Nandi News - December 2024
Welcome to the December and Christmas 2024 edition!
Boas Festas!
I am actually writing this from Peru whilst on a trip to South America. Surprisingly, whilst I have seen many dogs there appear to be few street dogs. The local communities seem to allow them to roam free during the day but they return to a ‘home’ at the end of the day to be fed… many even have little coats provided for them to guard against the cold... and I have seen very few cats. Unfortunately I have yet to see Paddington Bear...
As the year is coming to a close I must again give huge thanks to all of our wonderful volunteers. Without them we could not raise the enormous amount of funds required to look after our sick and abandoned animals in the Algarve.
Unfortunately, the demand for our help is never ending and so these animals rely on the the goodwill of so many people committed to making the lives of these animals better.
Thank you, and to you all, a Merry Christmas.
Unprecedented demand for our animal help
Just one of our customers last month who needed treatment for a nasty infection - now all well.
Just a reminder - I am afraid we cannot fund vaccinations, microchips, worming or flea treatments, dental surgery or treatment for ongoing chronic or terminal conditions.
Of course, we would like to... but there are just not the funds available.
As we have announced in previous newsletters Sandra, in charge of Nandi Animal Help, has continued to receive an increased amount of requests for financial help with vet bills and for sterilisations through the new online system she developed in August.
The figures above for October say it all. Compared to October 23 we spent an extra 54.6% in October 24. Especially pleasing has been the increase in the number of female cats being sterilised (2023 figures are in brackets).
The new, online system, is certainly working and giving us plenty of data for our planned review which we need to carry out to ensure that we are using our resources to maximum effect. What is clear is that we at Nandi are having to work ever more efficiently to keep up with the demand for financial help from owners and our partner sanctuaries.
Nandi gives emergency animal help……
In November we received an urgent cry from help for Buddy´s Legacy run by Jo Puddle. Buddy’s Legacy is a charitable group which uses donations to help low-income families in Portugal to keep and maintain the health of their pets, mainly dogs. This could help with anything from monthly parasite treatments to ensure the good health of the pet, sterilisation costs for those who, for whatever reason, do not qualify from other charities who help in this aspect, to reduce unwanted litters and also emergency/accident care costs, if needed.
This not only helps people who otherwise would have to either put their dogs into shelters when they are older or become sick, but also helps those whose dogs have had unexpected injuries or illnesses, causing high vets costs which the family cannot pay.
The cry for help Nandi received was for funds for vet treatment for three dogs. Luna, ( photos above), was rendered blind after being poisoned. She needed 4 operations on the same day totalling 1108.14 euros.
Another dog had been rendered blind as a result of cataracts and also needed expensive vet surgery to restore sight.
And finally, the most distressing case, of a young dog, Max, much loved by the children in a young family who had been let out accidentally and run over by a hit and run driver.
The mother of the family wrote:
"I thank God that we have our Max alive, he is without a doubt the reason for my children's joy.
Max is undoubtedly a part of us. It breaks my heart to think that I won't have enough to be able to save his paw..., Max only turns 1 year old on November 8th, he still has a whole life ahead of him."
The operations on his front paw and hind leg went ahead and Max is expected to make a full recovery. 1000 euros went as additional emergency funds and another 1000 will be paid in January for our annual donation to Buddy´s legacy.
Welcome to our new volunteers!
Petra:
Petra:
Petra:
works in the clothes shop. She first came to the Algarve in 2015 and then regularly returned as a tourist. From 2019 she has been trying longer stays and now lives here with her partner and 5 rescue dogs and a rescue cat.
Her interests are: ‘the Algarve with its wonderful nature and people. I love travelling to historic places in Spain
works in the clothes shop. She first came to the Algarve in 2015 and then regularly returned as a tourist. From 2019 she has been trying longer stays and now lives here with her partner and 5 rescue dogs and a rescue cat.
Her interests are: ‘the Algarve with its wonderful nature and people. I love travelling to historic places in Spain and Portugal.and additionally I like walking my dogs and golfing’.
Welcome to Nandi, Petra!
Irina:
Petra:
Petra:
is from Russia, from the Nizhny Novgorod region.
Five years ago, she arrived by car with her beloved cat to Lagos.
"I changed the forests and rivers of my native land for eternal rocks and an endless ocean. I was inspired by new landscape".
Irina paints with acrylics (see her work below), takes photos, writes poetry and loves going to cl
is from Russia, from the Nizhny Novgorod region.
Five years ago, she arrived by car with her beloved cat to Lagos.
"I changed the forests and rivers of my native land for eternal rocks and an endless ocean. I was inspired by new landscape".
Irina paints with acrylics (see her work below), takes photos, writes poetry and loves going to classical music concerts. "I love animals, my cat, Perchik, and two goldfish live at home. I am very glad to meet the Nandi team. Here I found like-minded people".
Irina works in the clothes shop.
Great to have you with us, Irina!
Gerda:
Petra:
Gerda:
is originally from the North of the Netherlands but living abroad since 2003. After living in Poland and Singapore, Gerda landed in Portugal with her husband almost one year ago.
She is a lifelong cat lover, but unfortunately her darling cat died just before she left Singapore.
Currently, she is feeding her love for animals by volunteering
is originally from the North of the Netherlands but living abroad since 2003. After living in Poland and Singapore, Gerda landed in Portugal with her husband almost one year ago.
She is a lifelong cat lover, but unfortunately her darling cat died just before she left Singapore.
Currently, she is feeding her love for animals by volunteering to walk dogs at the municipal Canil in Lagos. She loves to read, hike and ‘upcycle’ old pieces of furniture.
Welcome to the Nandi furniture shop, Gerda!
Nandi on Facebook….
If you haven't ´befriended´ Nandi´s Facebook page, chances are you are missing out.
https://www.facebook.com/thenandicharityshop/
Carole Holditch, one of our long standing volunteers has done an amazing job on resurrecting our Facebook page over the last few months to showcase the best of what is in our shops.
Our two Nandi shops - one for clothes/books/ bric a brac and toys and the other for homeware and furniture are brimming over with wonderful bargains.
Thank you, Carole, for all your efforts!
Carole tries to post a daily highlight of what is available and sometimes it´s just to show the weird and wonderful things we do get.…but usually there somebody, somewhere, who wants it - as long as it is working and in good condition, of course!
Also look out for our bidding posts of particular items that are new, especially lovely or unusual.
In November we had the week of the unusual. We received a donation of a Retro Upright Arcade Machine, Donkey Kong Art. (See left). Hand built in the UK, the classic arcade machine had 3000 games included, custom Donkey Kong artwork and a huge 24" screen.
When new, the machine cost around 1900 euros.The buyer needed to visit the shop and inspect the games machine in person to ascertain its condition. It was sold for 510 euros and taken away on the same day. Everyone was happy and the money will be a bonus for some lucky animals this Christmas
So if you haven´t looked at our Facebook page recently, check it out for bargains galore.
We’ve got lots of potential Christmas presents at knock down prices. You never know what you may find … better still, pop into our shops on to see for yourself. We are at: Rua Prof Dr Mota Pinto 10 and 12 - near Intermarche and behind the public hospital Terras do Infante in Lagos.
Remembering….
Lily Higham
It is with great sadness that we announce that we have lost our dear volunteer, Lily - long term Nandi Board Member, Member of the Management Committee and Friday morning clothes shop team leader. A good friend to many of us and a beacon of enthusiasm for Nandi and its work.
A long term resident of Lagos with her husband, Maurice, Lily was always impeccably ‘turned out’; she loved bright colours and stripes and was continuously on the warpath of shoplifters! Lily died peacefully in hospital on 19th November.
Lynn, a fellow clothes shop co-ordinator and Board Member, has written the following:
‘It has been a pleasure knowing Lily as a dear friend and colleague these past few years. She has been an inspiration to volunteers & customers alike at Nandi for many years. Sadly, Friday mornings won’t be the same without her.’
