IFAW's Animal Rescue Blog

IFAW Haiti: IFAW's Dr. Dick Green recounts some remarkable stories from the front lines of the disaster

IFAW Haiti - The Work for Animals Continues in Port-au-Prince

This post was filed by the International Fund for Animal Welfare's (IFAW) J.C. Bouvier who is on the ground in Port-au-Prince working with the Animal Rescue Coalition for Haiti (ARCH) teams.

Yesterday, ARCH teams were again hard at work, helping dozens more animals from several Port-au-Prince communities...in the morning of the 29th, the ARCH coordinating team leader and IFAW Emergency Relief Manager Dick Green met with a top official from the Haitian Ministry of the Environment...while IFAW, ASPCA and AHA staff deployed into some of the harder hit areas...over the course of this 48 hour period dozens more animals were helped with vaccinations, flea baths and nutritional supplements...

Today, the 30th, the teams found a badly injured dog named Dik, whose owner says he had been in a building with a seven year old boy when the earthquake struck...although injured, Dik was able to be pulled from the rubble...When we inquired about the boy's situation, the owner said that despite every effort, the boy didn't survive... 

After evaluating the Dik's injuries, a plan was set to bring full veterinary support to Dik's aid tomorrow...stay tuned for a video update on Dik's situation...

For more information on IFAW's efforts, please visit http://bit.ly/arbhaiti

IFAW South Africa: Saving township dogs from a deadly epidemic

This is a report from International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) Campaigns Officer, Lisa Cant-Haylett, who is based in IFAW’s Cape Town, South Africa office.

Just last Thursday, Cape Town newspapers carried front page headlines warning of an outbreak of the often deadly Canine Parvovirus.

Animal welfare groups in the affected areas reported they were being forced to euthanize dozens of sick dogs, while dozens more were being treated for the disease.

As the worst affected areas are only a short distance away from Khayelitsha, where IFAW’s dog and cat project operates, it seemed logical that it would only be a matter of time before Parvo made the jump to the township where the disease would quickly spread among the many immuno-suppressed dogs. As it was, we had two puppies with Parvo brought in on Friday alone – these two pups were immediately quarantined away from the other dogs and, sadly, one of them died over the weekend.

We decided that rather than take a wait-and-see approach, a pre-emptive campaign to vaccinate dogs was essential. Jane Levinson, the clinic co-ordinator, got the ball rolling by making contact with vaccine manufacturers Intervet and distributors Norpharm. In no time they had committed to providing the much needed vaccines at greatly reduced cost, including a number of free doses.

No end to the destruction in Haiti

This report was filed from Port-au-Prince, by the International Fund for Animal Welfare's (IFAW) ER Communications Officer Michael Booth.

On the second day of operation in Haiti (Sunday, 24th of Jan.), ARCH (Animal Relief Coalition for Haiti) members traveled South of Port-au-Prince to the towns of Leogane and Jacmel. We had heard a lot about the extent of structural damage and loss of life in these two places but needed to go and assess the situation with the animals. Unlike the capital city, these two more rural areas understandably hold a larger population of farm animals.

It didn’t take long until we encountered a number of goats, pigs and dogs all assembled near dump sites along the local fruit and vegetable market haphazardly set-up on the side of a dirt road. Haiti had made great progress in re-housing street markets not too long ago but the earthquake brought the roof of the new market down and with it any attempts at an organized, safe and clean distribution center. Within just a few days, the vendors had again established themselves really anywhere they could and instantly animals were drawn there to rummage in the garbage in an attempt to find whatever food they could.

We continued for more than an hour and a half to cross the hills outside Port-au-Prince and reach Haiti’s southern shore. The distance is not all that long but the highway has considerable damage and big cracks have literally displaced many sections of the road. Land and rock slides also cut all access to Jacmel for several days so our team was one of the first people to make the ride.

At Jacmel, we saw more of the same, tragic scenery. Toppled houses marked by fluorescent signs that indicate SAR (Search and Rescue Team) work done in the rubble. You see numbers in the signs, some indicate the number of bodies found, others indicate the survivors, as expected the latter number is usually the lowest.

IFAW Haiti: Responders Land on the Ground

This report was filed from Port-au-Prince, by the International Fund for Animal Welfare's (IFAW) ER Communications Officer Michael Booth who is on the ground working with the IFAW/WSPA led Animal Rescue Coalition for Haiti (ARCH) to help the animals abandoned, injured and in need.

After a few days of preparation in the Dominican Republic, we landed in Toussaint Louverture airport at 9:20 am local time in Haiti. During the 1-hour flight aboard a small fixed-wing aircraft, we caught a glimpse of the devastation from the air, it wasn’t just the collapsed buildings that caught our eye, but also the masses of displaced people congregating on the streets and living in huge ‘tent cities’ scattered around Port-au-Prince...

The airport was packed full of Emergency Response teams including helicopters from the US marines, humanitarian groups and a huge UN contingent. We were dropped off in the middle of a grass field next to the runway. Our first, very unexpected, challenge was to find a way carry all our bags and supplies to the airport terminal without getting in the way of cargo planes moving left and right.

We entered a dark, powerless airport and quickly got our passport stamps. The first signs of the earthquake’s fury were visible all across the airport’s cracked walls. There was no time to linger though, Dr. Thomas was picking us up outside to head over to a meeting with Dr. Max Millien the Haitian Minister of Animal Health. In normal circumstances, one would’ve had to head to the city center for these meetings, but like so many buildings there, Dr Millien’s office was under several feet of debris, completely wiped out.

In the interim, several Ministries were setting up in private buildings used as temporary emergency operating centers to hold critical meetings, and this was one such meeting. Some of the agreed upon priorities include prevention of disease outbreaks, and also to help farmers get back on their feet and kick-start the collapsed Haitian economy. The government is grateful for the outpouring of support from IFAW and all the members of the coalition and it was a very productive planning meeting.

 From there we headed to the city center. Among the collapsed building we spotted several dogs and one cat all looking for food, for comfort. They all look pretty undernourished, many were exhibiting signs of disease or injury. Many were traumatized and moved away from us, but when we could the vets provided initial care.

Walking among the wreckage and misery that is Port-au-Prince is nothing one can get used to. Coming back to our base at night, we were inspired by a mass prayer ceremony held at one of the ‘tent cities’. Haitians were dancing and signing, desperately trying to find the peace and the strength to carry on. An entire country is in pain, it’s visible and palpable everywhere you go. Thanks to our supporters, we are here, now, to lend a hand, to assist both humans and animals and bring relief to Haiti.

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For more information and to donate please visit www.ifaw.org.

IFAW Team Begins Move into Haiti

This brief post was written by the International Fund for Animal Welfare’s Deputy Director of Programs A.J. Cady, who is overseeing the deployment of IFAW and ARCH teams into Haiti.

Early this morning, I was able to get a quick update from Dr. Ian Robinson and Michael Booth, both members of IFAW’s emergency response team, which has freshly landed on the ground in the Dominican Republic. The team has been anxiously awaiting permission to enter Haiti and is thrilled to report they will moving into Haiti tonight. Additional members are set to follow by air tomorrow.

Our first priority will be meeting with Haitian government representatives in the capital of Port-au-Prince and begin finalizing a plan for ongoing aid.

When I spoke with Michael, he was keen to convey the magnitude of the issue on the ground. IFAW is currently staying in an area which is flooded with relief workers of agencies originating from all corners of the world. There’s a strong sense of purpose and everyone is grateful for the outpouring of support from the international community.

As IFAW’s Emergency Relief Communications Lead, Michael will be working to keep everyone up to date on our efforts and any needs or urgent challenges, so be sure to watch for updates via email and through our Facebook and Twitter pages.

We are working closely with the World Society for the Protection of Animals in the continuing coordination of the Animal Rescue Coalition for Haiti and will also be sure to immediately update you on coalition progress as soon as the news comes in. I am quite sure there will be many sad sights to see, but our hope is that we will also be able to report back to you on many happy endings.

Thanks to all of our supporters for their generous donations and for helping us bring aid to the animals struck by this disaster.

A.J. --

For more information on the International Fund for Animal Welfare’s efforts on the ground in Haiti, please visit www.ifaw.org.

IFAW China: White-tailed Sea Eagle Rescue and Release

This report came in this week from the International Fund for Animal Welfare's Beijing Raptor Rehab Center in China.

On January 12, 2009, a white-tailed sea eagle, an endangered species listed under first-class protection in China, recovered from poisoning and was returned to the wild today by the IFAW Beijing Raptor Rescue Center (BRRC).

Mr Yi together with four bird-watcher friends, found this eagle near Guan Ting reservoir in Yan Qing, 70 km northwest of Beijing in Hebei Province.“It was off balance and could not fly. We thought the bird had been injured and hurried to help it by taking it to the raptor rescue center, Mr. Yi said.” Then we saw another White-tailed Sea Eagle not far away from this one, sadly at its last gasp.” The second White-tailed Sea Eagle died on the way to BRRC.

At the BRRC, rehabilitators quickly diagnosed the condition as organophosphate (insecticide) poisoning and treated the eagle accordingly. The bird responded well to medication and recovered well over the following few days. He is strong and well but unhappy over being in captivity. BRRC rehabilitators assign importance to minimizing stress to the animals in their care. Stress severely compromises animal welfare and an animal’s ability to heal. As soon as the eagle is considered safely out of danger from the poisoning incident, he will be released. In the meantime, all precautions are taken to optimize the comfort and sense of security of the bird.

This eagle and the companion who died were victims of secondary poisoning. Rural people are known to spread poisoned food as a means of poaching wild animals. The animals are then sold on the market as food. Several dead ducks were found on the lake where the two eagles were rescued. The eagle that survived had vomited duck feathers, and had most probably ingested a poisoned duck. Secondary poisoning of this sort is a common cause of death in wildlife, including many endangered species.

Mr. Yi observed that the number of wild birds in the area around the Guan Ting reservoir is reduced this winter compared with previous years. After rescuing the eagles, he called the police to report the suspected poisonings.

“It is common for local people to capture pheasants and hares, and we will punish suspects who hunt rare animals,” said an officer at the local police station.

In Beijing, White-tailed Sea Eagles are rare winter migratory birds, inhabiting areas near broad rivers. They hunt primarily fish, but will also capture birds and small mammals. They are found across northern Europe and Asia. Following 16 years on the list of threatened species on the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), European recovery efforts for the species enabled the international conservation status of the species to be more secure since 2009.

Raptors are carnivorous birds that are high on the food chain. As such, they are susceptible to toxins that their prey ingest. The BRRC has received and treated around 3,000 raptors since its establishment in 2001. Of the rescued birds, approximately 5% were victims of secondary poisoning. The poisons are usually insecticides and rodenticides. BRRC advises the improvement of government regulations on the use of these chemicals to minimize the damage to wildlife, domestic animals and humans.

For more information on IFAW's work helping animals in crisis around the world, please visit www.ifaw.org

IFAW Germany: A Visual Protest to Help Save Elephants

This post was filled by the International Fund for Animal Welfare's press officer in Germany, Andreas Dinkelmeyer.

Let's save the elephants! Early on Tuesday we left Hamburg for Berlin, the capital of Germany, in the high speed train. We had prepared an action to visualize how many elephants die per day. In the days to the action we prepared 416 elephant footprints, a huge banner and our petition elephant. In the very heart of Berlin, in front of Brandenburg Gate, we wanted to make the public and politicians aware of the plight of the elephants.

As soon as we had set up, people came up to us, asking what this was all about and eagerly signed our petition elephant, a wooden, live size elephant with our call to end ivory trade. Soon several MP’s also came to visit us and the Ambassador of the Democratic Republic of Congo, one of the countries heavily affected by elephants poaching. Both, MP’s and Ambassador voiced their support for our action and for the elephants and agreed that the German government needs to arrive at a firm position against ivory trade for the next CITES conference in March 2010. The German government has a special responsibility as Germany played a key role during the last CITES Conference in The Hague, forging an agreement that four southern African countries could sell their ivory stockpiles. The stockpile sale ignited even more elephant poaching.

It made a quite impressive picture, the hundreds of footprints in front of Brandenburg Gate, a stones throw from the German parliament. We got many admiring remarks from Germans and tourists alike, commending our work to protect the elephants.

The only lasting solution is an end to all ivory trade, only then will these gentle giants of the savannas be able to live in peace.

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For more information on how you can help IFAW help elephants, please visit IFAW.org

IFAW Dubai: "Fernando" now "Gizmo" Finds Loving Home

This update from Dubai came in today, our pal "Fernando" has been reborn and is now living with a loving family...Thanks to all for the continued support. J.C. - IFAW

"I quickly snapped off some pix of our very spoiled much loved boy for you. They are not wonderful and I would have loved to have got some of him running around outside – but I hope these will suffice...

Gizmo our 2.8 legged dog lives with 1 cat, 1 dog, a chinchilla and sleeps in Brianna’s bed at night!

What a gift having him live with us!"

IFAW Russia: Orphan Bear Cubs Prepare for Winter - Soooo Cute

These photos of two orphaned Russian bear cubs were recently taken at the International Fund for Animal Welfare's Bear Rehabilitation Center. The notes below come from our staffer Lena Averianova.

The autumn comes to an end. Ostakh and Gena have grown, they are stronger, and we hope they have already forgotten how their story began.

Beautiful, free animals, just look at photos.

They are now walking in a open-air wooden enclosure, they show the skills and ability to find food and they skillfully climb up trees. Employees at the center sometimes feed the bears apples, for them this is a big delicacy.

These young bears already have the necessary weight and warm fur coats so they are ready to 'lie down' for the winter in a den prepared by IFAW staff.

Everything is well with Ostakh and Gena at the IFAW BRC and now we can wish them: “Kind winter dreams!"