Expand mobile sterilization clinic operations

Early 2023 - Recent Rescue Stories

Even though it's early in 2023, this year we see that Lanta Animal Welfare is getting back to ‘normal’ with new rescue cats and dogs in our care, and the return of tourists to Koh Lanta, and visiting our facility.  We love to share our work and missed the interaction with the visitor’s during the pandemic restrictions.

There are a few recent animal rescues that stand out, and I want to share these stories with you.

Gladys, our Golden Girl

Gladys at 10 years of age, is Lanta Animal Welfare’s newest Grand Dame. She is a little old lady who desperately deserves a better life. We rescued her recently from a government shelter where she spent her entire adult life.

Gladys has been suffering with a bad skin condition for a long time. When the Lanta Animal Welfare team visited the shelter, Gladys would be so pleased to see them, so much so that she would even sleep under the tables where they were treating other dogs.

On their most recent visit, the vets noticed Gladys had lost a lot of weight. Often it’s very difficult for older dogs in a shelter to get food because younger, bigger, stronger dogs push them out of the way. The vet team decided it was time to take Gladys to our clinic on Koh Lanta.

Gladys sad, miserable days are now a thing of the past for her. She is safe with us at Lanta Animal Welfare where she will get treatment for her blood parasites and anemia. Gladys will also get the love and affection that has been sadly lacking for so, so long. 

We are going to make her last few years the best, safe with us at Lanta Animal Welfare. 

Sweet Lara

Lara is a very sick young girl, and needs a lot of love. She was rescued earlier this week suffering from nasty abdominal wounds that had become infected with maggots.

Lara was malnourished, dehydrated and struggling to walk because she was unable to bear her own weight. If she had remained on the streets for much longer, she would surely have died.

Now, Lara is getting the treatment and care she needs, and is one of the many rescues that are possible because of your support. Without your kindness, cats such as Lara would be condemned to a slow, painful death on the streets.

Ugie is Looking for a Forever Home 

Ugie has been at Lanta Animal Welfare for exactly one year and remains up for adoption.  It’s time for this beautiful girl to get the home she deserves. 

Ugie has suffered too much misfortune and unhappiness in her short life. She is adorably sweet and a little goofball who loves people and cuddles. Ugie is very affectionate, playful and gets on well with other dogs. She really will be the perfect addition to someone’s family.

Ugie got hit by a car while roaming on the streets. The accident broke her pelvis and dislocated her hip. The breaks healed without proper medical care so she now has a very awkward way of walking. Ugie has no problem with her awkwardness and is very careful when walking on a bumpy road, or on steps. I’m sure Ugie dreams of a forever home with a flat backyard to run around in.

Despite Ugie’s walking issues, she full of energy and is looking for a loving family and her forever home. If you think that family could be yours, please make this a very happy anniversary for Ugie, and let me know. I will put you in contact with our Adoption Co-Ordinator.

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I hope you enjoyed these stories of a few of our recent rescue animals. But more importantly, I wanted to show you how your support of our projects saves lives, every single day.

The medical and animal care resources here at Lanta Animal Welfare is passionate about saving lives and is grateful that we can continue with our rescue efforts thanks to your support.

Links:

• Going for a walk with Gladys
• Lanta Animal Welfare Adoption Page for Ugie

Everyone at Lanta Animal Welfare is so happy that the high tourist season on Koh Lanta is almost upon us. 

We are very much looking forward to welcoming friends - old and new – to be able come visit us at the centre, after 2 season of scant tourists due to the COVID lockdowns.  All indicators are that the tourists will return and we will once again be able to involve them in caring for the rescue animals, including on doggy walks and with kitty cuddles.  And of course, we hope to find new forever homes for our rescues, as they definitely deserve a loving home once they are released from our hospital.

Here are a few stories of our recent rescues here at Lanta Animal Welfare.

Little Cheeto

Cheeto is tiny, helpless kitty was totally alone when we rescued him.  This sweet little fella was dumped outside Lanta Animal Welfare during the night.  Cheeto was only eight weeks old when he was abandoned, and weighed just 500 grams.

How anyone could abandon him we will never know, but all that matters now is that we are taking care of him until we can find him a new home where he will get the love all babies need.

Cheeto has had such a tough start to life. Now it’s time he was shown a little affection and he’ll make an wonderful addition to the forever family that adopts him.

Nadia

Nadia is a bit camera shy at the moment, as she knows she is not looking at her best. 

She is such a beautiful soul, and soon with our care, she will once more be as beautiful on the outside as she is on the inside.

