Arunachala Animal Sanctuary & Rescue Shelter
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Mission Statement
We are known as the SHELTER WITH HEART. Our dogs/puppies run free and are happy, cared for by a devoted Staff of 25 plus 3 full time vets, each of whom is a qualified surgeon. They're not just in captivity. They have a life. OUR BELIEF IS THAT DEEP HEALING ONLY TAKES PLACE IF A CREATURE FEELS SAFE, CARED FOR, AND LOVED. We use traditional and alternative medicine AND LOVE to lift suffering from over 7000 homeless dogs/puppies and tens of thousands of others. PEOPLE EXPERIENCING OUR SHELTER FOR THE FIRST TIME SOMETIMES GET TEARY BECAUSE THEY DIDN'T KNOW A PLACE SUCH AS OURS EXISTED. ============== WHEN WE FIRST OPENED JANUARY 2007 there over 7000 homeless dogs and the stray population was out of control. With no small animal vet within 75 kms, no treatment facility, rabies, and widespread abuse, there was unbounded misery. There were actually 350 suffering and dying animals on the streets-mostly dogs and puppies, but others too (monkeys, cows, squirrels, peacocks, etc.)...IT WAS AWFUL. ============== This was all changed thru LOVE, LOVE, AND MORE LOVE... We have 7 major programs: • A busy clinic (FREE to the poor, and all homeless and wild animals). • Hospital facilities (including an operation theatre). • A sterilization/anti-rabies program. • 24/7 emergency rescue (No matter what time, we'll be there in 20 to 30 minutes. Our doctors are on 24 hour call.) • An adoption program (We have students who travel up to 100 kms looking for good homes--at this point we have placed over 1100 puppies in good homes). • Hospice (We are a no-kill Shelter). BUT THE MOST IMPORTANT THING is that the relationship of homeless animals with the people has been totally transformed. ============== REPEATING: THE MOST IMPORTANT THING THAT HAS HAPPENED IS THAT THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE HOMELESS DOGS AND THE PEOPLE AMONGST WHOM THEY LIVE DAY IN, DAY OUT HAS BEEN TOTALLY TRANSFORMED. Without that transformation, the impact of whatever else is done (stricter laws, clinics, hospitals, shelters, rescue programs) is severely limited. The animals would be subject to the same indifference, the same unaided difficulties in their search for food and water, the same absence of protection when they are in harms way, the same absence of affection. IT TRULY IS SPECIAL…AND WHAT MAKES IT SPECIAL IS HEART.
About This Cause
THE VERY CORE OF OUR WORK IS DEMONSTRATIVE LOVE--HUGGING, STROKING, REASSURING, KISSING. ============== THE ANIMAL WELFARE BOARD OF INDIA (AWBI) WHO OVERSEE ALL THE ANIMAL SHELTERS IN THE COUNTRY SAID, IN A PUBLIC LETTER, “In the short span of time that they have been in existence, they have established themselves as one of the very best animal sanctuaries, veterinary clinics, rescue shelters and hospices in the Nation.” THE VICE-CHAIRMAN OF THE AWBI IN A LETTER TO A FOUNDATION OFFERING GRANTS SAID, “Their work is appreciated by the community, and they are especially known for profoundly transforming the relationship between the human community and the homeless dogs…They are lifting enormous amounts of suffering. If some of the methods they use become broadly adopted, it will help lift suffering across the Country.” MANEKA GANDHI TO THE CONSULATE GENERAL, SAN FRANCISCO, AT THE TIME I WAS APPLYING FOR MY VISA SAID, “He is the Founder/Managing Director of one of the best Animal Sanctuaries in India…It serves as a training ground for many other shelters.” MDM. GANDHI IS OF THE GANDHI FAMILY, AND ONE OF THE MOST ACTIVE/POWERFUL "ANIMAL ACTIVISTS" IN THE COUNTRY.” =============== SHELTER STATISTICS SINCE OPENING JANUARY 2007 THROUGH DECEMBER 2019: Emergency Rescues……………………..6,569 Dogs Sterilized………………………....... 