In the wee hours of the night..

[https://www.facebook.com/noahsarkcares/photos/a.417711168294052.104858.417707781627724/1283564805042013/?type=3&theater]

In the wee hours of the night where most of us are in the comfort of our own homes, there are still a few of us roaming the streets. Feeding our stray charges, looking out for them and spending as much time with them best possible. When we find them missing, our hearts sink. When we are finally home but see lightning, we sigh as it is going to be a long and cold night for the homeless babies.

Noah's Ark CARES has been running on a very small team all these years. Our dedicated volunteers juggle full time jobs with raising funds and/or awareness for the society, with some covering street work all together.

Join us to make a difference. Not for fame or publicity but to really do something meaningful. Sponsor a dog, donate to medical bills, clean kennels or even help us feed some hungry stomachs. You can contact us at noahsarkcares@gmail.com to discuss further - every little bit means so much. Thank you!

Volunteers/Adopters Needed - As Always

Puppies - we always have puppies up for adoption as well as adult dogs. But they are - unlike those at pet shops/breeders that people will pay a few hundreds or thousands for each - not of any pedigree breed. They are mainly mongrels. We are often asked, where do all these so-called stray puppies come from? From the unsterilized street dogs we have not been able to catch – they who avoid us like plague, who will only come out to grab the packet of food and run for their lives the minute we take one small step forward. Some will wag their tails from afar if we are lucky, others will just hide in one corner and wait for you to go off before emerging from their hiding area. Nonetheless, how can we bear to starve them? All they ask for, is food.

 

 

Project Industrial Dogs (PID) has been constantly on-going for years, whether we update about it or not. Over months and years, the street babies can easily recognize the sound of our car engines. So much so that when we change vehicles, we have to resort to repeatedly calling their names or nicknames for them to come out. Otherwise, rain or shine, they will be faithfully waiting at their factory gate or by the roadside greeting us. Needless to say, we try not to drive past when it’s not feeding day!

 

We are recently helping to rehome three puppies and thankfully, they are on the good-looking side and we hope we can find them homes soonest. Teddy and Snuggles (both boys) are still up for adoption and they are non-HDB approved. Do drop us a note if you can give them a permanent home.

This batch of puppies are lucky enough they do not look like the “normal” brown, black or black and tan mongrels we often see. Please do not be mistaken that we are biased or superficial, for many of our own volunteers have these brown, black or black and tan mongrels at home themselves as well. However, if the puppies do look better, it is much easier to get them adopted quickly. Some puppies/adult dogs might have excellent temperaments but they are often overlooked for looking too "ordinary". Reality is frank but harsh, though we hate to admit this. It takes a genuine dog lover to look past their looks and choose them as a lifelong companion according to their temperament.

 

The next question will be, why are these street females still not spayed then? We dare say we have put in our very best effort with trapping but still, some remain elusive. Even dog catchers have cases they have not been able to resolve. While we are no professionals, we have no qualms spending a few weekends just attempting to catch that one female, for we know it will change her life forever.

 

Noah's Ark are one of the few AWGs around that do the actual site work ourselves, so we do see for ourselves what is on the ground and what goes on beyond. We have often been asked to help other individual stray caregivers and we try our best to work with the practical humans. Sometimes, we get requests to "clear" an area and take in eight to ten dogs at one go. Due to complaints or moving of premises, many many reasons, valid or otherwise. Yes we do have a huge sanctuary NANAS over at JB behind us, which many see as a wonderful retirement sanctuary and/or one of the last few solutions out. But among us volunteers who have been caring for our own charges for so long, we also have to pick and choose who to send across the border as we cannot be overloading the sanctuary as well. NANAS has well over a thousand mouths to feed, and our debts run into five-digit figures monthly. It is not that easy to raise such a huge amount of money every month and we believe most AWGs are struggling like we do. Our founder Raymund often laments, “The sanctuary is a curse at times.” We know he might have said this in a fit of pique, but certainly with some truth within as well.

We are always in need of committed volunteers, who understand what we have been consistently doing and who genuinely want the better for the street animals. We are active both locally and in Malaysia, doing fundraising, education and rescue.

 

Noah’s Ark is a society caring for 600 dogs, 300 cats, 10 horses and many other small animals – please let us know how you can help the animals at the sanctuary. You may contribute your skills and assistance in the following locally:

–      designer
–      writer
–      videographer
–      photographer
–     stray caregiving/feeding which entails trapping and site work also (which you might get extremely dirty with)
–      fosterers for rescued dogs/cats
–      roadshow volunteers
–      sale of Noah’s Ark annual calendars
–      sale of merchandise
–      let us know any other way/s you can help the animals

90% of the animals at the sanctuary have no caregivers – they were given up, abandoned, abused by their ex-owners - the animals need all the help they can get from you to help care for them.

If you will sincerely like to join us to be part of our team, please drop us an email at noahsarkcares@gmail.com. We look forward to hearing from you! :)

Volunteering experience

I first learnt of Noah's Ark when my sister came back from her visit and told me stories about how overwhelming it was to be pounced on by over-enthusiastic dogs. This piqued my interest and I decided to sign on the next public tour. After that, I was instantly hooked!

To me, every visit to the sanctuary is stress relieving, just patting the dogs and seeing their antics will cheer just about anyone up. It was a place where no one judged, where it can just be the dogs and me interacting. Being able to see dogs running happily made me feel as liberated and free as them. I only started volunteering last year as I felt strongly about wanting to help out. Running a sanctuary with so many animals (horses, bunnies, cats and guinea pigs too!) to care for is definitely not easy, both in terms of money and manpower.

While the sanctuary showed a place where dogs can roam freely and where food is not an issue, Project Industrial Dogs depicts a different story. The birth of a new litter of puppies is greeted with sadness as no one knows how long they can survive. Often, they do not survive as they haven't learnt to be street smart. In addition, there is always the concern of overcrowding and this could result in culling by the authorities. Those that survive puppyhood often go hungry due to lack of a constant food source, and often fight for territory as a resykt. It is a harsh life they lead. The only conclusion reached is that sterilization is the most humane way to control the industrial dog population.


In the short time I have volunteered, I hope I have made as much of a difference in their lives as they've done to mine, and I hope to continue helping out in any way I can.

The work that goes behind running the sanctuary and Project Industrial Dogs requires tons of dedication, commitment and perseverance. Having more volunteers would certainly help too. If you feel for the stories on our blog, and would like to help out, do email us at noahsarkcares@gmail.com!

*Contributed by LR

*Photos by ML

Volunteer with us today!

Love animals? Enjoy being around them or working with them? Wish to give back to society in some way?

You can! Simply by volunteering with Noah's Ark. Help our 4 legged friends, be their voices, shower them with love & give them hope. Be an Ark Angel!

Noah's Ark is located just across the causeway in Johor Bahru but you can easily help while in Singapore too. Here's what you can do:

Visits to the sanctuary

If you have a car, you can drive to our sanctuary with your friends or family and spend the day. Visits are limited to weekends and by appointment only. The sanctuary is open from 2pm to 5pm on Saturdays and Sundays. Our dogs need brushing, petting and most importantly, socializing with visitors. When you visit, we may need your help in transporting donated items such as food and newspapers to the sanctuary.

Transportation

Occasionally, we might call upon you to transport sick, rescued or abandoned dogs to a nearby vet for medical attention. So do let us know if you have a vehicle & if you are able to help with this.

Fostering

This is an important part of what we do. If you have space in your home and in your heart to help foster dogs, let us know. While we look for a forever home for the dog, it will need somewhere to board. By providing your home, you are helping us cut down on boarding costs should we be unable to find an adopter immediately. During fostering, you will need to teach a dog basic commands, house train them and help them get along with humans and other dogs. This would greatly increase their chances of being adopted.

Events, Fundraising & Other Ways You Can Help

If you have other strengths or have contacts or ideas which you think would be helpful, or can help with organizing fund raising events such as our last National Dog Walk 2008 (See http://noahsarkcares.blogspot.com/2008/08/national-dog-walk-2008.html), let us know.

You may have friends or family who do not have time to volunteer but may want to contribute to Noah's Ark, in cash or kind. Dog or cat food, contributing articles for our blog, writing posts & designing posters for our dog forum when we have dogs for adoption or for cases of missing dogs. Every little bit counts and makes a difference.

You can also help out by creating awareness in your school or workplace. We have postcards that you can distribute and you can tell your schoolmates or co-workers all about Noah's Ark, what we do & what they can do.

Alternatively, you can help sell merchandise and be a Noah's Ark spokesperson at our other events such as the AVA road show (See http://noahsarkcares.blogspot.com/2008/11/thank-you-for-helpingcoming-to-ava.html).

While we greatly appreciate all the help we can get, we hope that volunteers are available for us to call upon on a regular basis. If you are unable to commit for certain occasions or situations, please do specify at the start of your volunteering with us. This is so that we can take note and make alternative arrangements. Volunteering is a long-term commitment and we would appreciate if you will be able to put time aside for it.

Thank you and we look forward to having you join our Ark!

A preview of the adorable dogs at our Ark...

Volunteering for Noah's Ark

It was since last year that I became a volunteer at Noah’s Ark. It started when I chanced upon Noah’s Ark’s blog and read through a few blog posts, one of them on Project Industrial Dogs (PID). I was really taken aback and slightly disturbed as I browsed through many pictures taken of industrial dogs and the place they call ‘home’. Puppies living in drains with open wounds bitten by rats, dogs with infections and swollen body parts, and even lifeless bodies of puppies crushed to death by heavy industrial materials. It has never occurred to me that there were stray dogs living in such inhabitable conditions in Singapore.

Words and pictures of the blog posts prompted me to do something in aid of this project. Project Industrial Dogs, mostly supported by public donations, is in constant need of funds to sterilize the dogs. Noah’s Ark believes that it is a more humane method to sterilize these dogs, so as to curb their population and eventually their suffering, compared to culling them. I was actually nearing the end of my school term and many doubts came to my mind such as not having enough time to raise a significant amount. However, I guess being in the know of this issue really affected me, and on the next day of school, I went around talking to my friends about the plight of these dogs and asked them for donations. I was really touched and honestly, slightly surprised when my friends were genuinely interested to donate. Some of them listened in out of curiosity at first, and then made their donations. A few of them even asked if Noah’s Ark is in need of any help for this project. Though as students allowance is always a little tight, many of them made small donations in aid of this project. It was great to see that so many of them have a heart to help these stray dogs. At the end of two days, I managed to raise a total of $200 in aid of this project. Though it is not a large amount, I hope that every little bit helps. It has also shown me that as long as there is someone with a desire to help, there is still much hope for these dogs in need.






Volunteering with Noah’s Ark has helped me to develop a more mature perspective of the place we live in. As a teenager, my life used to be all about games, schoolwork and having fun. Yet, after fundraising for PID and helping out at a few events, I have realised that what I want to do is to help these animals live better and happier lives. In turn, I am grateful that I have received another sense of purpose in life. Now, I believe that, regardless of age, it is possible for anyone to help in their own significant way, because these animals are always in need of more people who care to help them selflessly to find a new lease of life.

Compared to many other volunteers at Noah’s Ark, what I have done is a really small portion of all their time and money. Besides from Project Industrial Dogs, Noah’s Ark is frequently organising events to raise funds for their projects as well as the upkeep of their shelter in Johor. I would like to take this chance to urge everyone to show their kindness towards these animals by giving them our love, in one way or another, and receive the sense of fulfilment in return.




You make a living by what you get. You make a life by what you give. – Winston Churchill

SMU Project Paint @ NANAS

On July 25th 2009, SMU PAW went down to Noah’s Ark Natural Animal Sanctuary in Johor. This was our third trip but this time, we were armed with paint brushes, newspapers and paints; all ready to give Noah’s Ark a well-deserved new coat of paint.

For the uninformed, Noah’s Ark Natural Animal Sanctuary is an animal shelter based in Pekan Nanas, Johor that is home to a thousand over animals; dogs, cats, rabbits, guinea pigs, horses and even monkeys – most of them abandoned by their previous owners. Noah’s Ark does not euthanize the animals but lets them live out the rest of their lives in happiness and eventually, pass on with dignity.


Watching you just in case you change your mind


Hmm, are you really going to paint my home?

With so many lively animals at Noah’s Ark, it’s no wonder they needed a new coat of paint! We started the day early, leaving for Johor at 9am and reaching just in time for a short introduction of the sanctuary and its history by Noah’s Ark volunteers. We were split into three main groups in charge of three different areas – the main house, the new rabbit sanctuary and the horse stables.


Painting the outside of the newly built rabbit hutch


Makeover at the horses stables

Most of us had never painted before but we all learnt on the job. Knowing that we were doing this for the animals made us work even harder. But what made the trip just so much fun? The energetic dogs that kept running around us while we were busy re-coating the walls!

SMU students helping to give our walls a makeover:


Lynda, VP of Noah's Ark, helping the students to paint too!










Every now and then, a few mischievous ones would dip their noses in the paint or smear their bodies with wet paint, so at the end of it, not only were the shelters painted, the dogs were too!


Ooops sorry!


Can you paint faster please? I need aircon!!!
Even though it was our third time there, it would always feel like the first. And no matter how many animals are abandoned, no matter how many animals eventually end up in Noah’s Ark because they are unwanted, whenever people visit them, they are always happy and so loving to them; to us.

Indeed, to err is human, to forgive, canine.

*Article and photos contributed by SMU

International Volunteer's Day - Volunteering with Noah’s Ark

The International Volunteer Day for Economic and Social Development (IVD) was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly through Resolution on 17 December 1985. Since then, governments, the UN system and civil society organizations have successfully joined volunteers around the world to celebrate the Day on 5 December. International Volunteer Day (IVD) is a day to commemorate, honour and appreciate the efforts and contributions of volunteers who are such an invaluable resource to society.

