How in the Silicon Valley rescue dying dogs from Russia

The dog, which was found half-dead in Volgograd, now lives in a house worth $3 million. And this is not the only example of how stray animals from Russia are “adopted” in California.

Photos from the personal archive of Elena Gaffney

Here in Silicon Valley, there are people who are not indifferent to the fate of homeless animals wandering the streets of Russia and the former CIS countries in search of food and a roof over their heads. One of these is Elena Gaffney. She, like many immigrants, read on the Internet and saw stories in news stories from her homeland about animals dying from hunger and cold. But, unlike many, she found the strength and opportunity, not just to lament and scold the system, sitting under palm trees by the ocean, but to act!

Last year, fate brought Elena to the Volgograd orphanage volunteers to rescue stray animals two years ago. This shelter was organized by the same kind and caring people like her. On the account of the orphanage “Tail House” hundreds of rescued dogs and cats. Elena simply could not take her eyes off a puppy photo, literally recently saved from death. She decided to negotiate the shipment of him and another dog to America, in the hope that she would be able to find a new owner.

Photos from the personal archive of Elena Gaffney

On the offer to shelter Lola (this is the name of the dog now), many respondents have responded. As a result, Lola, arriving in California, immediately moved to live in the house of a Google employee.

The puppy, who stayed with Lena, quickly got stronger and turned into a beautiful woman named Angel. Lena herself decided not to stop and continue to save the dogs.

“Over the past year, the situation with homeless animals has worsened even more due to the preparation of Russian cities for the World Cup,” she says. “Instead of finally thinking and caring about the fate of unfortunate cats and dogs, building shelters, and implementing the TSVR (Trapping, Sterilization, Vaccination, Return) program everywhere, the authorities have not come up with anything else but to issue tenders for the destruction of animals.

Dogs began to be shot at night and poison was also scattered, from which not only homeless mongrels, but also pets suffered and continue to suffer. Volunteers, students, private home shelters, and simply compassionate people are exhausted to save, warm, cure, sterilize, and, if possible, find a home for unfortunate cats and dogs, whose only fault is that they were born into the world and really want to be a friend of a person, but there are too many of them, and there are too few people willing to adopt..."

Elena Gaffney, inspired by the hope that there is an opportunity to attach our mongrels here in America, organized the flight of three more dogs in the spring of 2018 of the year. All three lucky girls were saved from the inevitable and painful death by volunteers of the shelter of the city of Volgograd. One was hit by a car and she lay in the cold in a cardboard box waiting for her death, the other was left at a bus stop in a bag in a puppy to freeze in the winter, the third, being a two-month crumb, wandered through the frozen streets and was nearly hit by a car.

Teddy, Reilly and Eve arrived in Los Angeles on an Aeroflot flight. Lena spent six hours one way to go by car to Los Angeles airport and bring the dogs back to San Jose. With the help of a great team of volunteers who advertised dogs, the happy trio found loving parents in less than two weeks!

Photos from the personal archive of Elena Gaffney

“This gave me even more hope,” says Lena. “I even created an Animal Rescue Group that will be based in San Jose and bring animals from Russian shelters.

On your page in Facebook Elena shares projects and publishes “happy stories.”

“The next flight with rescued dogs will land in California in June of this year,” says Elena. “Of course, I couldn’t do it alone.” Flight Volunteers play a big role - volunteers who are ready to bring one or more dogs in their luggage, volunteers who bring dogs from Los Angeles and San Francisco airports to local foster care, volunteers who foster dogs while searching for new owners.

Elena is not the only one who rescues dogs in her homeland and helps them find a new home in the USA. Around 200, stray dogs rescued from the territory of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant exclusion zone in Ukraine will be sent to the USA, where they will be found new owners. The organization of the export of dogs will take the staff of the Clean Future Fund of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant and the company NOVARKA, according to Facebook report of the State Agency of Ukraine on the management of the exclusion zone.

In April, 12 puppies were transported from the territory of the nuclear power plant, which will fly to the USA in June, where they will find permanent housing for them.

Photo: Facebook State Agency of Ukraine on the management of the exclusion zone

“To carry out work on the export of puppies were obtained all the necessary permits. All dogs will be monitored, they will be washed and taken to the Slavutych in a pre-organized shelter for puppies, which is located on the territory of the equestrian base. They will be there for the next 45 days, ”they told the Foundation.

It is noted that at the base of the shelter there are specially trained instructors for the daily care of animals.

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