Ukrainian Zoo Rescue
My name is Lionel de Lange, and I am a South
African ex-pat now living in Ukraine. I opened a chapter of the Lawrence
Anthony Earth Organization (LAEO) because of the work the late Lawrence Anthony did in
Iraq, when he saved the starving animals that were affected by the war. His
passion for animals and all things living inspired me to step up at this
desperate time.
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In March 2014 Ukraine’s zoo's were in serious
trouble with animals on the brink of starvation. So far we were able to raise
funds to supply 16 tons of food and medical supplies for various zoos. I do not
condone zoo’s but cannot stand by and let these animals suffer, humans have put
them in cages now we need to make sure they are treated humanely and live their
days out in comfort.
"As individuals we are responsible for more than
just our selves, our family, our football team or country, or our own kind.
There is more to life than just these things. That we must each one of us also
bring the natural world back into proper perspective in our lives, and realize
that doing so is not some lofty ideal, but a vital part of our personal
survival."- Lawrence Anthony
The conditions for some of these animals is
shocking and there is no funding allocated to some zoo's whatsoever and funding
to all zoo's around the country has been cut by the government. Apart from the
assistance we are providing to zoo's around the country we have started work on
a project in the city of Kherson, Ukraine. The “zoo” is situated on an island
on the Dnieper river. This is an ex-privately owned zoo where the animals are
living in horrendous inhumane conditions. There are 5 Brown bears living in a
combined area of 42 sq/m. There is no other word to describe it, “A prison”
made completely of steel and metal bars which includes a steel floor.
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Temperatures drop to -25C in winter
(excluding wind chill factor) and I am sure you can imagine how cold these
cages get. The bears are divided into 2 enclosures. The adult male, 24 years
plus has lived in his 3m x 6m steel cage since before the fall of the Soviet
Union. The 2 adult females and their cubs share an enclosure of 4m x 6m. They
will soon outgrow the area. We also have a family of 8 wolves that share to
areas of 2.5m x 2.5m. These are just some of the 200 animals at this zoo. None
of these animals have ever set foot on natural ground.
We wish to create a sanctuary for these animals
where they can live in humane conditions and experience some quality of life while
helping educate the public on how to better live side by side with all life on
earth. We plan to refurbish and increase the size of the bear enclosure to
300sq/m so these magnificent animals can at least get around outside of their
cages and even have a pool in which to swim, something they have never done
before.
The wolf enclosure will also be increased
substantially giving them opportunity to venture out of their tiny enclosures
so they can at least run around and experience some quality of life. We have
made a commitment to the local council that we will take care of these animals
until the council can afford to take over. Donations from the public will
guarantee a safe, humane and happier future for these animals and set an
example for better practices in other parts of the world.
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Our WISH list:
We need a minimum of $40,000 to refurbish
existing enclosures and to make the enclosures larger as well as secure enough
to hold a 500kg brown bear. One of the negative factors contributing to the
price is the location of the zoo. It’s on an island which is not accessible by
motor-vehicle. It can only be accessed by foot traffic or small boat so all
materials need to be carried, dragged or pushed to the construction site which
is at least 600m from the delivery area. Smaller items can be taken by boat. The
only size vehicle that would fit on the bridge would be a diesel powered golf
cart but there’s no cash for that. The area is really beautiful, but very bad
Soviet era design where no consideration to the animals comfort was given. The
urgency is that we have to complete construction before winter sets in. It is
however a popular tourist attraction which we hope to utilize for educating
children to raise their respect and understanding of all life on earth.
We need your HELP! Have a look at our fantastic
PERKS!
$10 E-mail Certificate & Thank you
$25 E-mailed Certificate & photo of bear/wolf
$50 Bangle, adoption certificate and photo of bear/wolf
$100 T-shirt and beanie
$250 T-shirt and beanie and 5 minute skype call
with Lionel
$500 T-shirt & beanie, plaque with your name
on and a 5 minute skype call with Lionel
The funds will be used to do as much
refurbishment as possible and make sure Ukraine zoo animals in need are fed
during the extreme winter months.
As the late Dr Anthony said, “We must each one
of us also bring the natural world back into proper perspective in our lives,
and realize that doing so is not some lofty ideal, but a vital part of our
personal survival.”
Man has got to take responsibility for the
condition we have kept our animals in and every improvement counts
LAEO have had many successful animal rescue
projects:
·
Dr Anthony’s rescue of the Baghdad zoo in 2004
·
Built and
maintained 3 animal reserves in South Africa and was the first to initiate
EcoTourism to redirect ‘poaching economies’ to ‘education and conservation’
economies.
. We also received funding from Four Paws to build
the first rhino orphanage in Zululand, to care for injured and orphaned rhino
impacted by poaching
·
LAEO Ukraine has been successfully feeding
captive animals in Ukraine since March 2014 www.laeoukraine.org which shows video's and articles listing our achievements.
Risks & Challenges:
One of our biggest concerns is the fact that we
only have about two more months before Ukraine’s severe winter begins to set
in. At that point, it will be too cold to do anything but ensure the
animals have food. In the summer, other UKrainian zoo’s can support themselves
partially through ticket sales, but that stops during the winter and, at this
point, we don’t have the funds to feed the animals through the winter. Kherson Zoo however has no tickets sales at all and no funding from local or national government.
We have thus far kept the animals fed and will
not stop now, we do however need to drastically improve the conditions of these
animals.
http://mashable.com/2014/04/09/ukraine-zoo-animals/
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/04/11/ukraine-zoo-animals-earth-organization_n_5128315.html
http://www.nationalreview.com/article/375933/ukraines-animal-victims-jillian-kay-melchior
https://news.vice.com/article/zoo-animals-are-the-latest-victims-in-the-ukraine-crisis
You Can Help Give These Animals A Voice:
You're
on this page because you care deeply about animals, and you feel that more
needs to be done. We ask for your support, and this is your chance to
help us to create change in this dire situation, through education, awareness
and various measures.
Other Ways You Can Help:
Even
if you're not in a position to contribute funds, please share this page and
spread the word.
There
are a number of ways you can get involved and if you’re visiting us, you’re
already on your way to creating change, but if you want be more than an
onlooker check out our fabulous perks.
If you can't donate financially that doesn't
mean you can't help - Share this with your friends on Social Media.....SHOUT it
from the rooftops....
Please
share this campaign with the links on this page, and let everyone know that you
do not stand for animal abuse, and like us, you will no longer stand idly by as
these horrific stories continue to mount. Together WE can make a difference.
WE THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT!