Tree Of Life For Animals

Our Puppy House has now been built, inaugurated and is fully operational. It has been difficult at the shelter having to cope with lots of puppies and very limited places to put them as Wendy, one of TOLFA’s hospital managers explains.

Staff, trustees and shelter dogs posing at the Puppy House opening ceremony, March 2008

‘Last year, as usual, as soon as I arrived at the hospital puppies started to come in thick and fast, Rachel thinks they wait for me! A few pups are fine as we have three cages to keep them in if they are small, not ideal but manageable. Most of the time I was there the numbers fluctuated between twenty and thirty and often I was at my wits end trying to find somewhere to house them.

The weather this winter was particularly cold and lasted longer than usual so my one of my problems was keeping very young and/or very sick pups warm enough. The dog kennels are designed for larger animals, with concrete floors and high ceilings it was very difficult to make them cosy enough for puppies, plenty of sacks and blankets and ensuring they were not on their own was okay for older, reasonably well puppies but that left a lot of pups needing a warmer place to live.

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TOLFA is now the proud owner of a new kennel block. This wonderful addition brings the number of dog kennels to 100 which means we can take in and treat many more animals that need our attention. (more…)

“Working together to Make Rabies History!” – shouted the slogan and T.O.L.F.A. tucked away in a small corner of the planet, marked the day with it’s own charming programme. It indeed felt good to be part of a global push, with hundreds of other charities and NGO’s marking the day, in their own special way.

TOLFA Staff beside our new sign

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The building work on our new kennel block is rapidly coming to an end. Here is a picture sent by Serena, our current volunteer. It also shows how lovely the hospital looks with a coat of white paint.

Our new kennel block being built

The kennels must be completed in time for World Rabies Day on 8th September, as we will have a splendid opening ceremony and awareness campaign to promote the work we do with specific emphasis on the fight to eradicate rabies.

We are close to signing an agreement with the Rajasthan government who have agreed to pay for 50% of a new 60 dog kennel block. This will enable us to continue and extend our Animal Birth Control programme.

Serena, our current Project Raja volunteer has taken it upon herself to find the other 50% of building costs for the kennels - what a trooper!

There are also talks that will mean the government will fund us to rescue and neuter 20 dogs a day from September 2007, with this long term strategy we hope to have a 70% reduction in the street dog population within 3-5 years. The new kennel block will enable us to do this without compromising our Rescue and Care Project.

Dr Irschad and the new water bore

Since we officially opened our doors in October 2005 we have been relying on water being delivered on a weekly basis. Not so much of an issue during Monsoon season, but for the remaining 10 months of the year we would have the water truck arrive to pump water from its tank, into our tank sitting on the hospital roof - a very noisy affair. We always had to be extra careful not to run out before our next delivery.

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Large Animal Operation Theatre

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

Small Animal Operation Theatre and Prep Room

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

Kennels and Large Animal Theatre

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