Nadia is not in good health.  First of all, she has cancer. There is a very nasty tumour on her nose that causes her to have some breathing difficulties. And second, she also has an unpleasant eye infection that causes weeping and discomfort.  But absolutely, the cancer is the main cause of concern as the eye has already been treated with medicine and is on the mend. 

Nadia has begun a course of chemotherapy to hopefully cure her of the disease. The treatment is successful in almost 95 per cent of cases of TVT cancer, so our vets are confident Nadia will make a full recovery.
  
Nadia will be as pretty as a picture again very soon.

Change your life!  Come volunteer with us

A day in the life of a volunteer at Lanta Animal Welfare is the most rewarding hard work you will ever do. All volunteers should expect the unexpected as no two days are ever the same. There are always a wide-range of tasks to do like: walking dogs, feeding cats and dogs, cleaning dog kennels, cleaning cat cages, cleaning and preparing cat litter trays, doing laundry, preparing food, replenishing stock cupboards, sweeping floors, washing up. If you can name it, at some point it will have to get done.

Volunteers at Lanta Animal Welfare work alongside others from around the world and close friends are made with other humans, as well as with the cats and dogs.

The day of a volunteer starts with walking a dog on a beautiful soft sand beach with the sun coming up over the hills, and ends with a cold beer on the same beach watching the most stunning sunsets Mother Nature can offer.

All of that, and so much more, is available to volunteers at Lanta Animal Welfare. Please consider coming to volunteer, or sharing this with your family and friends.  We are always looking for an welcoming new volunteers.  Check out the Volunteer section on our Website for information on volunteering and fill out an applications.  We’d love to see you here at the centre.

Message from our Founder, Junie Kovacs

I want to thank you for taking the time to read our latest news. My team and I can continue our efforts to rescue animals because of the support you give us.

I am very grateful for your support.

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Everyone here at Lanta Animal Welfare wishes you and your family all the best for the holiday season!

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Links:

• Lanta Animal Welfare Website

The summer and warm weather has arrived for us in North America, and the rainy season has started on Koh Lanta.  Rescue operations continue as always, even during this wet and low tourist season on the island.  Some say more animals are rescued as the island isn't as busy, and desperate animals aren't deep in hiding.

For this report I'm going to tell you about 4 rescue animals that are so grateful for your support.  Your donations have changed their lives for the better, absolutely.

Mookrob

This poor little girl was a very sorry sight when we rescued her.  She was in a great deal of discomfort as her skin was in a truly terrible condition. Mookrob was suffering from scabies, a highly contagious skin parasite, that virtually robbed her of all her fur.

To make matters worse, mites had burrowed into Mookrob’s skin, causing her severe itching. It was an extremely unpleasant and uncomfortable condition. 

Fortunately, Mookrob’s misery should soon be over. She is now getting the care and the specialized treatments she needs to ensure she makes a full recovery.

Blanco

They say a picture paints a thousand words and this was true when we first rescued little Blanco. The suffering and sorrow we evident in his eyes. Many of the rescue young cats we find are in a similar situation, so Blanco is an excellent example of the many cats that come into our care. Blanco was dehydrated and severely underweight. He weighed just 2.5 kg, about half of what a healthy three-year-old cat should weigh.

He was suffering from stomatitis, a painful oral inflammation that leads to a decreased appetite because of the severe pain caused by the condition. He also had extremely nasty wounds on his legs that were infested with maggots.

All in all, when Blanco was rescued, he was in a pretty sorry state, as so many homeless cats find themselves. Thanks to your support, the good news in that Blanco is now safely in our care and being treated in LAW’s kitty hospital.

Birdie

Birdie celebrated a very special day earlier this month as she had her first birthday. But things could have been very, very different for this beautiful little girl without supporters like you.

Birdie has been with us at Lanta Animal Welfare for three and a half months and it's no exaggeration to say, had we not rescued her when we did, it’s highly unlikely she would have made it to the milestone of her first birthday. When we found her, she was severely malnourished and underweight, along with terrible skin lesions. Had she remained untreated, her future was extremely bleak.

When she first arrived at Lanta Animal Welfare, Birdie was completely closed off. She had never known human kindness before and did not how to react. She was scared and nervous. Now, after months in our care, she is happy and confident.

Birdie's is a lovely feelgood story, as this she is fit and healthy. And even better, she is ready for her forever home and is available for adoption. If you are interested in Birdie, or any of our other animals looking for a forever home, please let me know, or go to our website and look through the animals found in the Adoption tab.

Bobby 

Bobby is such a handsome fellow, but he’s not looking at his brilliant best just now. This little lad is feeling a bit sorry for himself, and that’s quite understandable. 

