It has been 7 months since the war began, and the situation continues to get worse. Across the West Bank, unemployment has skyrocketed. Bethlehem has been hit hard in particular, with the steep decline of tourism. Roads are blocked by barricades and hotels and restaurants are closed. The main food source of the stray cats and dogs of Bethlehem are what scraps they can scavenge from the dumpsters of hotels and restaurants. The few restaurants that have managed to remain open are not producing enough waste. The loss of their main food source has resulted in a famine for stray dogs and cats. The amount of dogs and cats, dead from starvation, littering the roads and fields of the West Bank is at a high and steadily increasing. The Shelter is trying to help the situation by bringing food to Bethlehem's strays.
The road blockades have caused a sharp decrease in fosters and adoptions. The Shelter is too overcrowded and Diana's own yard is becoming that way with 12 cats (only 6 of which are actually Diana's pets), 3 kittens, 7 cats in her garage, 7 dogs; one blind one with nerve problems. She is busier than she has ever been; waking up at 5:30 every day and no days off, looking after her mini-farm and cleaning up after them, going to work, coming home to take care of her elderly mother and the house and trying to secure donations to cover all the expenses of the shelter.
To top it off, we have seen more rescues this month than ever before, which means more debts to our veterinary clinics yet donations are down.
Please help us by donating.
To our international followers; if ever you have considered making an international adoption of one of our dogs, NOW IS THE TIME.
DONATE:
ADOPT:
FOSTER:
Thank you everyone for your support.
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This poor young female dog was seen by a friend of Diana in Nablus in a state of great suffering. She had eaten food baited with rat poison laid out on the street by someone. Diana asked Nablus-based friend of the shelter, Usama, to go and collect her and bring her to Royal Care Hospital. The vets kept working to save her until after midnight. The next day the clinic informed us that they stopped the bleeding but her situation is still critical and she needs time to overcome this hard condition.
For three days the staff at Royal Care Hospital took care of her, but the rat poison had caused so much internal damage that she wasn't able to pull through. She died yesterday. We’re sorry we couldn’t save you in time, girl!
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A friend of Diana’s spotted this male dog on streets of Nablus and called her. Diana sent Nablus-based friend of the shelter, Osama who brought him to Royal Care Hospital. Poor doggo was in poor condition with low bloodwork, an eye popped out from its socket, a bad skin condition, tick infestation and a broken front leg. His injuries were sustained by abuse from people. He stayed at the clinic for 3 days until we found an Association to sponsor his case and Usama undertook a long journey to transport doggo to them.
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This poor girl was hit by a car and left on a Hebron street, unable to move. A friend of Diana’s spotted her late one night and called her. Diana asked him to take her to his house for the night. The next morning, Diana arranged a taxi to bring her to Al Buraq Clinic. She was found to have a broken back, spine and pelvis; incontinence and; no feeling in her legs. An Association agreed to sponsor her case and she was sent to their clinic yesterday. However, by this time her breathing had become uneven, she was unable to eat solids and they found that parts of her spine had merged into one another- making surgery impossible. RIP, little one. We’re sorry we couldn’t save you but at least now you can have peace.
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A young 14-year-old boy noticed a cardboard box just outside of his house. When he looked inside, he saw 4 tiny puppies. He put them in a nearby empty house near and fed them with milk. Then he called Diana.
Diana took them to the clinic where they got treatment until they became better. The puppies were tiny, dehydrated and riddled with fleas. Diana then took them to her home and gave them a bath and a good night’s sleep in a warm bed. Yesterday they went to a foster with Bodie and Bernie.
We thank the caring 14-year-old boy who saved these puppies.
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A kind man found this nursing mother in Dheisheh late one night and messaged Diana. He managed to find one of her kittens still alive and tried to take care of it but it died soon after.
The nursing mother has suffered a broken spine due to abuse by humans. She remains at the clinic receiving treatment and some much-needed cage rest.
We thank this man for rescuing her.
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Friend of the Shelter, Amira Shomali, works at a pet store in Beit Sahour. Recently, a young female dog had appeared in the surrounding streets. She became a frequent visitor to the pet store and Amira always made sure to give her food and water. But residents in the area began to complain, threatening to have the dog killed. Amira called Diana to help her, who sent a taxi. Amira caught the dog and sent her to our vet Mohammad Rajii, who fixed her and administered vaccinations and deworming and flea treatment.
We have named her Amira, after her carer and rescuer. We thank Dr. Rajj for bringing Amira to full health.
She is now in our shelter but is ready for her forever home. Please call +972 50-866-6582 to foster or adopt.
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A young man, Salem Khair, saw this puppy in front of his house and called Diana. Diana instructed him to bring the puppy to @alBuraqclinic. The puppy has skin problem and fleas for which he was treated and vaccinated. We have named him Elvis. He is 3-4 months old, mixed and is ready to go to a foster or forever home.
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This poor pup was heard screaming all day after he fell into a hole and could not get out. A friend called Diana who went to rescue him with her worker, Jeries. He was hungry and dehydrated. Diana took him to her home where he slept in a nice warm bed.
The area where pup was rescued is full of dry, thorny bushes. His mother and brother are still there- they ran away when Diana and Jeries tried to catch them. We fear that someone will set the bushes on fire and put Mum & brother puppy in danger. Diana’s friend will leave food for them in a safer nearby area in hope they will eventually follow.
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This poor little pup was run over by a car in Beit Sahour and left suffering from his injuries near the trash for 3 days. Passers-by saw him but chose to look the other way. Diana asked Dr. Mohammad Rajj to go and collect him then treat his injuries in his clinic.
Diana then took the puppy to her house for the night. The next day, our friend, Judith, drove him to the clinic of an Association who sponsored his case.
We thank Dr. Rajj, Judith and the Association for helping to rescue this puppy.
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Due to the volume of rescues, this month's blog post will be divided into two parts. Part 2 will be published tomorrow.
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