Kirsten’s Zoo, a non-profit, volunteer run animal rescue organization, was started by Kirsten Mitchell in 2008. The organization provides safe shelter and medical care to abandoned, surrendered, neglected and often abused animals.
We sat down with them for a chat to find out more about what they do, and how your support through Twopresents is helping the charity to achieve its goals.
Please tell us about Kirsten’s Zoo. What are the goals of your organization?
Our goal is to stop the flow of unwanted animals. We take them in, ensure that they are neutered and have all the necessary medical care provided to them. We then place them in foster homes until they are adopted. We do not have a shelter or our own kennels, but we do need to use private kennels at times. We rely on the kindness and generosity of animal lovers who are willing to provide time, love, enthusiasm and temporary foster homes for the animals that desperately need our help. With the assistance of Acorn Veterinary Hospital, we are able to offer a package for our rescue cats and dogs, ensuring that (where possible) all of our animals leave us in the best possible health.
What does it mean to Kirsten’s Zoo to have the support of Twopresents party hosts?
Twopresents party hosting is beneficial to everyone involved. Donations that come through from this are always special to us, because it means that parents and children value our message and they get to save lives and see some of the successes they have contributed to.
How are the donations from party celebrants spent?
Donations can help in a number of ways, a simple breakdown would look something like this:
- HK$1000 provides spaying/neutering, vaccinations, deworming and de-fleaing for one cat. Or spaying/neutering, Frontline treatment and deworming for one dog.
- HK$500 provides Heartgard treatment, dog microchip, deworming and health check for one dog.
- HK$200 provides deworming, cat microchip and Frontline treatment for 3 months for one cat.
- HK$100 provides tinned food for a week and a bag of treats for a month for one animal.
We rely on donations to enable us to save more animals. We regularly take unwanted pets from pet shops and breeders. Not too long ago we took a number of cats and dogs from a pet shop and a home breeder. We took 4 Yorkshire Terriers, 3 West Highland White Terriers, 2 Shelties, 1 Poodle, 1 Shiba Inu, 4 British Shorthair Kittens & 4 adults, 2 American Curls, 1 Munchkin and 2 Exotic Shorthairs – 24 in total. They were largely in shocking condition and were costly to treat – in excess of HK$100,000! However, it’s all worth it knowing we gave them a chance to live their lives as loved pets. We could not have done it without donations, including those from Twopresents party hosts! You can read more on this story in our upcoming Newsletter.
How else can Hong Kong families get involved with your organization?
There are many ways to get involved and give a helping hand. Some options are:
- Fostering an animal that needs shelter
- Sponsoring a particular animal or animals
- Donating goods (Frontline/Revolution, food, blankets, beds, toys, treats)
- Volunteering! Volunteering opportunities include helping at our cat and dog adoption days, or helping at our cat sanctuary in Sai Ying Pun.
We hold 3 adoption days a month, one for cats, two for dogs. The dog adoption days are held in Central on the 2nd and 4th Sunday of every month, and are the best way for our dogs and puppies to get seen. Not to mention it’s loads of fun! Our cat adoption days are held at Whiskers N Paws in Ap Lei Chau on the third Sunday of every month. For more information about helping in the cat sanctuary, please email [email protected] – volunteers must be over 18. For more information on helping at our adoption days, please email [email protected] – volunteers must be over 16.
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