Bobby is the latest in a worryingly long list of dogs admitted to Lanta Animal Welfare’s doggy hospital after having been involved in a road accident. Judging by the damage to his paws, our veterinary team believes he was run over by either a car or a motorbike.

They are hopeful the injuries will heal, and he will not require amputation, although he has lost two toes on his front left paw. It’s such a shame for Bob, who is only six months old, but street dogs are at constant risk on the roads, particularly at night.

The dangers are everywhere, and your support helps us rescue these homeless dogs and cats that have been in road accidents.

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I do hope that you are very proud of your support and realize how you have positively impacted the lives of these 4 rescues, as well as those of the many other animals we continue to rescue on Koh Lanta and the surrounding area.  Thanks to our rescue teams, and the many mobile sterilization clinics, that our GlobalGiving projects support, we get constant reinforcement from the rescue animals that we are doing good work.

Thanks for reading this report and I hope you have a safe and super summer.

Links:

• Lanta Animal Welfare Website

Welcome from Lanta Animal Welfare to the GlobalGiving Report for the Winter of 2022.  Things are thankfully improving here on Koh Lanta as we have been able to welcome back visitors to tour our facility.  

After being closed for almost two years due to the Covid-19 pandemic, it has been wonderful to see so many happy, smiling faces among our guests. It is so important for our animals to get that human interaction, as it helps them on their road to recovery by lifting their spirits from the love and attention of so many.
 
In this report I am going to share some our recent animal rescue stories so you can see how your support is helping these rescue animals.

Moose’s Story

Moose is one of Lanta Animal Welfare’s little miracles. Maybe we should call him our ‘bionic dog’ because he has effectively been rebuilt. When Lanta Animal Welfare rescued Moose he was in a very sorry state. He had been hit by a car and was suffering from multiple fractures to his legs, hip and back.

Our veterinary team was not sure he would survive, and they were not sure if he would ever walk again.An unstable spinal fracture, which initially left him paralysed, had to be extremely carefully managed for fears of causing permanent damage.

It really was touch and go for Moose. He had a few very complicated surgeries. Firstly, they repaired the fracture in his knee that was preventing him getting up. It has now straightened properly through the healing. That fracture, coupled with a spinal injury he also had, meant he was unable to have physiotherapy as he was too unstable. His fractured hip, another of his injuries from the accident, required a femoral head ostectomy (FHO) to create a false joint.

Moose is only six months old. It was a massive amount of trauma for such a young dog to have to endure. He is now on the road to recovery and has been given a second chance. Many dogs and cats hit by cars here are not so lucky.

Lanta Animal Welfare sees an increasing number of animals suffering these accidents each year. The care and treatment required to nurse a dog such as Moose back to full health is lengthy and expensive. Without the generosity of animal lovers like you, we would not be able to help them.

Moose is one of the lucky ones, thanks to you.

 Elmo’s Story

Elmo was rescue about a month ago, another victim of a road accident. His front right leg was so severely that the veterinary team could not save the limb. Little Elmo has had to have his leg amputated.
 
He is barely a year old. It is a horrible thing for him to have to go through this at such a young age. Elmo has been dealt the toughest of starts in life, forced to fend for himself on the streets and now forced to live with a permanent disability.
 
Elmo has started a prolonged period of rehabilitation while he gets used to life on three legs, and Lanta Animal Welfare will give him the love and care he needs throughout his recovery. We will then find him a new forever home so he can live his days full of love and put all his trauma behind him.
 
Checkers’ Story

Life on the streets is incredibly hard for any stray cat but imagine being blind as well. Finding food, finding water, finding shelter, everything must have been a huge, huge challenge, not to mention trying to navigate the streets without being hit by a car or truck.

Checkers is only six months old but it’s amazing he has made it this far. The dangers he faced in his daily life must have been enormous, every minutes of the day. Fortunately, those dangers are no more and he is safe and secure at Lanta Animal Welfare.
  
Cats like Checkers have no one else. Your support is their lifeline. Checkers is now up for adoption, and we hope his forever family is found soon as this little darling deserves to be loved, cared for and kept safe always. 

Frank, Benny and Mia’s Story
 
Had Lanta Animal Welfare not rescued these puppies, it is doubtful they would still be alive. Their siblings had been killed after being hit by cars on the busy road near to where they were living.
 
A local man who did not want the dogs living near to his home had deliberately poisoned their mother. He was threatening to poison Frank, Benny and Mia, prompting someone to let us know that these puppies needed our help.
 
