Jaco: Lost Dog

Lost golden retriever male dog lost or taken from Jaco beach on April 7, 2012 during Semana Santa.

His body was shaved and sported a black leather collar; because of this, his head looks larger and his tail is well feathered. The dog’s weight is approximately 33 kilos. The dog had not been neutered and is 18 months old.

Owner is asking if you have seen this dog or know of someone who recently acquired a dog who matches this description to please call 8603-3328  A reward is being offered for his safe return.

Time Out

Announcement: Hours of service for the AHPPA animal shelter in Costa Rica have changed:

Mon – Fri 9 am – 4 pm and

Saturdays 9 am – 3 pm

For the time being the shelter is now closed on Sundays.

The reason for this change is simple: our staff needs a day off. The number of people and animals who come through the Refugio on a daily basis is staggering. The phone is constantly ringing. Emails requiring an answer pour in from our website.  Our vets in the clinic keep busy all day long with spay/neuter and other operations, emergencies, vaccinations and general appointments. The office staff handles a long line of people waiting to adopt an animal every single day. All of this, in addition to the staff’s attention and energy of cleaning, exercising, feeding and attending to the animals.

People constantly comment, “I do not know how you do it.”  We do it for the love of animals. Nonetheless, when people get a bit over-worked and or stressed, it’s important to address the needs not just of the animals but the people who work with them. And our Refugio staff needs a day off.

So as of April 1st, we decided to reduce our hours of service by one hour and close the shelter to the public on Sundays. Our dedicated resident staff will continue to work caring for the animals; however, our entry gates will be closed.  These hours of service may change in the future and we will post when there is a change. We will also announce when and if we decide to re-open to the public on Sundays.

The AHPPA animal shelter is also closed to the public on legal Holidays. During Costa Rica’s Holy week, Semana Santa, however, we remain open with the exception of  Viernos Santo (Holy Friday).

We appreciate your support and understanding with regards to our decision in the hours of service to the public.

Supports AHPPA Animal Shelter

Remember the little dog story about Lisa-Hope?  Jacqueline, the lady who expressed her concern for and requested our help to find out what happened to the little dog, sent a letter to the Costa Rica travel company, MrTico.com, with whom she had booked her trip. She suggested to the owner,Vince, that other visitors would care greatly about the plight of abandoned street dogs and other uncared for animals in Costa Rica.

After Jacqueline’s dog story was released in Canada, Costa Rica and USA, A.H.P.P.A. animal shelter received an e-mail from MrTico.com informing us that they would be sending a donation from every tour booked through his company website!

What a generous and unique sponsorship for AHPPA!  Our first donation from MrTico.com was deposited this month. Our heartfelt gratitude to Vince and his team at MrTico.com.

Share the News!

We would like our readers and fans to help us spread the word about this symbiotic partnership. If anyone you know is looking for a Costa Rica travel and tour company, please recommend MrTico.com -  let them know that a percentage of their booking will benefit the animals in Costa Rica through the efforts and dedication of AHPPA animal shelter in Costa Rica.

We have since learned that our new sponsor specializes in unique, designer  adventure tours at affordable prices throughout the country. Their attention to detail equates to 5 star service as you can read from testimonials on their site: Click here.

AHPPA Animal Shelter Costa Rica

As the AHPPA continues to help animals with our mobile Spay and Neuter Program, it has always been our primary goal to reach, serve and educate the locals throughout the country their responsibility in reducing over-population of dogs in Costa Rica.  Our low and no-cost services is a win-win for everyone. With the help of local company’s like MrTico.com we are able to afford continuation of our services to pet owners and to street dogs.

Thank you, Jacqueline and MrTico.com Costa Rica Travel Specialist and all the supporters of AHPPA.  And for those who don’t live here, you are invited to visit us on your next trip to Costa Rica. You know who to contact to book your trip!

Lost Dog: March 22 2012 San Rafael de Heredia

On March 22, 2012 this lost dog, a small white fluffy perro went missing in Barrio Santiago, San Rafael de Heredia.  His name is Cookie,  a seven year old male, French Poodle, wearing a red collar.

If you have seen this lost dog, please contact Cookie’s people:

Daniel 8883-0575 or 8342-1706

by Maire Jacqueline O’Callaghan

Happy New Beginning

I first saw the small dog through the tourists as we stepped off the bus into the pouring rain. She was overjoyed to see us. Down on her front paws, she wriggled her rear end, she wagged her tail; she danced from tourist to tourist, raising her head to be petted. I bent to stroke her.

She was wet, shivering with cold and skinny. She had full teats, but no puppies to relieve the pressure. She wore a worn pink collar that hung loose on her neck. She’d been thrown out of a car. Abandoned. But the small orange and white dog welcomed us, wriggling with delight.

We were on vacation en route to Tortuguero National Park in Costa Rica, and we had stopped for breakfast at the Rancho Roberto restaurant. We asked our tour guide what we could do; she said she’d find a way to take care of her. We gave her our card as we wanted to know she was safe and in good hands. Then we had to walk away from the small, courageous dog—she watched us as we left. I named her Hope.

We arrived home on January 20th to no news. We’d found her on January 6. Was it too late to do anything? I went online and searched for Costa Rica animal rescue organizations and discovered the Refugio, Asociacion Humanitaria Para la Proteccion de Animal (A.H.P.P.A.), a legally registered non-profit organization.

I emailed the Refugio, A.H.P.P.A., expressing my concerns and distress. I asked if they could search for her and let me know if she had survived—it would be comforting to put the terrible thoughts of her suffering out of my mind. It would be comforting to know she was safe.

I received a heartfelt, detailed response from Rebecca, a Refugio, A.H.P.P.A., volunteer. Rebecca said if I had a location, then she would be happy to see what she could do. If found, they would find someone to pick her up. At the animal shelter she’d be treated and nurtured back to health.

We waited for news. The phone rang on Saturday, January 28. Rebecca said she just had to call: “We have such a happy ending to the story of the abandoned dog.” Indescribable, the happiness this small dog gave us. We shared the good news with our family in England and in Canada, and with our Canadian friends—Hope was rescued.

Don Roberto and Doña Marta, the owners of the Rancho Roberto restaurant, rescued her—took her in even though they had adopted many other abandoned and abused dogs. They took her to their vet who treated, spayed and bathed her. And they named her Lisa.

Lisa-Hope's Dog Story

Lisa’s story ends with her adoption by Don Juaquin, a close family friend of Don Roberto and Doña Marta. Lisa now has a home to call her own. And in return for her warm and loving care, she’ll be faithful and loyal, giving her new family unconditional love and companionship.

When Lisa greeted her guests Rebecca and Leigh from the Refugio, A.H.P.P.A., at Roberto and Marta’s beautiful finca, she wagged her tail and wriggled with happiness. Her loving heart was grateful for all the kindness; she was with the right people in the right place—a safe place.

If you want to learn more about the Refugio, A.H.P.P.A., its work and the dedication of its staff and volunteers please visit animalsheltercostarica.org .

Vets in Action

The A.H.P.P.A. animal shelter’s mobile vet clinic, Outreach Spay  Neuter program, keeps track of all sterilizations performed. We thought our readers might be interested in the numbers of one of the reports submitted between May and July of 2011.

Summary Information

From May through the end of July, 2011, our teams have sterilized a total of 882 dogs. Of these 579 were females and 303 were males. Over this period we have spent a total of $7,584.  The cost per sterilization is approximately $12 but the actual costs to the grant are only $8.6 per sterilization because some owners gave a donation and additional funds were collected by the groups that helped organize the local sterilization campaigns.

Narrative Details

We have been focusing in rural areas on the coasts or towards the coasts.   Generally, we run the clinics over the weekends when our veterinary staff is not that busy in our clinic in San Rafael.  Some of the clinics have been organized because local individuals or communities have helped with arrangements and organizations.  In other words, we have tended to set-up projects as the opportunity presents itself.

Tortuguero is a village/community that contains sensitive sea turtle nesting beaches that have suffered from roaming dogs.   We had been carrying out spay/neuter projects for several years in cooperation with the National University.  This program stopped because of lack of funds.  We returned this year – thanks to the Wallace Foundation funding – to do a follow-up project.  On May 18^th, 19^th and 20^th, we sterilized a total of 158 dogs (132 females/26 males).   The costs of this project were $1,896 (about $12 per dog).

Mobile Vet Clinic

There are numerous communities on the roads down to the coasts. One of these is Guapiles in Cartago Province.  We have run three spay/neuter clinics in and around Guapiles and have sterilized 203 dogs in those communities at a total cost of $ 2,436 (or around $12 per dog).  The local veterinarian, Dr. Guido Carballo strongly supports this project.  In general, there is a great need for sterilization projects in these areas but the veterinarians are focused on farm animals.

Guapiles Center:

June 5^th  – 44 dogs (5males/39females) and 17 cats (11 Females/6 Males)

July 24^th – 80 dogs (12males/53females) and 25 cats (12 females/3 males)

July 31^th – 63 dogs (9males/54females) and 10 cats (2 males/8 females)

San Carlos in Alajuela province – this is a small, isolated town with no veterinarians.

July 2^nd – 33 dogs (29 females/4 males) and 13 cats (10 females/ 3 males)

Linda Vista de Patarra of San Jose province – this is a small, isolated town with no veterinarians.

June 26^th – 29 dogs (24 females/5males) and 10 cats (1male/9 females)

El Llana de San Miguel de Samparados in San Jose province – this is a small, isolated village high in the mountains

June 19^th – 61 dogs (49 females/12 males) and 14 cats (11 females/3 males)

Dulce Nombre de Coronado in the province of Cartago, close to the city.

July 9^th & 10^th – three private veterinarians who helped us with the clinic (paid for by an individual who asked us to run a clinic) – we sterilized 147 dogs (98 females/ 49males) and 23 cats (16 females/7 males)

A.H.P.P.A. Hours

The animal shelter hours for the A.H.P.P.A. Refugio including our services have been changed as outlined below. Please check this periodically as we are currently testing for the most effective hours of operation to serve the needs of the animals and/or their owners, including new and prospective pet owners to be.

Links are included on this page for more details related to our services.

Vet Clinic Services and Consultations

Our team of veterinarians is available during the week for consultations, vet services, including spay and neuter surgeries, and emergency care.

Monday – Friday: 9 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Saturdays: 9:00 am – 3:00 p.m.

Sunday: Not available

Animal Adoptions

Monday through Friday 9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Saturdays: 9:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.

*Sundays: 2^nd and 4^th Sunday of each month only

Animal Shelter Hours on Sundays are Subject to Change, please call first.

*Sunday Hours: 9:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.

If you have any questions please contact us.

Pet Store

The Refugio’s on-site pet store carries everything for the well-being of your pet from beds, to foods, bowls, cute little outfits, treats and toys…lots!  All proceeds from products purchased at our store benefit the animals under our care.

Garage Sale

Garage Sale

Our on-site garage sale is now open on Saturdays: 10:00 am – 2:00 pm. Please stop in and see what treasures are to be discovered. The garage sale is located directly across from the Pet Store at our entrance. We are always in need of quality donations, which can be left at our Pet Store.

FOUND: San Rafael de Heredia Area

Jan 30 2012 – This sweet and small, young female dog was found between San Rafael and Concepcion (probably near Licorera Camachoin) in the vicinity of the Refugio.  If you are the owner or know who the owner is, please contact us here through the website.  The kind people who are caring for her, will do so until approximately Feb 8th.  After that they will seek an adoption for her.

Videos have been posted on our Facebook page: see Oscar Blanco’s or contact him directly.

Thank you, Oscar for your help.

If you have lost or find a pet, please ask your neighbors if they have seen your pet; having a photo of the animal will help. We also suggest making a poster/flyer with the photo and your phone number; Post the flyers all around the area where the animal was last seen.

Please contact us and provide the detailed information as outlined on our lost and founds pets page.  We will post the information on our website’s blog and if you are not on Facebook, we can post there for you as well.

You must use our contact form to submit your lost or found pet information.

Thank you and we truly hope you and your pet are reunited soon.

Cesar Millan Costa Rica: AHPPA Selling Tickets

By now most of you have probably heard that Cesar Millan, the famous Dog Whisperer (aka el Encantador de Perros) will be making his first-ever appearance in Latin America at the Estadio Nacional on Saturday, January 28 at 8:00 p.m. here in Costa Rica!

Working in cooperation with the event promoter, RPMTV/Xtreme Family Entertainment, AHPPA has negotiated the opportunity to sell tickets to our friends and supporters and retain a portion of the proceeds to help fund our spay and neuter programs. 

What a great, fun way to increase understanding and awareness of animal welfare!

