now helping her to manage her page and translate it into English. Or you can call Francesca: +39 3405910203. She is also on WhatsApp.

You can also email us on this blog if you have any questions or need more info.

And finally, one of the best ways to support any mission is to...

SPREAD THE WORD! 

Vito and his friends say thank you thank you thank you from the bottom of their hearts!

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.

Click on this fun video to take a look inside Rifugio Fata... (4 mins)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w01JQk90Ej8 

... And to see all the happy faces at feeding time! The team at Rifugio Fata are doing incredible work and they rely solely on donations. Please consider making a contribution, however small. Every dollar we raise will help to put more food in their buckets... and more wags in their tails!

The incredible story of PUPO

We were very lucky to find Vito only a month after he was dumped. He was thin and very lonely, but, other than that, he was healthy. A lot of the stray dogs in Southern Italy are not so lucky. Some of them are in a terrible condition when they are abandoned. Others end up on the streets for months, living alone, suffering from life-threatening health conditions and barely surviving. Pupo was one of the unlucky ones, but his luck changed dramatically the day he was brought into Rifugio Fata.

Pupo was found in an appalling state in October 2011. He was starving, dehydrated and seriously ill. He was suffering from horrendous neglect and he was terrified. Francesca and her team took him in and nursed him around the clock, giving him the care and support he so desperately needed. Little by little, he began to recover. Within just a matter of months, Pupo had made an incredible turnaround. He regained his health and his confidence, and he was adopted by a loving family.

Check out Pupo's amazing transformation:

As Francesca put it, "This is what our love can do..."