ACTIN, making changes for animals in Spain.

It's hard sometimes to get messages across and I try really hard with my website news and stories and my Facebook pages and groups.  Sometimes I worry that I do too much and maybe you get fed up and stop looking. Someone on the comments mentioned how there are so many petitions and so much information about animal welfare, that it waters down some of the very important messages and issues. It is hard to get a balance. I feel so strongly about the whole situation in Spain that I think and worry about it 24/7.

But I want to ask you for help, advice and input with the work I do for ACTIN?  Sometimes I feel very alone, I know you are all there and that’s why I want to reach out to you. I have committed by setting up ACTIN and I don’t want to let the animals down. So I cannot walk away or give up because its so hard.

There is good news, so please don’t think it is all negative, impossible and terrible. ACTIN has made some great contacts and we have been joined by a lawyer, who has many good contacts in the right places. She is working night and day, speaking with the people who have the power to change the Perreras; putting together laws and planning to reform old laws; making laws for owners of pet dogs; speaking with people in education, all this in Murcia for now but hopefully it will reach out further in Spain. A lot is happening, or ‘being cooked’ as our animal welfare lawyer puts it.  She is positive, so WE must be as well.

I see my role in Actin as one of bringing awareness, helping to educate, being an advocate, making the right contacts and researching valuable information and passing it on to the right places. I cannot do it alone…

One of the ideas I had was the ‘walk of awareness’, the fourth one will be on this Saturday 23rd February. I wonder if those that are near enough might be able to make it? I will tell you more about why I think this is a good initiative, or perhaps you could set something up in your own area?

I was speaking with my dear animal rescue friend last night and we were talking about how little the Spanish villagers know about their animals. Sometimes it isn’t because they are cruel but because they are simply not educated about illnesses such as Leishmania, Erlichia, they don’t know about vaccinations, some don’t even realise an animal can be castrated. These people need to be informed and so I want to make information especially for this and get it out there to them. The problem is these people are not on Facebook and they don’t read newspapers, or articles. The only way is to get out there and give them information, speak with them, post information through their letter boxes. This is one of the reasons why I thought the once a month, ‘get out there and speak with the people’ idea could be so valuable…fun too.  It gets us off all the sadness in Facebook for a few hours and is something different which I believe could work, if we can get it to take off. People in other countries can do this as well…for Spain, or maybe if they have problems in their own country. It is a big commitment to do this once a month but the more people involved and doing it, spreading it, the more we can be heard!

Chained dogs

One of my saddest feelings is for all the chained dogs I see. They are in every village, even some of my friends have chained dogs. These poor creatures are so unhappy. I know of one near here, who has been on a chain for his whole seven years of life. I want to put together a really good poster and leaflet about this.  We know why a dog shouldn’t be chained up all the time but we have to remember that our thoughts and feeling towards animals are different from many of the people’s who’s attitudes we want to change. So let’s bring together all of our thoughts on this. What can we say to make an impact? A few lines about how a dog can be a better pet without being chained, a healthier pet if a few Euros is spent on it…just some ideas please, for my next leaflet. Will you help me?

Neutering campaign
Actin have put together an information leaflet about why it is important to neuter your pet. It is in Spanish and English if anyone wants to use them. We also have our awareness T-shirts, and soon our Billboard will go up near Cartagena. So yes, we are only 8 months old since we started but we are active and putting together campaigns - we are doing something, we just need your help and support.

Please watch DARMUR the organisation that is being formed by our Spanish animal welfare lawyers. It will soon be launched and they will be doing a lot of things.

If you haven’t joined my Facebook group click here >> Animal Welfare support Murcia – AWSM then please do. It is a good place to discuss and give and share ideas about all the things I have mentioned in this message.

I just want you all to know that I am so proud to be a part of this network of people who are doing so much for animal welfare in Spain. The aims and objectives of ACTIN are on this website, have a look and give us feedback if you will?  I  personally spend a lot of time seeing what is happening and am sometimes so saddened and depressed by what I see, I feel like I cannot carry on as it hurts my soul but then I think again and realise that YES - things are happening – I wont give up and there are those out there doing so much, who have given up their lives and had their lives turned upside down by the frontline work they do in rescue. They need support and they need to know that there is a light at the end of the tunnel and there is. But the problem goes very deep here in Spain, wrapped up in culture and the economy and lack of education, so it is no easy task.  But there is light and it is because of people like you. Let’s stick together…

Viv

ACTIN Spain

Taken from ACTIN-SPAIN

ACTIN is concerned with animal welfare and making changes.  We also understand that for us to continue and get campaigns off the ground we will need to ask for sponsors and donations, for some of our very important and active campaigns that we are preparing.

It is hard because there are many animals and important causes needing donations, so it must be so difficult for you donators to decide where you send your hard earnt money, when you have decided you want to do something to help.

We are often asked for advice on this and we think it is an important issue.  Now with Facebook and other social networks it allows us and others to ask for donations more publicly.  However, this is open to abuse and so we ask you to be very wary about where you send donations to.

For ACTIN, want to make sure all of you are confident about what happens to your donations and we are very happy to provide evidence of how your donations will help ACTIN to make changes in the future.  This will be the same for any organisation that you donate to – they will have a website, a charity/Association number and you will feel sure that you are helping.  Always look for clarity and transparency.  Beware of scams on social networking, as there are one’s, of course, it is open to abuse and very hard to probe, so we would like to offer some advice.

Please use common sense, firstly think carefully, don’t act hastily because your heart strings have been pulled. Beware of continuous unusual requests of groups/individuals repeatedly asking for money for extreme cases. If you feel suddenly compelled to donate, it might be a little warning that you are about to act hastily and perhaps make a mistake….