They are only one year old, but they had no hope and no future. Now they do. These three have been at Lanta Animal Welfare for just one week, but everyone here has already fallen in love with them. How tragic to think how close to death they came. They have now been given a second chance in life because supporters like you make our rescue efforts possible.

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Please check out our website for more information on our rescue animals and to find out more about the rescue animals we have up for adoption.  We adopt our rescue animals all over the world, so if any grab your heart, please let us know.  

I hope you have enjoyed these rescue stories and are proud of the rescue work you make possible, through your support of Lanta Animal Welfare. 

Links:

• Lanta Animal Welfare Web Site Adoption Section

Lanta Animal Welfare is busy as always providing rescue and medical procedures to animals in need.

Slowly Thailand is operning up to tourists so the island is working hard to get things back to normal after 18 months of restrictions and lockdowns.  Our rescue and sterilization activities are finding animals that have been hidden and neglected during the pandemic.  We are also continuing to hold mobile sterilization clinics at different locations every month.  Your support is helping to make this all possible.

For this report I'm going to share a few rescue stories, so you can understand the lives we are impacting and the suffering we are relieving with our efforts 

Monica and Monty's Story

Monica and Monty are our newest mum and pup.  The pair were rescued a few weeks ago and it was just in time.  They were in a perilous situation.

Monica had a very deep, deep wound on her front right leg. The leg was caught in a snare, and it had cut all the way down to the tendon.  As she was being rescued from this trap, she was struggling desperately to protect little Monty. We estimated that Monty was 10 weeks old when we rescued the pair of them.

At first LAW’s veterinary team thought they would be able to save Monty’s leg. However, Monty's injury was extremely severe, more than first thought.  The snare had cut right through the tendon and to the bone.  Despite the best efforts of our veterinary team, the leg could not be saved. She had to undergo amputation.

This has not altered Monty’s maternal instincts. She remains fiercely protective of little Monty and it’s clear her love for her puppy is enormous.

Fortunately, both are now safe and well, and getting the care and treatment they need. These are difficult and scary times for the two of them, in an unfamiliar environment and not used to human interaction. But our trained medical team will be giving them all they need, and more love and compassion than they ever imagined.

Aoun's Rescue Story

We see so much suffering at Lanta Animal Welfare, but it’s always especially sad to see young animals in pain. Animals like the darling kitty we called Aoun. It's actually an Arabic name, meaning help and charity.  She is just 10 months old but had an extremely nasty maggot wound on her head when we found her.

It must have been so painful for this poor little girl. And that wasn't her only problem. Aoun has also suffered damage to her vestibular system. This affects her balance and co-ordination, and causes her head to often tilt to one side. The good news is all of her ailments can be cured, but the treatment will take time.

We will continue to care for this darling cat until she's healthy, and then she will be put up for adoption in a loving home.

Narak's Rescue Story

Narak is such a cutie. And so he should be, because that’s exactly what his name means – cute. Although he looks sweet and cuddly, and of course he is, he is actually quite poorly.

Narak, who is only 14 weeks old, is suffering from feline scabies (Notoedric Mange), a very, very unpleasant skin condition. It is a rare and highly contagious condition, is readily transmitted between cats by contact, and causes severe itching.

Because of its contagious nature, Narak is in our kitty hospital isolation unit. It is not the happiest environment for a playful, inquisitive kitten, but it’s for his own good.  Hopefully he won’t be in there for too long and will soon be up for adoption.

Pump's Rescue Story

Pump was admitted to Lanta Animal Welfare this week with a truly horrific maggot wound. It looks as though Pump had probably been in a fight with another dog and had sustained a serious eye injury. But with the wound left untreated, infection had set in and the condition was truly appalling when we found him. 

Maggots had gotten in to the infected area and had begun to feast on Pump’s flesh. As a result, we had to remove his left eye. It’s hard to imagine the pain the poor boy was in. The agony must have been virtually unbearable.

Pump is now in recovery.  He has a glint out of his good eye, and a cheeky smile on his face. He really is a very cute boy. Although he is still poorly, Pump should make a full recovery from his injuries.

The end of the year is quickly approaching

We continue our important rescue and sterilization work here on Koh Lanta and the surrounding areas. We always try our best to ensure that all animals are cared for to the best of our abilities, and that no animal is left behind.

Everyone here at Lanta Animal Welfare is grateful for your support.  Please feel free to contact me if you’d like information about any of our rescue animals, and check out our Website to see the rescue animals that are available for adoption. 

I wish you all a very happy and safe Holiday Season and best wishes for the New Year!