The day after Lacta was found next to her mother who had been killed by car, and who came to us thanks to the teachers of Aegiali’s primary school, two more kittens were found crying near to the area Lacta was found.
Obviously they are Lacta's brothers who started to cry and thankfully people noticed them. The two little ones are both boys and are thriving! Let us introduce you Batman and Robin!
Lacta, a very young kitten, arrived recently. She’s a sweetie different from the others.💕 Sadly she is an orphan as her mother was found dead. Thanks to the teachers of the primary school of Aegiali she has come to us safe and sound.
Here is a small video from her arrival into a box for sweets: https://youtube.com/shorts/UhafrL3XRP4?feature=share
and one more of her first day in our care: https://youtube.com/shorts/ybnCq7RvtOY?feature=share
Here at AZI’s Center she will be treated to the best care we can offer! If you’d like to help please consider a virtual adoption or a donation. More info can be found here.
We are sad to report that Sfigos, our 14-15 year old feline mascot of AZI’s Center, has passed away.
Sfigos had become unsteady in his hind legs in his old age, but then it got so bad that he started to drag himself. In addition, a tumor appeared in his ear. Unfortunately he was diagnosed with a herniated disc in the spine and cancer in the ear in a difficult spot near the head.
It was with a very heavy heart that we agreed to euthanasia because we didn’t want him to suffer either by being in pain or by being stuck living a reduced life in a cage or being stuck indoors (he was an outdoor cat).
We hope we made the right decision and that our sweet Sfigos now lives in another, better world. We miss you a lot our sweet, beautiful boy.
As part of AZI's participation in the Mediterranean Seal Rescue Network we received a small "kit" for providing first aid to seals in need from Society for the Study and Protection of the Mediterranean Seal (MOm).
This kit contains: Esophageal feeding tube, feeding funnel, towel & disposable suit for small orphaned animal cases and scalpel and sampling vial for dead animal cases. It also contains a short first response guide in the event of a seal in distress.
In the last 2 years we have rescued several newborn orphaned seals, so this kit will be very useful for future cases when we encounter seals in need. Monk seals (Monachus monachus) are an endangered species.
A big thank you to MOm's team for the wonderful work they do in the Greek seas and for their unwavering support whenever we need them in a seal-in-distress incident.
The announcement of the Ministry of Education 28131/GD4/15-3-2024 filled us with joy and optimism for the future, as it declares the 4th of April each year as the Panhellenic Animal Welfare School Day. Beginning this year, April 4th, the International Day of Stray Animals, is being established in Greek Primary and Secondary Education schools as Panhellenic Animal Welfare Day.
Expected results of the Panhellenic Animal Welfare School Day are the information and awareness of students about biodiversity and the various forms of life, with an emphasis on well-being and the cultivation of sensitivity and empathy for every living being, the recognition and respect of the rights of animals through their active protection, as well as the involvement of male and female students in activities of taking actions and animal welfare initiatives.
In the context of these actions and after an invitation from the teachers, AZI visited the primary school of Katapola. Together with the students, we watched a short film titled "Life through the Eyes of Stray Animals" and some spots, followed by a discussion about animal welfare. The students then created and painted animal-themed posters and bookmarks and then we walked together to our equine shelter where the children met the animals, learned about them, and treated them with carrots and apples. Τhen the students visited our Center where the local vet Dr. Dimitrios Simos spoke to them, met and played with our cats as well as a baby goat.
It was a very beautiful day for children and adults alike!
We want to warmly thank the teachers who gave us the opportunity to talk to the children and acquaint them with the animals and our Center and shelter.
MONDAY, FEBRUARY 19 — FRIDAY, MARCH 1st, 2024
Come with us to sterilize the strays of our neighborhood!
The Municipality of Amorgos and Animal Zone International will carry out a sterilization program for stray cats. According to Law 4830/2021, article 9 (par. 1) & 10, sterilization of dogs and cats is MANDATORY except for the animals whose genetic sample of material (DNA) has been sent to the genetic storage and analysis laboratory pet.
The surgeries will take place at the Veterinary clinic of Animal Zone International in Pera Rachidi (Katapola)
Contact telephone numbers: 22850-71717 & 697 4990 045
Sponsor: Blue Star Ferries
Our hearts broke yesterday when we had to say goodbye to the purest soul to grace this world.
Singi grew up at our Center since he was four months old. Two years ago he developed an autoimmune disease that created sores on his face. He visited the vet many times, he went through many treatments and fought hard but he left yesterday for the long journey.
Dear Singi, you were a fighter who taught our hearts so much about love and the will to live. You will forever be missed.
His name is Marios for a very good reason! Marios got hit by a car and he is still alive thanks to the sensitivity and persistence of a woman from the neighborhood where he lived. Marios comes from Xylokeratidi, an otherwise safe area for cats.
Being hit by a car has cost him a badly broken jaw, but the dangerous thing was that after the accident he was so scared, that he was hiding from people so that he could not be caught to get help from the vet. Due to the fracture, he was not able to eat.
Angela made a lot of effort to find and catch him for many days without a result. When a week had passed since the accident, she decided that on that day he must be caught or otherwise he would not survive. So she asked for help, which was given to her!
The local vet Dimitris went on the spot where the cat had been hiding from the previous day and as soon as the cat felt safe, he went straight to him. The next day, Marios traveled to Naxos where he had surgery.
Marios is now back at our Center where he will remain for at least a month. He eats with appetite, he gained weight and he is more relaxed and happy!
