Tierschutz (Animal Rescue) Mission Burgas
Tierschutz (Animal Rescue) Mission Burgas
The Tierschutz Mission is mainly a dog rescue centre on the outskirts of Burgas. It currently houses over 100 dogs and is in desperate need of funding and help to re-home the dogs.
Office: 35, Slavyanska Street, Bourgas. Telephone Number: 0898425350
Directions: It's off the main street connecting Hotel Bulgaria and The Sea Gardens, about half way down. If you're coming from the hotel (Alexandrovska boulevard) it's a road on your right. If from the sea gardens, it's a road on your left. It is the ground floor apartment in an older building.
Sanctuary: It is just off the main dual carriage way from Burgas toward Chernomorets & Sozopol, down a dirt track opposite the first Lukoil station. You need to turn right after the petrol station and then go back over the dual carriage way, rejoin the main road and then a few yards down on the right, there is a pull in and a track leading off to the right. The shelter is just up here, around 100m.
HISTORY
Up until around 2005 the centre was little more than a place to house unwanted street dogs and the conditions were appalling. It was a municipality run operation. This all changed when a German Journalist, called Christa Schechtl saw the plight of street dogs in Bulgaria and visited the shelter. She was already heavily involved in animal rescue, having more or less single handedly set up a dog rescue centre in Moldovia after finding a dog that had been skinned alive, when visiting the country on an investigation into an unrelated story. She has since helped set up and continued to fund rescue centres in Turkey and Odessa.
Christa made it her mission to not only raise funds to enable the dogs to have much needed medical care and pay for food, blankets etc but she made it her aim to build a much better sanctuary for the dogs. She set up and funded an office in Central Burgas to deal with the administration and found a dedicated, animal lover in Margarita, a Bulgarian lady who runs the office. She held a press conference in Burgas with Bulgarian journalists and the vice Mayor and faced much hostility and aggressive questioning about why she wanted to help these dogs and the money involved. Then she involved the EU Commissioner, the President of the German Animal Rescue Society and many others.
Christa then purchased 10,000sqm of land close to Chernomorets, between Burgas and Sozopool, with the dream of building a large new rescue centre here, complete with medical facilities and also housing cats as well as dogs. She involved the local Mayor and school children to let them know of her future plans and received support from these areas. A pro-animal welfare German architect offered his help to design the project and all seemed to be progressing. But then the money ran out. Christa had used all her own private money to fund the centre in Moldovia and the other rescue centres in Turkey and Odessa and open the office in Burgas and keep the current centre going. She had campaigned tirelessly in Germany to get help and donations but building such a large, new dog rescue would take many thousands. Christa's greatest wish was for the project to begin in 2007 but unfortunately this has not been possible and so currently the dogs are still kept in very basic conditions in the existing sanctuary.
Christa at the sanctuary with a tiny puppy.
Christa organised and paid for 30 dogs to be taken back to Germany and re-homed there in a trip taking 3 full days of driving and an awful lot of money. In September 2008 she is flying two more dogs back to Germany. She has published 3 magazines (in German only) available at http://www.der-schrei.de.
To date there has been practically no funding or help from the people in Bulgaria (Bulgarians or Expats alike) for the dog sanctuary. There has been no help from any organisations or companies. All money has come from Germany and people's kind donations made to Christa for the sanctuary. When Margarita has gone to the public to ask for money and help she has been turned away. She once visited the London Pub in Burgas with photos of a dog desperately in need of an operation and in a very poorly state and received not a single lev from any of the Expats in there.
THE CURRENT DOG SANCTUARY & SITUATION
Whilst the dogs are excellently cared for in the current sanctuary, conditions are fairly basic, with 2 or 3 dogs to a pen. The grounds are kept immaculately clean, as are the pens. Many of the dogs, and especially the puppies are allowed out within the grounds to run about, socialise and play. There are some small buildings which currently act as a store room for blankets and food, a new Mum and Puppy area and a small, very basic but clean operating area for minor operations and medical treatments.
There are currently over 100 dogs in the sanctuary and it is full to bursting. Money for operations, castrations and food is desperately required. Donations of blankets, dog bowls, toys, cushions etc are all gratefully received.
THE FUTURE
On 5th September 2008, Christa and Margarita met with the Mayor of Burgas to discover the future of the dog rescue. The Mayor informed them that he wanted back the land the dog sanctuary was on to build a holiday fun park. The sanctuary is located on prime real estate on the south side of Burgas on the road to Chernomorets, just on the edge of the nature reserve. At first it was feared that this was devastating news and all the dogs would have to be moved in a short time frame and the sanctuary closed. However, once the situation was better explained, it appears then in order to get the sanctuary to move from its current location and vacate the land, the Burgas Municipality will have to fork out a considerable amount of money (whether this is due to the sanctuary having a long lease or some other legal rights to occupy the plot I am not sure). Christa drives a hard bargain and informed the Mayor that in order to vacate the plot, she would require help with builders for the new rescue centre on the land she owns and at least a year to organise everything. So the good news is that the new larger rescue centre should now definitely go ahead, but in the meantime there are still over 100 dogs requiring new homes and funds are constantly required to feed and house these dogs as well as the new ones that constantly arrive from the streets of Burgas, villages around and even as far a field as Sofia.
DOGS FOR RE-HOMING
(maybe a little out of date now but there are still plenty of adorable dogs needing homes)
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Morjo is a large, loveable 2 year old male dog, born at the sanctuary. He desperately needs a home to go to where he will get long walks and have a large garden to play in. He is pictured here with Margarita at the sanctuary. |
Carlos is a 2 year old castrated male |
Dubril is just one year old and was given to the sanctuary when his owner, a famous Bulgarian artist, found he could not cope with all his dogs. |
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| Richy is a 3 year old male found in a village near Burgas. | Rocky is only around 6 months old and was found on the streets of Burgas. | Rose is an adorable, small female dog |
And if they do not tug at your heart strings here are a few more.....
And two older guys needing a home:
FUND RAISING
I intend to still try and fund raise for the Mission and other charities helping Bulgaria's many street dogs and strays. A good friend has set up AIDBG and you can donate and see ways to help directly on there. There are also two facebook groups -
Bulgarian Society for Animal Protection & Preservation
FUNDS RAISED SO FAR (960 levs)
Direct Donations: Total = 550 levs
120 levs
(Brian)
90 levs
(Ernst Stogmuller
http://www.place-in-the-sun.info)
120 levs
(Harpe & Peterpiper)
140 levs
(Julie Wilson)
80 levs (Rachel Gawith - sale of door)
From Donations for Advice Given on Bulgarian Purchase issues: Total = 410 levs
From Private Sales Listings: 5 Euros