Animal lover's desperate plea as she funds care for over 100 animals

DON’T dump dogs this festive period. That’s the New Year message from one animal lover who is struggling to finance the dozens of dogs dumped and abandoned on her property.

Janette Lopez brought her property in the campo just outside of San Miguel de Salinas with her family in 2000. As soon as they fenced the property they began to witness animals being dumped on their land, either left at the gates or thrown over the fence: “On our four acres of land we have 140 animals. It is all funded by ourselves and when it was 30 or 40 it was manageable but now it is so hard.”

Fortunately, with basic training having worked in an equine health centre in Newmarket in the UK, she has a good understanding of animal care as on site there are also horses, pigs, birds even ferrets and a tortoise have been left as well as the dogs. She clearly loves animals but the situation cannot go on: “We need €3,000 each month just to cover food and for general care of them and after using our own personal savings we have begged and borrowed.

Janette and her husband Antonio formed a boarding kennels eight years ago as a small business on site to help fund the every increasing costs of caring for the animals. Her daughter runs Tidy Paws groomers and her son-in-law owns Eduardo’s Pets so thankfully he attends to the animal’s veterinary needs and with his help she had gone through all the necessary legal channels to form a charity Finca La Castellana. Now with charity status they can have their work recognised and officially raise money: “We have had around 600 animals left to us in the last four years and re-homed over 500 but that does not solve the problem.” Ideally Janette would like to have a mobile sterilisation unit to particularly prevent the feral problem: “You have to educate youngsters about animal care and tackle it at source otherwise it will just continue.”

Finca La Castellana is desperate for fundraisers and more support so if you can spare a few hours a week or are able to adopt a dog, contact Janette on 610 451 133 or search Finca La Castellana on Facebook.