Our Mission
To drive positive changes in animal welfare and dog population control.
PAWS to Save Dogs & Puppies!
PAWS Animal Welfare Programme aims to:
Stop the culling of female pups in rural villages around Cusco.
Reduce the number of roaming dogs on the streets in Cusco, Peru and surrounding villages.
Limit the suffering of roaming dogs in the Cusco region.
Improve access to veterinary care for animals in rural villages.
Change attitudes towards animal welfare and care.
To achieve our goals, we carry out the following activities:
1) Neutering: Through free neuter/spay surgeries in rural villages, we offer better solutions to difficult problems and a humane alternative to control the dog population.
2) Veterinary care: Provision of free, regular healthcare and routine vaccines ensures dogs are healthier and can live longer, happier lives.
3) Education: Teaching children and communities about proper care of their dogs is key to changing attitudes towards animal care and welfare and encouraging long-term change.
PAWS for Change: Help Roaming Dogs in Peru
Figures suggest the number of dogs on the streets in Cusco could be as high as 40,000. These dogs roam the streets freely, often without consistent nutrition, and are incredibly vulnerable to both disease and injury.
We have long supported the largest dog shelter in Cusco, where rescued dogs receive food, refuge, veterinary treatment and a lot of love from the staff and volunteers. However, we soon realised that caring for rescued dogs in shelters is only half the answer to the street dog problem.
The situation for dogs in Cusco is not going to improve without mass vaccination and neutering, improved education about animal care and welfare, and permanent, loving homes for the dogs.
With this in mind, we established the Peru Animal Welfare Society (PAWS), to address the wider issues and create a more sustainable solution.
Thanks to a grant from the Summerlee Foundation, we purchased a vehicle and converted it into a mobile veterinary clinic, which is used to perform health checks, neutering and give vaccinations to the dogs in the many villages around Cusco. By taking free veterinary services to where the biggest need is, we remove the main barriers to veterinary care and neutering, and promote dog health, as well as changes in attitudes to animal welfare.
Our mobile clinic allows us to improve the lives of Cusco's roaming dog population and save puppies and dogs by offering a humane solution to population control.