8,014 Anti-Rabies Injections………………...17,328 Clinic Visits………………………………….58,203 In-Patient Treatments……………....163,790 Animal Adoptions………………….........1,219 Non Dogs Treated………………….........5,965 (1,746 cows & calves, 1,562 goats & sheep, 950 cats, 230 monkeys, 948 birds, 201 rabbits, 25 squirrels, 30 donkeys, 19 pigs, 34 peacocks, 36 parrots, 5 eagles, 87 horses, 14 bullocks, 21 deer, 6 snakes, 6 turkeys, 3 owls, 22 ducks, 2 mongooses, 3 chameleons, 1 turtle, 14 buffalo). WE HAVE SEVEN MAJOR PROGRAMS: • A sterilization/anti-rabies program. • A busy clinic (FREE to the poor, homeless and wild animals). • Hospital facilities (including an operation theatre). • Sanctuary for life (if an animal cannot make it on its own). • An adoption program (We have students who travel up to 100 kms looking for good homes--at this point we have placed over 1000 puppies in good homes). • 24/7 emergency rescue (We will be there in 20 to 30 minutes. Our doctors are on 24 hour call). • Hospice (We are a no-kill Shelter). =============== IT’S DIFFICULT TO CONVEY THE SPECIALNESS IN WORDS… Yes, the testimonials are impressive. And, the stats are impressive…But they don’t tell the story of the Specialness…The totally transformed and uplifted quality of life of the animals on the streets shows the effect of the Work, but not the Specialness. What we do doesn’t tell the story. To truly “get it” takes an actual experience. I wish you could see the inside of our beloved Shelter. It would gladden your Heart. =============== THE DOGS AND PUPPIES ARE NOT KEPT IN CAGES, BUT RUN FREE AND ARE HAPPY. They have a life. They have choices. OUR STAFF IS DEVOTED AND LOVING: From the very beginning they understood that deep healing would only take place if the animals felt safe, cared for, and loved. That it was they who gave the animals that love and caring. And that the expression of it was different for everyone, and each had to find their own way. They understood that the Furry Ones could tell the difference between someone being just “very nice” and someone who really cared. So it was important to be real. Our Staff are special, special people. Most have been with us five or six years, several for longer. All of them, with no exceptions, truly care for the animals. But some Special Ones (Sekar, Supervisor Raja, Ramu, and…) I call the Pure Hearts. The animals know this. Their attention alone can heal where medicine fails. SUPERVISOR RAJA: Supervisor Raja has an incredibly light touch. He “mingles” as the day unfolds. There's no separation between him doing very basic things, and being aware of the entire Shelter. His energy subtly pervades the Shelter. The Staff are really close to him. The animals adore him. He loves and is devoted to Dr. Raja. He and Vishwa are very close. THE PILLARS OF OUR BELOVED SHELTER, DR. RAJA AND VISHWA: They were both with me from the very beginning. For the first five or six years, they were my students. And there is a deep bond between us. They are like my sons. And I love them. But they are no longer “my students”. They stand on their own legs, with their own strengths, and have taken the Shelter beyond where I could have taken it, even in my prime. Our Medical Staff is superb. Each of the three doctors is terrific. Each is a qualified surgeon. But it’s our dear, dear Dr. Raja that I want to underscore here. DEAR, DEAR DR. RAJA: He is the head of Veterinary Medicine, and also involved in running the Shelter. His inner silence is deep, deep, deep. Deeper than I’ve seen in any other person. We have been thru so many intense scenarios, and I’ve never seen him flustered. He’s a tuning fork of Sanity. His Heart is like a flawless crystal. His energy pervades the Shelter. He is the most experienced clinician anywhere around. • It’s moving to see animals surrender to him and trust him, as he gently treats them. Even those in considerable pain instinctively trust him. • We’ve had over 50,000 visits to our clinic. He has treated at least 25,000, and overseen all the extremely difficult cases (cases beyond anything we see in the West). • He has treated most of the 5000 creatures other than dogs that have come to us— cows/calves, monkeys, horses, goats, sheep, owls, peacocks, snakes, eagles, and on and on. • People travel for two to three hours to bring their Precious Ones to him. • He is available any time of the day or night. He is believed to be the best surgeon within 