Golfers hit balls in aid of affordable animal care
Big names attended the day to support the fund-raising project in the hope of building an animal clinic
Thanda Inja is an East Rand project born to provide affordable and professional veterinarian care in townships and previously disadvantaged areas.
The project’s aim is to host a multitude of drives and fund-raising projects in the hope of building an animal clinic.
Their latest drive was on September 3 in Daveyton near Benoni where residents had the opportunity to have their pets sterilised and receive medical examinations. “Thanda Inja has been functioning within the whole East Rand the past five years. On a national scale, Thanda Inja started as a Pug Rescue South African initiative,” said Cheryl Gaw, co-founder of Thanda Inja, alongside her husband Malcolm.
The project came about when Cheryl took pugs to a vet. Two young men walked into the vet’s rooms before her but was turned away.
“They had walked about 17km in flip-flops to the vet in search of help for their dog Spider. They got told to contact the SPCA and we could really tell that they loved this dog. So we paid for the vet care.”
That was when Malcolm told Cheryl there was a great need for veterinarian care in communities like Daveyton.
“Word got out as we were doing more outreaches to help others. We were working in an informal settlement and eventually the cues were very long.”
Cheryl and her volunteers got a veterinarian on board. “That’s when we realised we’ve gotten ourselves into trouble since we didn’t have enough volunteers and facilities to do that level of care.”
They also do low-cost sterilisation outreaches, all accommodated with a soup kitchen for those people who come from far in the early hours of the day to receive care for their furry companions.
Cheryl told Express that for people to be able to apply for affordable care, they need to know their address and they need proof of income to establish whether an applicant qualifies for such care.
Thanda Inja hosted its latest fund-raising golf day at Serengeti Golf Estate in August.
High profile guests like Adv Barry Roux and Quentin Krog, director of films like Vir die Voëls and Ballade vir ’n Enkeling, joined in the action on the course and spent the evening at the prize-giving.
For more information about the project, visit www.thandainja.co.za.
Also follow us on:
