Gauteng shelters are battling overwhelming vet bills, food shortages and overcrowding.
While many shelters are struggling to keep their doors open, all agree sterilising animals is the solution to combat overpopulation and abuse of animals.
The Dogs Trust adoptions facilitator, Jay Snyman, said the trust needed donations to keep the tails wagging.
Rising rescue numbers in Diepsloot
Snyman said about 90% of their rescues came from Diepsloot and were often found with horrific injuries that required urgent and major treatment.
“Our vet bill is standing at about R42 900. While we host a lot of drives and people support us by donating food, the rescue dogs have to be sterilised and vaccinated,” she said.
Snyman said the trust had about 180 dogs that consumed more than 1 000kg of food per week and they had about 80 dogs sterilised per month.
“People are not sterilising their dogs, which means there is just more and more puppies being born,” she said.
Community urged to support vaccination day
Snyman invited residents to play their part by bringing their dogs to get vaccinated at a popup vaccination and adoption day scheduled for Saturday in Clubview, Centurion.
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Meanwhile, in the east of Pretoria, CatzRus cat rescue chair Adel Pretorius has invited the community to support their annual fundraising Meow-mories and Milestones Gala Dinner and 10th Annual Charity Art Show next month to help raise funds.
“At present, CatzRus has 67 cats in its care, most of them with special medical or behavioural needs. Fundraisers like this exhibition are essential in covering their vet bills, food and daily care,” she said.
“Not only is 2025 our 21st anniversary, but we are also hosting our 10th Annual Charity Art Exhibition, a fundraiser that has become the heartbeat of our mission to save the most vulnerable kittens.”
CatzRus is a foster-based network that, on average, rescues and rehomes around 300 kittens every year, many of whom are found in drains, factories and unsafe environments.
“Some arrive as tiny bottle babies needing 24-hour care, while others require costly specialised vet treatment,” she said.
New shelters also under strain
In the West of Pretoria, Van Dyk Animal Rescue founder Katia van Dyk, who works with various animals, including horses and donkeys, said she had been dreading becoming one of those shelters that had to close their doors.
“Especially when we are still so new. When everything changed last year, everyone encouraged us to open our own shelter because they’d all seen the passion which we have for animals.
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“In the eight months we have been operational, we have grown to 41 animals in our care. Our Facebook page has grown to 3 000 followers, but how many actually support us?
“Now I know we’re not as big as some of the places out there, but how does it help us to take in hundreds of animals when we don’t even have the adequate support required to look after the 40 we currently have in our care?” she said.
‘I just don’t know anymore’
She added: “As it is, I don’t know what the future holds. I don’t know how to do it without the support of the public.”
She said last week a total of R250 had come in, with month-end around the corner again.
“We still owe our vet R11 334, and in two weeks we have to order food for the fur kids again,” she said.
Van Dyk said she was running out of ideas on how to ensure they continue to survive.
“I just don’t know any more. I don’t know how to continue without the support of people,” she said.
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