150 kms. • He does operations that most surgeons wouldn’t think of doing. Some last six or seven hours. • The Government Veterinary Hospital that deals with only large animals have him do all their complicated surgeries. • The Forest Department brings their very difficult cases to him. • The Madras Veterinary College, one of the best, sometimes send students to observe him. OUR BELOVED VISHWA: He is the Director of Operations. He oversees the functioning of the entire Shelter, day and night. I sometimes call him the Martian, because an earthling could not accomplish what he accomplishes. And his Heart is the purest of the pure. The Staff adore him. The Furry Ones adore him. We could not be what we are without him. I don’t have the space to give you a sense of what or who he is--tho’ his Heart is the main thing. The following will give you a sense of what he can do… VIGNETTE: This is the story of an extraordinary rescue…an entire village of abandoned, starving animals—56 goats, 19 cows/calves/bulls, 4 bullocks, 2 sheep, and 4 pigs. The rescue was put together top to bottom by our beloved Vishwa. I truly don’t know how he was able to do it. Truly. (This is one of those times I call him The Martian.) The background: A political figure 75 km from here was killed by six men. The men lived in the same village. Their families fled for their lives, leaving all their animals in the care of the remaining villagers. Sympathizers of the political figure burned all their houses, and under threat of death, prevented the remaining villagers from caring for the animals. We found out five days after the murder. By this time, the animals were starving. The rescue was one of the largest I’ve heard of a shelter being involved in. These weren’t animals being turned over to us; they were creatures that we went out to rescue. It was a dangerous operation, fraught with the possibility of extreme violence. A Government Order was issued for the police to impound the abandoned animals, with the Shelter to do the rescue and caring. Six policemen and several government officials went in with us. Vishwa did not hear of this until my 7pm phone call. I told him what was unfolding, and that time was of the essence. He said he’d be ready to move by 8am in the morning. I was almost unbelieving. I said, “Babe, are you sure?”...”No problem, Sir.” Unbelievably, early morning, Vishwa was set to move with: • Four very large lorries with drivers, and a medium sized one with three large cages for the pigs. • Six carefully selected men to catch and load. • A very good cowshed in Tiru for the cows, calves, bulls, and bullocks. Five experienced caretakers (three for day, two for night) - and a good food supply • A semi-grassy, shaded area 25 kms outside of Tiru for the goats and sheep. An additional five caretakers for 24 hour care. Nutrition primarily from grazing, supplemented by oil cakes and fresh grass. • The four pigs were taken into the Shelter. • Additionally, he had arranged for food and water to be given to the starving creatures when we first got there. And food and water to be given late night at the places where they were going to be cared for. It took four hours of intense effort to gather, feed, and load, but it went off perfectly. I was humbled by how intensely and fearlessly the Staff moved for four continuous hours. There were many, many moments where they could have been badly hurt, especially in the loading of the cows, bulls, and bullocks. Most of the rescues did not get on the lorries willingly. They had to be pushed and lifted. The rescue was fraught with unbelievable effort. And it was dangerous. Thank God there were no major injuries. And thank God for Vishwa. On the trip back, Vishwa called ahead to make sure ample water and food was available for the precious creatures. It was dark and around midnight by the time all the animals were all settled in. This was all arranged by our young hero between the 7pm phone call and 8am the following morning. That’s about it folks. Our beloved Shelter is a place OF LOVE…OF PEACE…OF LIFE…and, above all, a place OF HEART.