...And play hard!

The team at Rifugio Fata know that any time spent in a shelter - no matter how good the shelter is -  is a poor substitute for family life, so they do their very best, with the resources they have, to make life as enjoyable as possible for their four-legged residents. Unlike so many shelters in Southern Italy, the dogs at Rifugio Fata are given regular access to open areas and lots of human interaction. 

A big part of a happy life for any dog is playtime. As well as working on training and rehabilitation, the dogs at Rifugio Fata are also given time to stretch their legs and let off steam. This summer, Rifugio Fata friend and fundraiser, Katharina Pils-Leimer, donated a paddling pool to help them stave off the summer heat, and give the dogs a playtime treat.

Some of the dogs leapt right in, while others took a little persuading, but everybody agreed that a paddling pool was a fantastic summertime gift! Thank you Katharina!

Rifugio Fata is entirely self-funded, and so financial support is always welcome. And if you can think of a useful or fun gift to send them, to help boost life at the shelter, that is also a lovely way to support these sweet doggies in need.

How do you save a hundred dogs? Fix ONE!

One of the most heartbreaking problems for any dog rescue organization is unwanted puppies. The team at Rifugio Fata struggle every day to keep up with the sheer numbers of dogs and puppies found on the streets and left at their gates. Spay/neuter operations are a hugely important part of their efforts to control local population numbers and prevent future suffering. The team also endeavor to sterilize all dogs entering their facility in order to create a more peaceful, harmonious environment, and to ensure that their residents do not contribute to the problem in the future.

But like everything, it costs! Each operation, with blood tests included, is €120. And they currently have 12 female dogs in need of sterilization. 

This sweet girl was recently found on the streets with her puppies near Rifugio Fata. The shelter is full, so the team have managed to find foster homes for the puppies and they are looking for somebody to adopt their lovely mamma. In the meantime, they know that the next best thing to finding a home for her is to make sure she is fixed so she is not burdened with another litter of puppies on her next cycle. 

Can you help?

Katharina Pils-leimer, one of Rifugio Fata's fundraising angels, has launched a YouCaring campaign to help the team raise money for their sterilization program. Please consider making a donation, however small, towards Rifugio Fata's spay/neuter campaign. You will be helping to prevent the suffering of litters of unwanted puppies in the future, and you will be helping the poor stray mammas who struggle to provide for them on the streets every day. 

Every penny helps! To make a donation, please click on the link below. Thank you for your support.

http://www.youcaring.com/rifugio-fata-lamezia-terme-francesca-scerbo-369670

'Bed and Breakfast' Lottery Event!

This little puppy at Rifugio Fata brings a whole new meaning to the term 'Bed and Breakfast'!

But in order to have this much fun in a food bowl, it needs to be full of food! Rifugio Fata's monthly bills are high. Food is one of their biggest and most important costs. They are entirely self-funded and rely on the support and kindness of people like you to keep their doggy bowls full. 

As well as feeding the residents at the shelter, the team also have to buy food for their dogs who are lucky enough to be living in foster homes. 

Meet Ciro.

Ciro is a lovely little bird who lives with of one of the Rifugio Fata volunteers. Ciro would like to invite you to join a lottery to raise money to buy food for his friends at Rifugio Fata. Ciro does not know the meaning of hunger, and he is determined to make sure that all of his four-legged friends at the shelter feel the same way.

Ciro wants you to know that, this time, there isn't just ONE winning number..but SEVEN! Yes, SEVEN lovely prizes... all checked out by Ciro himself. 

According to Ciro, they all are fabulous!

If Ciro's royal seal of approval isn't enough to convince you, then check out this short video to see inside Rifugio Fata and all the happy faces at feeding time! It is guaranteed to make you smile.

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

One ticket costs just 5 Euros. Every penny we raise will help to put more food in their bowls... and more wags in their tails! So, please, dig deep into your pockets and help us feed these beautiful dogs, and maybe even win yourself a lovely prize! Ciro will sing from the rooftops!

You can check out the prizes at the following Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/events/1651970241691433/

Once you have chosen a number from the list below, you can send a message with your chosen numbers on Rifugio Fata's Facebook page:

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

And your donation can be sent via the following options:

Rifugio Fata: PAY PAL rifugiofata@libero.it
or:
postepay 4023 6006 1576 8779 in the name of:ARDITO ANTONIO RDTNTN63CO4C352M
and our BANKING DETAILS: 
RIFUGIO FATA: Ass FATA, BNL Lamezia Terme. Italia IBAN:IT03P0100542840000000000271-SWIFT/ BIC: BNL II TRR 

Ciro says THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!

