Constructed in October 2005, the Large Animal theatre is used for operations and procedures on all our large animals such as calves, cows, goats and donkeys. By February 2007 the Large Animal theatre area was fully completed with a raised platform to help with disinfection and drainage.
October 2005
February 2007
Started in September 2005 it was fully completed by December 2005 and is used everyday for operations and treatments on all the dogs and cats that we see.
The construction of the small animal theatre was made possible with a very kind donation from Mr Peter Maloney, in memory of his late wife Chantal who loved India and animals alike.
Work in progress - September 2005
Completed by December 2005
The construction work on our land began in April 2005 to develop the space into a hospital and shelter that would be the centre of operations for all our work. It is hoped that the shelter will be completed within a period of 3 years.
The building of the 40 kennel block was sponsored by a generous grant that we received from The Animal Defence Trust.
October 2005
October 2006
Our hospital is based in nearly 2 acres of unspoilt agricultural land in a village called Kharekhari. Situated in a valley, the ancient Aravali mountain range surrounds us on every side and gives the shelter an idyllic setting which changes from desert in the height of summer to a lush green oasis after the monsoon.
Kharekhari Village Life
On Saturday 12th May 2007 we held our very 1st Charity Ball at the Haycock Hotel in Wansford, Cambs.
Our guests arrived at 7pm and were greeted with a glass of bubbly to start the evening. Most of the ladies started off by browsing our selection of traditional Indian Wares and having a go at the Tombola, before sitting down to enjoy a 3 course meal.
Enjoying a 3 course meal
We had the girls from Funblast serenading us during the meal before putting on a disco so we could dance the night away.
Enjoying a good old knees up courtesy of Funblast Entertainment
Mick Lane gallantly hosted our Auction which included items such as a free meal at a Thai restaurant, a 34 pint polypin of Real Ale and a months free gym membership at Esporta Gym, before making way for Rachel and Kim to start off our Raffle which proved to be very popular thanks to all the lovely gifts that had been donated to it.
Mick Lane hosting our Auction
We raised £400 on the night so we would like to thank all our sponsors, supporters, family and friends and everyone who attended for making the evening a success.
Many thanks to the Haycock Hotel for the venue and their staff, Sue Woodcock for the beautiful table arrangements and flowers, Funblast Entertainment for providing the music and VetUK.co.uk for sponsoring the drinks reception.
We would also like to thank EPS Ltd, Oakham Ales, Esporta Gym, Colin Pummell, Kashmiri Indian restaurant, Eden Beauty, Imperial Bento and Hair Exclusive and everyone who donated their time to help organise the ball beforehand and on the night (you all know who you are).
In April this year, South Moor Vets in Devon held an Open Day with an Animal Charity theme. Because one of their vets Paul Kane had volunteered at the Tree of Life for Animals last August, we were privileged to be selected as one of their nominated charities.
Visitors reading about TOLFA’s work at the South Moor Vets Open Day
They had over 300 visitors on the day who got to wander around the surgery and view xrays, fleas under microscopes and the operating theatre as well as enjoying a raffle and games whilst tucking into a BBQ.
Despite the rain, everyone had a great time and managed to raise over £800 of which £150 was kindly donated to us.
Many thanks to everyone at South Moor Vets for their support.
Enjoying a BBQ at the South Moor Vets Open Day despite the rain
The display board so visitors were able to read about TOLFA’s work in India
Looking for a novel way to raise funds for us? Then this could be the answer.
Green Metropolis is a fab site that actively promotes you to recycle your books. Not only are you helping the environment by recycling, raising money for The Woodland Trust and de-cluttering your bookshelf, you are also generating money which you can donate to your favourite charity, the Tree of Life for Animals.
All you do is add the book you want to sell using their very easy system, when someone wants to buy it, post it, once it has been received, £3.00 will appear in your online account. Keep building up the funds until you have run out of books to sell, then withdraw it and send us a cheque!
By selling just 10 books you can raise £30. Everyone’s a winner! So Sign up today.
