31.10.2016

Three en-masse walks have been organised via an innovative animal adoption website to promote animal rights and the re-homing of stray and abandoned animals, while at the same time raising funds for national shelters.
The ‘Two Feet for Four Paws’ walks are co-organised by musical events company Nowashow and animal adoption project Animalife, a ‘blogspot’ that promotes animal charities and associations from all over Portugal. Backing has also been given by the Portuguese League for Animal Rights.

Serving as a platform between sheltered animals and potential new families, associations and donations, Animalife (www.animalife.pt) also acts as a social network for animal lovers and pet owners.

Two walks have already taken place this year, sporting the motto ‘I respect animals, and you?’

Animalife spokesperson João Gonçalves said: ‘I respect animals, and you?’ is a commitment made by Animalife, which aims to give a voice to the rights of our pets and, of course, to all animals, while raising awareness among their owners and society to this cause.”

Each participant is charged a €2 enrolment fee. The overall proceeds are distributed among Animalife-affiliated associations from the region where the walk takes place. The first was held earlier this year in Vila Nova de Gaia, on 19 June.

A second walk took place last month in Monsanto (Lisbon), on 24 July, which saw some 700 participants plus their pets pound the pavements for the cause.

So far, around 2,000 has been raised, to be shared among 16 charities, five in northern Portugal and 11 in Lisbon.

A third walk will take place on 14 August, in Faro (Algarve), where organisers anticipate some 500 people will take part. Monies raised from that walk will be divided among Algarvian animal associations registered with Animalife, such as the Lagos-based Cadela Carlota.

A further two walks are in the planning, though the locations have not yet been revealed.

Since it was founded in November 2010 Animalife has helped re-home around 800 animals, among which guinea pigs, a Bengal cat, chinchillas and a rabbit, as well as hundreds of dogs, cats, puppies and kittens.

It was created by Rodrigo Livreiro, who had the idea of providing a tool, in the form of a ‘blogspot’, for associations to use to promote their causes and needs since many do not have the means to do so themselves. He described it as a form of “trying to improve the current situation in Portugal.”

“We found that a lack of [financial] resources meant a lack of tools [via which associations can promote their causes], so instead of giving donations we decided to create a tool that the associations could use.

“The blogspot was created thinking of the associations and their needs”, he said.

There are currently 72 associations from north to south of Portugal signed up to Animalife. Each has its own link, webpage and back office system.

The project’s founders are hoping to soon translate the website into English so foreign-run shelters will also be able to benefit from it.

João Gonçalves explained that the website started off as being meant for three or four associations to use, but within days the number of associations asking to be included had escalated.

Latest estimates are that some 10,000 animals are abandoned every year in Portugal, with figures peaking during summer.

Notícia no Jornal The Portugal News - http://www.theportugalnews.com/cgi-bin/article.pl?id=1124-19