Another soul was saved because a human being cared for him!
Thank you Angela!
Please, don't ignore an animal that looks like it's in trouble—ask for help. Every creature's life is precious.
Here are two short videos of him:
Her name is Janel, and what an amazing volunteer!
Although she is only 18 years old, she decided to make the very long trip from Canada to Amorgos to offer voluntary help to the animals of our island. This in itself makes her special.
She came to Amorgos and volunteered for two weeks. She cleaned cages, weeded gardens and enclosures, walked dogs, took care of kittens, brushed donkeys, gave her attention and love to sick cats as if she were an already experienced volunteer. Always punctual and always responsible, whatever she was doing. A smiling, sweet, young woman with an eagerness to give.
We thank you from the bottom of our hearts, Janel, for what you have given us and the animals of Amorgos. We will be very happy to see you again. AZI’s family will always be here for you. We wish you a happy life and may all your dreams come true.
Here you can find more information about our Student Volunteering program with which you too can come to Amorgos and help the animals of the island: https://www.animal-zone.org/students-volunteering-program
Hope to see you soon!
On Wednesday, June 31, 2023, we had the great pleasure of welcoming the children of the kindergarten of Katapola to our Center. The children had the opportunity to see up close the animals we care for. They went crazy with our youngest guests, Luke and Leia, the two orphaned kittens who are 1-month-old. The children helped Litsa to bottle feed them and they couldn't stop petting them.
After the Center, it was the equine shelter’s turn, where the children treated our donkeys and mule with carrots. They also met our two dogs, Voris and Jack, and they learned how to approach a dog safely.
It was a great and happy day and we would like to thank the kindergarten teacher Maria Krithioti from the bottom of our hearts for this initiative, as well as the parents who accompanied the group: Sofia, Mina and Vivy. It is very important that children are taught from a young age to look after, care for, and respect animals.
We are grateful for this sweet gift of the community.
The time for our spring sterilization program has arrived. The Greek Action of Volunteer Veterinarians (GAVV or EDKE, in Greek) will be in Amorgos for this weekend —the 4 & 5 of March. The team will consist of four veterinarians, and the goal is to sterilize 100 cats in two days!
The Municipality of Amorgos are underwriting the transport, accommodation, and meals of the team as well as 30 new transporting cages. GAVV – EDKE will volunteer services, medicines and surgical supplies, and AZI will provide the organization, volunteers, clinic, equipment and other supplies such as detergents and underpads.
This program is crucial to control the animal population on Amorgos. Without it, the cat colonies will balloon to unsustainable sizes, which presents challenges to keeping members healthy and safe.
Please consider supporting our efforts. Donate today!
DEC 2022—We sincerely thank the stores of Mr. Alexios Tsamis and Captain Τροφοδοσίες Ελλάδος in Katapola for the donation of 3 bags of dry food and 3 packets of underpads for the animals we care for. Both AZI and AZI’s animals are so grateful!
Our coordinator Litsa put together the slide show below, showcasing some of our more difficult cases so far this year.
WARNING: some of the images are graphic and therefore may be upsetting to some people.
As you can clearly see, these animals need our help! Some are suffering needlessly. For us to continue to do the work we do, we need your help! Won’t you make a donation today? https://tinyurl.com/Donate-AZI.
We thank you from the bottom of our hearts!
Our dog shelter was finally emptied thanks to the adoption of the three dogs we had been hosting, which means that we can now continue the work that we began earlier to maintain the safety and comfort of this small canine compound.
Using bamboo taken from another area where it wasn’t needed, we created a sheltered area to protect from the summer sun and the autumn winds.
We also added new gravel to the ground since it protects the dogs from the mud when it rains. It took over one hundred sacks of gravel to cover the area, which will help keep the dogs clean and dry. We also laid fresh hay in the doghouses. All of this was done in time to welcome two new canine members to our facility.
Next, we must repair the roof so that protection from the rain will help to make the shelter a truly comfortable enclosure.
If you would like to help us with the maintenance of our dog shelter, you can make a contribution here: https://tinyurl.com/Donate-AZI
Our work on Amorgos is dependent on your donations. No donation is too small!
We thank you and wish you the very best during this trying time.
Winter is just around the corner so preparations have begun both at AZI’s Center and at our equine shelter so that our animals will have warm shelters during the cold months. The roof of the stable at the equine shelter received a fresh layer of primer and insulating paint. This will help protect the wood from wear and to offer more insulation to the stable.
In addition to the many cats who live inside our Center, we have a number of stray cats who live around our Center. For these cats we have made little houses in our garden which have been filled with hay to offer more warmth, safe shelter, and protection from rain and wind.
A few weeks ago we cleaned the garden, tidied our food and sand supplies and pruned the plants. We are now ready to welcome winter!
Our first customer! These shelters are made for cats like him, who live outdoors around our Center. This one jumped right in even before we were finished, and seems grateful for a soft and safe place to rest.
The video below shows some of the sweet cats and dogs (and a goat!) we have rescued so far in 2020. So many kittens came to us sick and malnourished and now they are beautiful, healthy cats. Some have been adopted but many others still need a loving and safe place to call home.
We can do this with only with the help of our supporters like you. Your contributions are crucial, so please give what you can. No donation is too small! Each creature that comes to our Center gets a chance at a better life. We tend to the sick, feed the hungry, and search out good homes for as many as we can.
Donate here: https://tinyurl.com/Donate-AZI
WARNING: Some “Before” images are graphic.
