Contact Details: Dawie & Yolanda Hamman Tel (c) : 083 411 0738 Tel (h ) : 021 854 6317 Fax : 021 854 6317 Johan & Azanne van Wyk Tel (c) : 073 180 2050 www.petpals.org.za http://www.facebook.com/ PetPalsAnimalRescue PetPals Account Details: ABSA Bank (Strand) Name of Account : PetPals Account No : 921 041 5123 Branch Code : 632 005 NPO and PBO: Non Profit Organisation Number : 063 126 NPO Public Benefit Organisation Number : 930031796 Newsletter December 2016 Distributed by Chameleon Innovation The PetPals Non Profit and Public Benefit Organisation hereby greets you nearly at the end of 2016. Although challenges aplenty, PetPals was blessed with many generosities and good fortunes during the past year, making it possible for us to touch the lives of many disadvantaged pets in need. Therefore, we want to start off our December newsletter with a huge thank you to everyone who supported PetPals during 2016, including: The dedicated volunteers who fostered rescued pets until PetPals could rehome them. Every single person who deposited money into PetPals bank account and/or vet account. Those of you who donated goodies, such as blankets, pet food, kennels, pet toys, etc. The computer boffins who kept our Facebook page updated on a daily basis. Everyone who assisted with networking, e.g. by sharing our Facebook posts. Sylco who continued sponsoring a vehicle for PetPals and carried the maintenance cost thereof. Dogs-4-Us and Cynthia of Snoopy s Grooming Parlour for grooming some of our rescued dogs. PetSavers for providing a platform for donations through their annual Santa Shoebox project. PetWorld in Somerset West for their frequent exposure to PetPals and our pets available for adoption. The Media, such as RealDeal, Bolander and District Mail, who advertised our pets for free. Pieter from Godolphin for doing our annual financial statements at reduced rates. The Strand Animal Hospital, Ebervet Pet Clinic, Cottage Veterinary Clinic, and TEVA whose vets and staff provided veterinary care at welfare tariffs. Finally, a HUGE thank you to every family who adopted rescued pet(s) during 2016!!
Young Angie was found wondering the streets of Gordon s Bay on a cold wet morning in April 2016 (see pic left). She was severely malnourished and busy scavenging the litter bins in a camping resort for something to eat. She was immediately responsive and trusting when PetPals volunteers offered her some food. She basically collapsed in the arms of one of the PetPals volunteers and could not even get into the vehicle by herself when she was rescued. Angie was taken to an amazing foster home where she immediately started her road to full recovery. Despite her ordeal of living on the streets and being underweight, she gained some weight, as well as confidence over time. PetPals had her sterilised and vaccinated, and a few months after her rescue, Angie was placed with a new loving family who thankfully adopted her. However, with a new baby in the home, it became difficult for the family to give Angie the necessary exercise and attention she required, so they contacted PetPals and asked if we could find a more suitable home for her. Angie was still very young and had nearly doubled in weight since the day she got rescued, so she looked much more striking than when we found her initially. However, despite being well behaved, house-trained, highly responsive, intelligent, obedient, canine-loving, cat-loving, child-friendly and extremely beautiful, we struggled for months to find another home for Angie Failed adoption attempts It was not our pleas on Facebook, the articles in various newspapers, or adoption days at a local pet shop that finally brought Angie and her new home together. On a sunny day in October 2016, a dog owner walked his dog in a park in the Strand (still grieving the loss of his other doggie due to old age and illness) where he coincidentally (or not ) met PetPals founders walking their own dogs, and they started to share their canine stories of loss and love. When this man heard about Angie s story, and later met her, we all realized it was a match made in heaven as Angie looked exactly like his beloved late doggie.
Angie is now living on a huge property in the Strand, burning off energy by playing with her new doggy sibling called Magnum and being walked twice a day. Angie and Magnum frequently accompany their dad on trips to dog-friendly coffee shops, wine estates and on other outings. They also still go to the park where Angie s story was first told, and here Angie is the instigator of many playful chases and games with other dogs, oblivious to the significance of that very park where doglovers seemingly coincidentally met some time ago to change her life forever. Angie & Magnum in one of the many beds in and outside their home and in a local coffee shop One of PetPals more recent rescue-and-rehomings was one of a more peculiar nature - a pigeon who needed a bit of intervention. Two PetPals volunteers who frequently feed wild pigeons on their windowsill at work noticed a few months ago that something was wrong with one of the pigeons as the pigeon was unable to walk properly. We noticed there were strings attached to both feet, preventing her from moving normally. After 1½ weeks of various creative capturing attempts, we managed to catch her, cut off the strings and release her again. At first she didn t use the one foot, but later she started to lean on it and we thought all would be fine. However, a few weeks later we noticed that the injured foot was quite swollen and didn t look well, so we caught her again and took her to the vet. He removed quite a few additional pieces of string which was imbedded so deep in her foot, one couldn t even see it. He bandaged her foot and gave her a shot of antibiotics. Since she needed to be kept still, she had to stay with the PetPals volunteers for a few nights, so a cat carrier got converted into a pigeon pen for such purposes.
Unfortunately, after a whole week of care and another vet check-up thereafter, the foot did not recover. The string had damaged her foot so deeply, there was blood flow but no drainage. To prevent her from getting gangrene and quite likely subsequent death, her foot had to be amputated. Although this is not the outcome we were hoping for, she had at least one foot remaining, as well as the full use of both her wings. She showed us again that one should never underestimate animals survival skills and ability to adapt. She was such a brave girl, the very next day after her leg got amputated, she was balancing perfectly on the one leg and hopping around in her cat carrier as if it was the most natural thing on earth. After a total of 11 nights of rehabilitation in her cat carrier, she finally got released in mid November 2016. She flew away so fast, we couldn t even capture the moment on camera. She disappeared over the roofs of the buildings, and we thought we would never see her again after everything she went through. However, less than 3 hours later she was back on her usual windowsill. She is now a daily visitor to the window sill, proving to be a very dedicated worker as she is already there when the PetPals volunteers arrive at work in the morning. Maybe it is the food that brings her back every day, but we prefer to believe she comes back for the company, and we love every moment thereof. PetPals strives not only to rescue and rehome animals, but also to provide assistance for pets who live with loving families, but where such families not always have the privileges others have in terms of available finances for vet care. As such, PetPals recently assisted a family who lives in Kays Caravan Park in the Strand to get their cat s cancerous ears attended to. This family adores their cat and dog, but their cat Nala is white and developed cancerous spots on the tip of her ears over the years (she is now 12 years old). One Friday a few weeks ago, the Nolan family borrowed a cat carrier from PetPals in order to transport Nata the next week to the vet. However, on that same weekend, a fire broke out in the unit next door, and half of their home got destroyed in the fire.
The family managed to rescue Stoffel their dog and two parrots from their home, and Nala escaped on her own. Nala returned the next day, and PetPals took her to the vet for her ear operation. After the opt, Nala could not return home just yet as the poor Nolan family had nowhere to keep her enclosed during her recovery period, so PetPals placed Nala in a cattery for about a week until the cone around her neck could be removed and she could walk around again. Nala in rehabilitation in the cattery Nala with stiches in her ears after the opt Both Nala and the Nolan family were very glad to be reunited again. Nala didn t eat that well during her stay in the cattery, but soon after being reunited with her family, her healthy appetite returned. Although PetPals could not replace the burnt down structures of this poor family s house, we were at least able to relieve a portion of their financial burden by assisting with the vet expenses for the procedure on Nala s ears. HAPPY ENDINGS Here are the happy faces of some of the lucky pets who found forever homes during the past year. Thank you for opening your hearts and homes to these orphans and for giving them a second chance in life!!
It is amazing how a few weeks of tender love and care (TLC) can change the lives of animals from dismal to hopeful. Duke was found wondering the streets of a residential estate, obviously lost and being on the streets for a long time judging from his undernourished state. Mandy was found in a township tightly tied up with no food or water nearby she was also just a skeleton, and had no front teeth (highly likely due to attempts to chew her way out). Both doggies were placed in one of PetPals dedicated foster homes, and the pics below are living proof of the big difference TLC can make in a relatively short period of time. MANDY DUKE Both doggies are now available for adoption, so please consider making them part of your family. They really deserve a 2 nd chance after being neglected to such severe extents. It is not only Mandy and Duke who need forever homes. PetPals is also looking for loving homes for other rescued doggies and kitties (see pics below). Please consider making one or more of these pets part of your family, it will be the ultimate gift for those pets to get a permanent home for Christmas.
Please take note that adoption fees, forms and home checks apply. If you need more information, or if you are interested in adopting them, please contact Yolanda on 083 411 0738. KITTENS GALORE CHARLIE Please adopt us BRUNO OLIVER DUKE MANDY Can we please come and live with you?
PetPals would like to wish you and all your furry children a Merry Christmas, a very special festive season, a welldeserved holiday, a relaxing break, and many fun-filled moments shared with loved ones. May you be blessed with plenty of purrs, wagging tails, muddy paws, dripping saliva, and hairs on every single piece of clothing you possess. Thank you for your valuable time to read PetPals latest Newsletter. We suppose you now need a well-deserved rest after all the reading like this little one. Should you have any enquiries about the voluntary work we do, please feel free to visit our website (www.petpals.org.za) or contact us directly (see letterhead for contact details). Friendly PetPals-regards, Dawie & Yolanda Hamman and Johan & Azanne van Wyk PS We do not distribute newsletters on a regular weekly or even monthly basis. However, if you want to unsubscribe to this newsletter, please send an email to info@petpals.org.za with UNSUBSCRIBE in the subject or body of the email.