One of our very first volunteers has written about her experience with us in August 2005 - the very beginning of our journey. It has just been published in the Veterinary Times magazine which is distributed to vets, nurses and veterinary surgeries throughout the UK.India’s Tree of Life for Animals—by Nadine Lock BVSc, Cert VAIn August 2005, the Indian charity Tree of Life for Animals embarked on its first major project and I was lucky enough to take part in it. Despite having an animal shelter that was only in the initial stage of being built, Rachel Wright, the founder of the charity had decided to take on a short-term relocation and Animal Birth Control program.For 6 days in early August the religious Urs festival takes place in the Rajasthani city of Ajmer. Pilgrims travel for weeks to reach the holy Dargah shrine, the surrounding area of which is home to scores of street dogs that live off scraps from the nearby restaurants. In previous years, the dogs have been rounded up in the preceding weeks and ‘disposed of’. Rachel, a British veterinary nurse passionate about animal welfare, was determined to offer a more humane solution and was thrilled to find support from the local municipal corporation.We were provided with a disused firestation to use as our base, and a team of willing students and cleaners to help us look after the dogs. The volunteer team consisted of 2 vets, an animal physiotherapist and a Battersea Dogs Home welfare officer from the UK along with 2 Indian vets, animal assistants (essentially veterinary nurses especially skilled at catching stray dogs) and drivers. For the first week, nights were spent catching the dogs and days were dedicated to making escape-proof shelters, assessing the new arrivals and providing treatment and basic care. The dog-catching was left to the experts and continued until all the dogs in the area had been found. Contrary to my expectations, the vast majority of the dogs were affectionate and gentle and those that had managed to escape from the confinement inside the firestation were waiting inside the gates each morning to welcome us with tails wagging.
Lots of dogs were neutered and vaccinatedThe neutering program started once we had around 40 dogs in the compound. Each dog was given peri-operative IV fluids, antibiosis, meloxicam, ivermectin and the all-important rabies vaccine. Anaesthesia was TIVA using ketamine and diazepam or ketamine and xylazine after a xylazine or chlorpromazine premed. This combination worked extremely well and there were no anaesthetic-related deaths. Spays were performed via a right flank incision to reduce the incidence of post-operative infection. I learnt from the Indian vets we worked alongside that intradermal sutures have to create a perfect closure so as not to attract flies. This is more difficult than it sounds and probably added an extra 5-10 minutes of surgery time, but having seen the outcome of some spay wound infections, it was time well worth investing.During the 2 weeks, a total of 150 dogs were neutered, vaccinated, had any wounds or diseases treated and then were safely returned to the streets on which they had been found. 1 bitch was euthanased due to an extensive transmissible venereal tumour and another 2 dogs sadly developed signs of rabies so were also euthanased.Word travels fast in India and our presence became known within a very short time. In addition to working with the dogs we were also called upon to attend to numerous cases within the city, predominantly the victims of traffic accidents. Rachels brief visits into town to buy supplies often took up most of the day as she was presented by one sick animal after another. This could be anything from a puppy to a cow or even a camel. On one occasion I found myself travelling to meet her on the back of the local chai shop owners motorbike, with fluids and medication to treat a collapsed donkey - the first I had treated since qualifying all those years ago.
Treating a sick donkey in the streetThe days were long, usually 16-18 hours of work, and often difficult and emotional but always rewarding. Our volunteer team all felt that the experience would stay with us forever. We were able to enjoy a beautiful country in the company of so many wonderful people whilst helping to give something back to the community and the animal population.The ongoing aims of the Tree of Life for Animals are to create a rabies-free environment; provide treatment and freedom from suffering for stray animals; educate villagers in basic veterinary care; provide a mobile veterinary unit in remote rural areas.If you would like to know more about the work of the TOLFA or are interested in volunteering or fundraising, please see our website www.tolfa.org.uk. The charity is currently in desperate need of funds so any help you can offer would be most welcome.Read Nadines original post about her volunteer experience with us.
The Tree of Life for Animals 1st May Ball in Wansford, Cambs is fast approaching.
We still have some tickets left for Saturday 12th May 2007 so make sure you don’t miss out on what is guaranteed to be a great evening of drink, music and prizes!
Email Kate katules@hotmail.com or Rachel rtwright@hotmail.com or phone 07989 664467 to reserve your tickets.
For the past month, we have been collecting data on the number of dogs left to be sterilized and vaccinated in Pushkar, been in talks with officials from local/ state government and religious representatives, printing information leaflets for the general public and finishing our necessary yearly repair of our dog kennels so that in the next couple of weeks we can concentrate on our aim of making a ‘Rabies Free Pushkar’.
With the world renowned event of the Pushkar’s calendar - ‘The Pushkar Mela’ coming in November 2007, we want that within the next 5 - 6 months all the stray dogs that reside on Pushkar’s streets that have not already run through our programme which we estimate at approximately another 1000 dogs are sterilised, Rabies vaccinated and treated for any disease. We currently see many cases of Rabies in animals that we rescue from Pushkar, in both the dog, donkey and cow population.
