PUPDATE! Help needed!

Nine puppies in two days... That's the 'pupdate' I just received from Francesca. These vulnerable little souls were taken away from their mother, only a week or two after birth, and dumped at the gates of the shelter in wooden boxes.

Luckily for them, the superhero team of volunteers at Rifugio Fata will work around the clock to nurse them and do everything they can to give them the start in life they deserve. But they need our help! These new little arrivals need milk and lots of it!

Please consider making a donation, however small, to help the team continue their amazing work with some of our most vulnerable and needy four-legged friends. You can donate via this blog by pressing the donate button at the top or bottom of this page, or you can donate directly to Rifugio Fata:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Francesca-Scerbo-Rifugio-Fata-la-pagina/223244014434430

Banc iban: Ass FATA BNL Lamezia Terme IT03P0100542840000000000271-
SWIFT BIC BNL II TRR postepay postepay 4023 6006 1576 8779
intestata ad ARDITO ANTONIO RDTNTN63CO4C352M

PAY PAL rifugiofata@libero.it
CONTO CORRENTE POSTALE INTESTATO A
LEGA NAZIONALE DIFESA DEL CANE sez. di Lamezia Terme C.C.3256513

Thank you!

Get your puppy fix! (...and your puppies fixed!)

They are adorable! They make us smile! We love them!

But, unfortunately, the puppy problem in Southern Italy is no laughing matter. Owing to a culture of 'unfixed' dogs, the number of unwanted puppies, at any one time, is through the roof. Whole litters are abandoned by the roadside, dumped in rubbish bins, or born to starving, stray mothers who struggle to feed them.

Any abandoned dog is a terrible sight to behold, but puppies are among the most helpless of them all. 

Some of these abandoned puppies - like those above - are lucky enough to be found and brought into Rifugio Fata. Others are left at the gates of the shelter in cardboard boxes. It is a huge problem, and one that the volunteers struggle with on a daily basis.

Rifugio Fata take in as many puppies as they can. They vaccinate, sterilize and microchip them. And, where possible, they find homes for them locally, or they raise the funds to send them to the North where they have a much better chance of getting adopted.

The ultimate goal of the team at Rifugio Fata is to reduce the amount of unwanted puppies by changing attitudes in their local community. The volunteers run educational campaigns promoting spaying and neutering, in the hope that less of these cute fluffballs will end up suffering on the streets.

Here are some of the lucky ones, rescued by the wonderful volunteers at Rifugio Fata:

Happiness is... being rescued by Rifugio Fata!

If you are in the mood for a pick-me-up, check out the fabulous photo gallery on Rifugio Fata's facebook page, and also on Francesca's facebook page (Francesca Scerbo Rifugio Fata la pagina). It will make you smile, I promise! And, just in case you need a reason to smile right now, here is a sneak preview: