June / July Newsletter
June / July 2023
Dear Members, Friends, Volunteers & Supporters,
Herewith the June/July newsletter:
It has been a busy few months at the shelter. We have sadly had an influx of many puppies and kittens which is always challenging especially when they are so tiny. Many thanks to all of our trusted fosters who help to keep them safe and well when we are full at the shelter. I would also like to say how thankful all of us are here at Triple A to the many people who assist with fostering older or sick animals, helping with vet appointments and going above and beyond to assist, the animals are truly appreciative for the time and care that you give.
We would be very grateful it if you could continue to spread awareness regarding the importance of castration and neutering. Unfortunately in our province some people do not have the same mindset towards this compared to other countries and regions. Without a sensible approach to castration and neutering there will continue to be many helpless and abandoned animals, some of whom never make it to the shelter or to safety. For those of you who live in our municipality please be aware that if you or anyone you know finds a litter of kittens it is so important that we try to locate the mother who will most likely not be far away. This is crucial so that we can neuter wild cat mothers to prevent them having more babies at risk. The local health authority (Sanidad) are responsible for bringing us abandoned animals and should always be called in the first instance, however to help locate mother cats we would appreciate it if you could contact our local cat rescue expert Javier Permingo so that he can safely catch them and bring them for castration. Javier can be contacted on: 696 095 279.
We have sadly also had many calls recently regarding dogs kept in very poor conditions, are mistreated or neglected. This is often the case with illegal puppy farms. Please be vigilant and if you see something of concern our advice is to contact Seprona on 952 770 344. Triple A does not have authority to approach or enter properties containing mistreated animals. Seprona are the legal authority to investigate these cases and ensure that animals are brought safely to us via the correct means.
In more positive news we hope to be moving into our new shelter at the end of September. This is going to be a huge task and we will be sending out a “call to action” nearer the time to assist with the process. To ensure that this move is planned and organised well I would like to ask anyone who can assist to contact me with their name and contact details and the type of assistance they can offer please. This includes: assistance with safe moving of dogs and cats, assistance with moving large items for storage (food, travel boxes, blankets, cleaning equipment etc), assistance with transportation and installation of washing machines, medical equipment and assistance with moving our sensory plants. A large removal van would be much appreciated! All of this needs to be done in a timely and organised manner and we will be appointing a specific coordinator for each area who will plan and direct teams accordingly. If you would like to put yourself forward please send an email to EliseTripleA@gmail.com.
Adoptions:
After a quiet spell in June our adoptions are picking up and going very well, we’ve had some super families adopting dogs and cats locally as well as wonderful adoptions to Germany on our monthly transport, huge thanks to Chris Hofbauer and his team for the hard work in all the arrangements to make this happen. There have been many heart warming “New Beginnings” for our animals over the last few months and it’s so endearing to see footage of our animals in their new homes - thank you to our sister shelter Helfende Hende for all they do to re home our animals. The last two months we have also had animals going once again to Sweden, United Kingdom, Holland, Finland and also Denmark. We are hugely grateful to all of the adoptions team for their hard work and many thanks also to Sylvia Zamora who has arranged many adoptions for the many Triple A cats she has in foster placements. There is a lot of work involved with all of our adoptions and the procedure can often more complex than people are aware of. Whilst we do our upmost to have animals placed correctly there can also be the rare occasion where an animal is sadly returned despite all assurances given by adopters at the time. On this topic I would like to reiterate our message that people should only adopt if they are ready and able to take on the commitment FOR LIFE. Many of us regard our animals as part of the family and we always ask that plans are in place for the safe care of animals in the event that unforeseen circumstances occur. We will shortly be publishing an article on our website for potential adopters to consider before making applications to adopt an animal.
Volunteer program:
We have been delighted to see many new volunteers joining our volunteer walking schedule particularly on a Saturday when all of the shelter dogs get to enjoy lengthy and stimulating walks with their kennel pack. Huge thanks to Steffi and her team for the hard work they put in every week to organise and coordinate this. We appreciate any time at all you can give to volunteering especially when we are now reaching the height of the summer and it is crucial to get the dogs out walking early to avoid unbearably high temperatures. Many thanks also to Kay, our head of cat house who has welcomed so many new volunteers to assist in the Gatera during the week, the cats and kittens really enjoy the extra human interaction.
New initiatives:
When the new board started at the shelter one of the things we wanted to embrace was a “can-do” mentality - welcoming new ideas and initiatives to help the animals. Please get in touch if you have any suggestions and we will do our very best to accommodate them where possible. Special thanks to Matthew for constructing our fabulous new agility course in recinto 3 and for creating the splash pools in our patios - the dogs are thoroughly enjoying both initiatives - thank you Matthew!! Also thank you to Kelly and Matthew for organising the gazebo shading so that dogs and their walkers can take a break from the sunshine and rest in the shade during their long walks. Another big thank you also to Jan Saleeba for organising our very first Triple A lottery!! This was very successful and has raised €400 for the shelter whilst being able to award our first prize of €100 to the winner LEXI DOLEIRE. The winning number 4 was revealed by our Treasurer Tracy Duggan on Saturday 28th July. Congratulations to Lexi and thank you to all those that participated. We will be now starting a new board from today running again for the next two months - please email or call into the office if you would like to participate - pick a lucky number between 1 and 100 for €5 each with your name and telephone number for a chance to win. This is a super way to raise an extra bit of money for the shelter.
Fundraising and sponsorship: On Friday 23 June the wonderful annual dance show took place which raised over €2,000 for the shelter. Many thanks to Pilar Jimez, Inma Blazquez, Inma Cozar and the team who put this spectacular event together. We are now launching our sponsor program for the new shelter whereby individuals and companies can sponsor their own kennel or catio for a year. For more information get in touch by emailing info@tripleamarbella.org marked for the attention of Jan Saleeba. In September we will be holding a late summer fundraiser organised by Kelly-Louise Rowdan and Lily Van Tongeren - details to follow. To get involved or assist please email info@tripleamarbella.org marked for the attention of Kelly/Lily.
We are also trying to raise funds for specific dogs and cats needing operations that require specific treatment at external hospitals. For more information or to make a contribution please contact Chris Hofbauer on 711 079 087.
Other ways to help:
We are always in need of sheets, towels and blankets so please feel free to drop these at the shelter during our opening hours 10:00 - 17:00. Please no cushions, duvets and pillows as these get destroyed and cannot be utilised. Please encourage people to check with us before donating food - the shelter animals are on one specific maintenance brand and many are also on specific diet plans - we really are so grateful for donations of food that we can use in this respect. We especially appreciate monetary contributions towards this so we can purchase what our animals really need at discounted rates with our suppliers. We are also grateful for donations form our Amazon wish-list - at the moment we are looking to collect more of the cooling bandanas for dogs to prevent heat stroke and also the specific durable litter trays for cats - both can be found on the list. A very big thank you to Mascota Planet who donate so much to us each month and to Jan Weima and Susi Berman for co-ordinating this.
Finally I wanted to mention our Saturday market team Tracy, Donna, Sara, Ana, Yvonne and Debbie - this raises much needed funds and awareness for Triple A and their time, energy and commitment each week is phenomenal - thank you on behalf of all of the animals that this benefits. We also have a presence at the Sunday market, excellently organised by Barbara who sells many of your donations to help the shelter.
Many thanks for taking the time to read the bi-monthly newsletter. My personal thanks to Juan Ayuso in our administrations team for his continued assistance. We feel it’s important for you to know as much about the running of the shelter as possible, especially as your support and interest plays such an important role in keeping Triple A alive.
Wishing you all a happy and healthy summer
Elise Emanuelle Dunweber Presidenta