Animal Welfare Peru Project #6038

Spay & Neuter street dogs of Huanchaco, Peru

by The Perros Project

Project Report | Apr 11, 2024
Hope your spring is going well.

By Matthew Webber | Co-Director

Choco-Brownie

Hello and happy spring! With last summer’s visit to Huanchacho now clearly in the rearview mirror, we are devoting our attention to:

Connecting traveling vet students with our partners on the ground
Corresponding with people who are interested in setting up similar programs, like a veterinarian who recently contacted us asking for advice on how to start a program in Jamaica
Continuing our quarterly financial support of the activities of our two Peruvian partners: Huanchao al Rescate and Amigo Fiel

As always, our partners in Peru are making us proud with their continued day-to-day efforts.

Huancahco al Rescate:

The Big Picture

On April 4th, Ursula carried out a health campaign with free rabies vaccination and deworming, using medicine provided by our Perros Project volunteers this past summer. Ursula also created the Huanchaco Rescue and Support Brigade to the Rescue which has 12 volunteers, each from a different sector of Huanchaco such as: Villa del Mar, Las Lomas, Tablazo, Huanchaquito Bajo, and central Huanchaco (Map below). Every two months they meet to discuss specific cases and coordinate efforts to support those helping the street dogs in their area.

A Snapshot -Choco-Brownie

Choco-Brownie was an injured puppy who someone reported to Huanchaco al Rescate. After veterinary consultation, his right hind leg had to be amputated. Ursula opened her own home to Choco-Brownie so he could recuperate more quickly. What a cutie!

Amigo Fiel

The Big Picture

Bertha shared with us in an email were from four days of surgery they helped coordinate, which were performed on weekends on top of the regular surgeries performed each week. Amigo Fiel volunteers noted the help of Dr. Priscilla and Dr. Fernando, for whose reduced cost services we are grateful. Additionally, the group has used funds to purchase medicines for various surgeries, patient preparation for spay and neuter surgeries and chemotherapies. They have also purchased and administered vaccines.

The Snapshot: Luna

Luna is about 6 years old. She was rescued from flood waters in Trujillo last year and was adopted by the family who rescued her. Recently they discovered a breast tumor which Amigo Fiel coordinated the removal of. After her full recovery from the surgery, she was spayed. Sadly we weren't able to share the video she sent us. :(

Map indicating recent focus areas

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Nov 30, 2023
Closing 2023 and looking to the future.

By Matt & Courtney | Co-Directors

Kim & Marnie having dinner with Amigo Fiel

Greetings generous friends and supporters! We write with a big update regarding our 2023 on the ground activities and future direction of the Perros Project. As you may remember, our team had not been able to travel safely to Peru since 2019 given COVID-19 and some unrest in the country. In order to discern the most sustainable direction for the project, we ultimately decided to send two long term team members to Huanchaco to assess conditions there and help lead conversations with the leaders of our two partner organizations, Amigo Fiel and Huanchaco al Recate.

Kim and Marnie brought close to 100 lbs of donations, ranging from medical equipment to flea & tick treatments, and were there to get a fresh lay-of-the-land while on the ground. With their help, we conducted deep-dive meetings with both of our local partner organizations, Amigo Fiel and Huanchaco al Rescate.

Prior to their visit, we had calls with both of our partners to explain that, given the aging of our team and our commitment to building a truly sustainable program, we wished to change our approach. Following those calls, representatives from both groups (Bertha from Amigo Fiel and Ursula from Huanchaco al Rescate) filled out an extensive questionnaire to prepare for the meetings. We asked them to relay their own visions for the next 3-5 years and then used that as the basis for our conversations. As a result, we emerged from two very productive meetings having agreed that we would do the following in partnership with each group:

Amigo Fiel:

Recruit a team of vets who can speak Spanish to serve as a Virtual Advisory Group, advising on more complicated situations as they arise
Send existing Perros Project volunteers, or people already going to Hunahcaco who find the Perros Project (which happens a few times a year) with supplies/donations (which are always in need from our partners due to scarcity in Peru)
Continue to provide financial support, but with the specific aim of supporting a part-time veterinarian dedicated to patients in Huanchaco

Huanchaco al Recate:

Provide curriculum and take home brochures to help Ursula's vision for more humane education in community schools
Explore the possibility of a twice yearly pop up spay & neuter clinic run by area veterinarians and offer financial incentives as needed
Provide continued shelter support, specifically food, medications, and cleaning (staff funding)
Connect non-medical volunteers who contact Perros Project to work withHuanchaco al Rescate for a specific event or on a rolling basis

As 2024 approaches, we’ll look forward to continuing the conversation with our partners starting our progress on the above ideas. We’ll look forward to keeping you updated song the way and will continue to be grateful for your support.

Our best wishes to you and your families this holiday season!

Matt & Courtney

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Jul 30, 2023
It's All Happening! (Huanchaco 2023)

By Courtney Dillard | Perros Project Co-Director

Dear friends,

We are happy to report that our plans for Perros Project 2023 are quickly coming into sharper focus. As you may remember, we decided upon September 23rd to 30th for this year’s visit. Since our last update we have confirmed that we will once again be working with both of our Peruvian partners, Amigo Fiel and Huanchaco al Rescate. We will work with each group for two days, as well as meet with each group for long range planning for half a day in between. Earlier this month, we had Zoom calls during which key members from our U.S. team met with Ursula and Bertha to flush out details for our activities given that we won’t be doing our usual spay & neuter clinic. Finally, we confirmed that we will once again be able to stay at Hostal Huankarute, where we have stayed during our previous visits, and put down a deposit to secure the rooms.

At this point, our planned activities while in-country are along four different lines: veterinary services ranging from wellness exams to diagnostic work on complicated cases, community education, government relations and service projects. First, Brenda and another veterinarian we are currently working to secure, will conduct a variety of different services for lower income residents of Huanchaco. In addition to these medical services, the larger team will also be active. First, we will coordinate and support community education events with hands on demonstrations, Q&A sessions, and leave behind materials to equip residents to better care for their dogs on a daily basis. We also plan to meet with representatives of the municipality to talk about their commitments to future sterilization clinics and other pet health activities led by our partners. Finally, one of the projects we are most excited about is a pilot project for constructing inexpensive dog houses for many of the community dogs, as such shelter is sorely lacking.

As we get closer to our departure, we will circle back and lean once again on our fabulous donors for additional support. Thank you all for your continued support.

Lastl,y while our social media has not been very active since COVID, we will be started to update it again soon. Please make sure to follow us on Facebook and Instagram as we really look forward to sharing many pictures and videos from our 2023 Huanchaco visit!

With enthusiasm and appreciation,Matt & Courtney

Links:

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