Many people have been expressing concerns about paying donations and wondering if the cause is genuine, and that all funds reach the cause. Some of you follow and regularly donate to charities and I am sure you know that your donations go to a good cause. If you can follow a charities work and they are transparent, it will make you feel safe and it is good to see how you are helping. It is your money after all and you should be able to ask questions about what it is used for.

For those of you that may see something on social networking that moves you and you feel compelled to help – act with some caution. Facebook is open to abuse and anyone can set up a page and ask for donations. So ask yourself a few questions for your own satisfaction and if still not sure, enquire and find out more. My recommendation is not to act quickly unless you know the people well.

Here is some advice if you have any doubts….

• Is it a registered charity?
• If not, are they a small group of people you know and follow, perhaps raising for a charity? Keep familiar with who you are donating to and if you are not sure ask questions. Many small groups and individuals ask for donations to help those that they support, there is no wrong in that. It will be clear and your friends no doubt can tell you too. Just make sure you feel happy about it.
• Does the size of the group/groups outweigh the cause? : -for example if thousands of people are sending donations for one animal? Or are there other parts to the cause? i.e a campaign, or many animals involved?  Look at the balance of it and decide. If one animal needs donations for veterinary treatment for example, usually it wont take thousands of people’s donations to cover it. If it does then the donators should be able to see veterinary bills and costs. Most charities will provide bills for their donators to see. Always look for transparency in the way the donations are received and conducted.
• Are you able to ask questions and receive answers? If you are donating then you are entitled to ask questions about your donation. Be polite though and objective, that way you should get answers back that will be polite and informative.
• Are you donating to a private persons name?  If so then check this out and make sure you are happy with that.  As mentioned above there are those that raise money for their own rescues, or for a rescue/charity that they support, so you may expect their PayPal to have a personal name. A large organisation will usually have 2 options :- to PayPal in the organisations name and a Bank account. This is an important point, so do check.
• If you are sending to a cause, you can ask for updates and the organisation will happily supply you with those.
• If in doubt dont do it. Just because there are many donating to one group does not mean it must be ok, many people can be duped and led to believe things by a clever scammer.
• A few more things to question :- Are you consistently seeing extreme cases that shock and upset and compel you to donate?  Are these extreme cases rescued by the group themselves?  Are the cases truly genuine – in that your donation can save this animal?  Are all the facts surrounding the animals illness, injury completely true?  Are they hyped up and dramatised to deliver more impact?  Or could you find similar cases all over Facebook that are with any charity/rescue, that quietly tell you about what has happened and ask for your help?

Think before you donate, don’t take the chance you may line someone else’s pockets when you could be helping more animals…think with your head as well as your heart.

Source: Actin-Spain

 Recently I saw a story reported in the media via Facebook and made contact with the lady to offer support from the ACTIN Association.

On Thursday 24th January the witness was looking out of her window and saw a large Mastin dog walk past about 80 meters from her house and across the road from her drive.  At first she thought it was a stray, as she hadn’t seen this dog before.  A few seconds later the witness saw a man running and shouting at the dog. The dog walked on and then lay down by a tree.  The man, who the witness did not know, picked up a tree branch and began hitting the dog.  The witness ran out of the house and shouted as hard as she could to the man to STOP, he shouted angrily back to her in Spanish.  He threw the branch to the ground and then went off.  The witness ran after the dog which disappeared into a field. The witness returned to the house to fetch her binoculars and when she looked through them, saw the dog collapsed in a field.

 The witness got her car and drove to where the dog was - the poor soul was dead!

Sad in so many ways; the Mastins are gentle dogs and he clearly did not retaliate to this beating. That the man could do such a thing in public, or at all of course…but to do this in public because of a bad temper, when the dog did not come to  him?  Did he think no one would care? Most likely, why wouldn’t he, terrible things are happening to animals in front of our eyes all over Spain – cruelty, neglect, chained animals 24hrs a day in all weathers…and many say nothing!!!!!!!  Despicable. Owners like this should not be allowed to have animals.  This man should be named and shamed.

The weapon used -Only an evil person could do this to an innocent animal

The witness would like to add this statement :-

‘I would like to add to the article, the incident took place across the road from my drive and not on my property. Also Its only hearsay from an ex-pat that Locals are asking me to drop the Denuncia, I have not been approached myself, of course I will not do this’. I would like to add and praise The Prompt Action of both the Local and Civil Guardia who have taken this incident very seriously.

ACTIN feels this is an important story, we are currently doing our best to encourage people to denounce cruelty and report any incident to the Police, Seprona, or to your local Animal welfare Association. Ask your local animal group if they will represent you, if you are afraid or intimidated?

Many don’t report because they are afraid of the consequences, or not being taken seriously by the Police.  In this case the Police have been helpful. It does depend on areas and also individual police officers but it is important to make sure someone in authority knows.  One of the reasons it is difficult to get proper laws in place and implemented, is because there are not enough reports!   Seprona tell us there isn’t a problem in Spain, because there is no sufficient evidence. We need to change that!!

I have seen many comments on this story (enough said on that), I think the witness has been very brave.  She has no intention of stepping down from her complaint and we should all follow suit if we see cruelty.  There is no point in crying about how terrible it is in Spain and believe me those that live and are born here and tell us it is not Spain that is the problem -  it is.  It isn’t the people in general, we agree on that, as there is cruelty in every country - but the cruel people in Spain are getting away with it because they are not being reported or punished.

Viv Wharton