Here’s how it works:

• Review the seating chart of the Estadio Nacional and identify the section in which you wish to sit (tickets prices are on the far right).
• Pay for your ticket no later than Monday, January 23.

• To purchase your tickets come to the Pet Shop at the Refugio de Animales (AHPPA) in San Rafael de Heredia or telephone 2267-7158 or 2267-6374 or email Lilian at  spaycostarica@yahoo.com.

• Tickets will be distributed at the Pet Shop at the Refugio beginning Thursday, January 26 and must be picked up no later than Friday, January 27; if you have trouble getting to the Pet Shop call us at the above numbers and we will discuss options.

You do have the option of purchasing tickets online through www.laboleteria.com and can receive a discount using your BNCR card however if you want to support AHPPA we encourage you to purchase through us directly.  Note that no ticketing service fee (¢1,500 per ticket) will be charged if you purchase through AHPPA.

If you cannot attend, consider purchasing a ticket or group of tickets for people in the community who are not able to afford them. This is a fabulous way to further our education efforts. You may specify the distribution or we will distribute tickets appropriately and let you know who your beneficiary is.

We hope to be able to offer additional opportunities and promotions so please visit our Facebook page for updates: Animal Shelter Costa Rica A.H.P.P.A.  For more information about the Cesar Millan show and the ExpoMascota earlier the same day go to www.rpmtv.co.cr.  For more information on how to purchase tickets call us 2267-7158 or 2267-6374 or email Lilian at  spaycostarica@yahoo.com.

As always we appreciate your support.

Start spreading the news!

Working in veterinary medicine requires a great deal of patience.  Not only do our patients understand very little of the languages we speak to them, when they understand our intentions they often do all they can to thwart them.

In my career you are almost guaranteed to be scratched, bitten and covered in just about every possible bodily fluid by your patients.  And despite being oftentimes demeaning and almost certainly disgusting, there is some joy in knowing that a calm demeanor and tolerant behavior can often get you through the day without having a dog express its anal glands all over you.

The same cannot always be said of the clients.  Pet owners can often be alluded to parents of a child in a pediatric intensive care unit.  They are often more afraid than the patient itself, even more so when their “babies” are unwell or being operated on.

The spay-neuter veterinary clinics AHPPA holds in rural villages across Costa Rica always draw large crowds – entire families accompany their pets to join in the experience.  Even male street dogs come in willingly, drawn by the excitement of large groups of female dogs.  “The first volunteer of the day!” my colleague declared, holding up a local street dog that had wandered into our mobile veterinary clinic, interested in a sedated (and quite vulnerable!) Boxer in heat.  You always catch more flies with honey!

Because we set up our spay-neuter clinic in very public places to attract attention ensuring as many animals are sterilized as possible, we often must deal with the crowds that gather around the operating tables.  Not only does this require a degree of diplomacy and professionalism, but one must be an exceptional multi-tasker to manage the situation.

While simultaneously operating and monitoring anesthesia we must also answer the long list of questions coming from the group and offer assistance to the occasional few who faint at the sight of a dog’s open abdomen.  In addition to this, we often must work while receiving “constructive” criticism from the audience.

Within seconds of seeing surgery many worried owners become accomplished anesthesiologists, specialists in reproductive medicine and confident surgeons.

However, when not terrifying owners who insist on standing over your shoulder with the realities of field veterinary surgery you come across little things that make you smile.

A father held up his 4 year-old son so he could watch me prepare a dog to be spayed.  As I scrubbed the dog’s abdomen, the little boy declared incredulously to his father, “I had no idea, Papa, no idea that dog’s have boobies.  No idea!”  I chuckled to myself as I began the operation.  The boy stared as I incised the dog’s abdomen.  “We’d better go, Papa.  It looks like the Gringa is about to kill the dog.”  Never has my self-esteem been so swiftly and effectively crushed by a 4 year-old.

People often think that as vets we spend our days solely with animals; on the contrary, the majority of our jobs involve working with people.  And while I may feel my patience tested from time to time, there is nothing more rewarding than seeing a patient recovered and well taken home by its loving family.  To know that we made a difference that day, in the lives of the animals and in the community, is enough to beat even the harshest of 4 year-old critics.

Submitted by AHPPA veterinary volunteer working with our Spay-Neuter Outreach Program.