Here are the available numbers:

-1 Beatrice Dell'aversano
-2 Paola Badalucco
-3 Giusy Andreaggi
-4 Antonella Scappatura
-5 Stefania ki
-6 Serena Guidetti
-7 Annarita Martilotti
-8 Daria De Salvatore
-9 Serena Guidetti
-10 Stefania ki
-11 Beatrice Dell'aversano
-12 Serena Guidetti
-13 Stefania ki
-14 Paola Badalucco
-15 Daria De Salvatore
-16 Lorenza Cevoli
-17 Giusy Andreaggi
-18
-19
-20 Stefania ki
-21 Beatrice Dell'aversano
-22 Ylenia Perri
-23 Daria De Salvatore
-24
-25 Beatrice Dell'aversano
-26 Sara Mancini
-27 Serena Guidetti
-28 Lorenza Cevoli
-29
-30
-31 Ylenia Perri
-32 Daria De Salvatore
-33 Annarita Martilotti
-34 Lorenza Cevoli
-35
-36
-37 Giusy Andreaggi
-38
-39
-40
-41
-42
-43
-44
-45
-46
-47
-48
-49
-50 Lorenza Cevoli
-51 Sara Mancini
-52
-53
-54
-55
-56
-57
-58
-59
-60
-61
-62
-63 Serena Guidetti
-64
-65 Serena Guidetti
-66
-67 Antonella Scappatura
-68 Serena GuidettI
-69 Giovanni De Sando
-70 Giovanni De Sando
-71 Tania Varriale
-72 Maria Pia Nicoletta
-73 Giovanni De Sando
-74 Giovanni De Sando
-75 Giovanni De Sando
-76 Giovanni De Sando
-77 Giovanni De Sando
-78 Giovanni De Sando
-79 Giovanni De Sando
-80 Giovanni De Sando
-81 Giovanni De Sando
-82 Giovanni De Sando
-83 Giovanni De Sando
-84 Giovanni De Sando
-85 Giovanni De Sando
-86 Giovanni De Sando
-87 Giovanni De Sando
-88 Giovanni De Sando
-89 Giovanni De Sando
-90 Giovanni De Sando

Peace and love at Rifugio Fata

This month, the team at Rifugio Fata invited local families to visit the shelter and learn more about how dogs and children can live in peace and harmony together. One of the many reasons dogs get dumped in Italy, unfortunately, is the arrival of a child. It is a common misconception that the family dog will be a danger to the new born baby - in terms of germs and behaviour - and so it is abandoned. This is a constant source of frustration for the Rifugio Fata team who end up rescuing these poor strays from the streets in terrible conditions.

But instead of getting mad, they educate! The team at Rifugio Fata know that raising awareness and getting information out into the local community is a vital part of their attempt to reduce the number of dogs suffering on the streets. By organizing school field trips and welcoming families into the shelter, they hope to promote change in cultural attitudes and, in turn, create a more secure future for dogs in their local community.

"Children and animals - growing together with peace and love":

A loving home

It was a rough winter for our friends at Rifugio Fata. The weather was colder and wetter than usual, and the dogs suffered a debilitating outbreak of illness. But the team of volunteers soldiered on, as they have many times before, and I am happy to report that warmer weather has now arrived and everybody is on the mend. Thank you for your kind donations towards their medical bills.

It is a sad fact that in many shelters - in Southern Italy and all around the world - dogs are left in overcrowded cages without adequate food and veterinary care, often for years on end. They are never allowed to stretch their legs, and they do not know the meaning of a good cuddle. Government programs pay municipal pounds to house the dogs and they provide no incentives for the dogs to be cared for properly, or rehomed. All too often, particularly in poorer parts of the world, pound owners collect government money while the dogs perish.

Independent shelters, like Rifugio Fata, play a vital part in breaking that mold. Rifugio Fata is entirely self-funded. They rely on our donations to continue their amazing work for homeless dogs in an area where the stray problem is huge and resources are thin. The team work endlessly to raise the funds to make sure that all of their dogs receive the veterinary care they need, and they run outreach and adoption programs in order to educate the local community and give their dogs a chance of finding a new home. 

The team at Rifugio Fata know that any time spent in a shelter - no matter how good it is -  is a poor substitute for family life, so they do their very best, with the resources they have, to make life as enjoyable as possible for their residents. And that includes regular exercise, playtime and cuddles.

All of Rifugio Fata's dogs need a loving home. But, luckily for them, in the meantime, they have the next best thing a stray dog could possibly hope for - a loving shelter. 

If you would like to make a donation to Rifugio Fata, you can do so by clicking the 'donate' button on this blog, or via PayPal: rifugiofata@libero.it 

Or through Rifugio Fata's facebook page:

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

Thank you for your support.