Should anyone wish to, the family have asked for charitable donations to either of the following two charities engaged in the prevention of stroke and its consequences:
https://www.nataliekatemoss.co.uk
or
Gill Rhodes
When I first arrived in Lagos in 2002, Gill was introduced to me through mutual friends as we all lived in Devon in the UK. Almost immediately she told me all about Nandi.
It was, and always has been, a charity very close to her heart - she and her husband, John, were two of the founder members back in 1996. They both worked tirelessly for the charity as volunteers, always concerned about the welfare of abandoned animals - many of which they have taken in over the years - and had formed great friendships with many of the Nandi staff.
An ex-hospital sister, Gill was a great carer, much loved in her communities in the UK and in Bensafrim, A fluent speaker of Portuguese, she integrated well into Bensafrim life and was always ready to help in the local community. And of course, she could always be found, when possible, on a shift in the clothes shop - organising, helping, encouraging others. A great friend.
Gill died peacefully at home in UK on 14th November
Positive until the end. She will be sorely missed by many.
Focus on a partner sanctuary :
SOS Animais sem Futuro
SOS Animais sem Futuro is one of our partner sanctuaries to which we provide monthly financial support. Sarah Lang, owner and founder, writes:
We are a charitable organisation founded in 2006, and moved to Monchique a few years ago. Due to fires in 2018 we decided to move the charity to Monchique as there was no help in any form for the needy animals in the area. We ended up helping a lot of animals during and after the fires of 2018.
We started spaying street cats and helping the municipal kennel that, at the time, only had 2 boxes for dogs. We helped with adoptions and treatments.
We then searched for a house with some land for our sanctuary in the Monchique area and we have now been operational for 5 years.
Our main core values are protecting all animals that cannot protect themselves. We do this by taking in sick, disabled, old, and mistreated animals, from goats, sheep, chickens, horses, ducks, dogs, and cats. (You can see from the photos that some cats have cancer in their ears; dogs need an extra pair of wheels to get around as their back legs no longer work; a blind dog needs extra help to survive …all cases we take on when abandoned. )
We also have a lot of animals that are looking for their forever families, but most of the animals will live out the rest of their lives with us, receiving the love they never received.
Most of the time the workload falls on myself and my husband and even my young daughters help us, but it is a heavy workload. Occasionally we have volunteers but we desperately need more volunteers to help with day-to-day work.
We have some very special cats and dogs living in our sanctuary with a lot of love to give to visitors. We also have a lot of cats and dogs for responsible adoptions.
Alongside our sanctuary animals, we also help other animals through various protocols, one of these being with the local municipality and the street cat sterilizations. We also take cases that the municipal kennel cannot deal with such as sick animals and kittens/puppies that are found as tiny babies in bins and need bottle feeding.
The other way we help the municipality is by taking animals in when they don't have enough space, but this leaves us very much over capacity ourselves.
For further information see our Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/people/SOS-Animais-sem-futuro-associacao-protectora-de-animais
Still searching for a new President
We are now seeking nominations for someone to take over from Feb ´25
Our new President would head up a committed, dynamic team who raise funds through events and our two shops in Lagos.
The ideal candidate for this volunteer, part-time position would have a proven business management background, brand development experience and an ability to motivate others to innovate.
Excellent Portuguese/English language skills would be an advantage, as would be experience working in charitable organisations.
If you are interested or know anyone who might be, please contact me, Helen, at president@nandicharity.com for a chat or for more information.
Alternatively, email events@nandicharity.com for a nomination form.
Closing date for nominations is 24th December 2024
Charity Walks for Nandi - come and join us!
Maria, our wonderful cat feeder in Vila do Bispo, organises Nandi fund raising walks.
They take place, weather permitting, one the first and third Fridays of the month.
For more information and to book your place on the next walk you can:
WhatsAppp Maria on: +49 17638956448
Or visit the website: https://sites.google.com/view/charity-walks.
December 2024 Newsletter
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