Some quotes from our Volunteers on why they do what they do.

"When you help an animal by giving them a second chance to live, the animal will be forever grateful to you for your kindness. And you receive great satisfaction when you see the joy and happiness in the animals eyes." - By Lynda -


“Volunteering for Noah's Ark helps me connect with another life that does not speak our human language. It is through the little gestures from our animal friends (that you can feel from your heart) that drives me to do even more for them. The animals give us unconditional love, can we not do the same? The animals have helped me lead a richer and more meaningful life - a priceless journey indeed!” - By Sharon -


“Volunteering with Noah's Ark has allowed me to experience many things I would never have had to go through or done before. It has not been a bed of roses, I will admit, having to balance work and volunteering, especially when deadlines are pressing at either or both ends. Sacrifices have been made alongside, in exchange for the invaluable lessons that made me grow up and see things from a different perspective. Many have asked me, what do I actually gain? I have learnt, though I can't save the world, but each animal saved is one more life saved. The animals can't speak or say thank you, but seeing them treated from their injuries or freed from the vicious cycle of endless reproduction is rewarding enough for me. As society progresses, I still harbour this hope that mankind can be more educated and benevolent, be it with their own pets or otherwise.” - By Ruth -

“I volunteer for Noah's Ark because the animals they are helping are happy and they do real work.” - By Alicia -

Next, our volunteer Mary has kindly contributed the following article.

I have been looking out for an avenue to volunteer and what prompted me to find out how I can help out at Noah's Ark was the memory of my visits to Noah's Ark when it was still in Singapore and my visit to the current sanctuary in Johor earlier this year.

When you walk into the Noah's Ark sanctuary in Johore, what strikes you first is the vast amount of land that the dogs can run around in. Managing an area so great with 800 dogs, 500 cats, horses and other animals is not an easy feat. However, as I walked around the sanctuary, I cannot help but smile at the happy faces of each and every one of the dogs bouncing around greeting us. Rather then keeping the animals locked up, Noah’s Ark has found a way to let the animals have enough running area to have a sense of safety and freedom at the same time.

From huts for the dogs to sleep in to the pond for them to swim and play in, you see the dogs living in harmony with each other.

Shelter where the dogs play & rest

The cats are not left out as well. They have a nice “chalet” overlooking the pond as well as cubicles that are kept perfectly clean. The cats willingly let you carry them around and comb their fur. Some will even climb on your lap hoping to get some loving.

Cat Paradise overlooking the pond

Seeing so much love and care put into the welfare of these animals prompted me to write into Noah’s Ark. So far, I have helped out at their Dog-a-thon at the West Coast Park and the AVA Road Show at West Coast.

I guess like many others who volunteer, I feel that volunteering is a way of giving back to the world and to bring more meaning to our lives then doing the normal routine of work, friends and home. What I have seen in the past relating to animal abuse to what I am seeing now, the work done by the Noah’s Ark volunteers, rescuing/sheltering puppies and dogs and nursing them back to a healthy state is reason enough to volunteer.

What I do to help is tiny compared to the selfless acts of the more dedicated members of Noah's Ark. In the end, how can you not feel a sense of joy to see such a happy face smiling back at you in gratitude to whatever little you can do to help?



*Stories and photos contributed by Mary Chye


From the bottom of our hearts, we thank all our volunteers for the passion, dedication and commitment to Noah's Ark and all its animals. Without you, the animals would not be this happy! We do hope you will continue to support the work of All God's Creatures, both Great and Small.
If you wish to volunteer with Noah's Ark, please contact us at noahsarkcares@gmail.com. There are many ways you can volunteer (EMAIL US TO FIND OUT!!), and every little bit of help rendered will be greatly appreciated.

Can you help foster a dog please?

This is how Mdm Goh's story goes.

Initially, these dogs were living with a mentally unsound man. We are unsure how he acquired these dogs but he had these four in his home. The dog’s rescuer, Mdm Goh, has recounted that she has witnessed him kicking them before and demonstrating other forms of abuse. He has since been admitted into the Institute of Mental Health.

A few days ago, Mdm Goh called Noah’s Ark and mentioned she has heard he has been discharged, but she was not at all keen to return the dogs to him as the safety of the dogs was in question. Having no heart to see them being put down, she heard about their plight and took them into her care. Mdm Goh is an extremely kind lady and has one dog and cats of her own, not to mention she also feeds strays outside. After the initial rescue, Mdm Goh managed to bring them to the vet and get them treated by raising her own funds. Currently her funds are running low, and eventually she approached NA for help to rehome these dogs.

The four dogs are:

Terrier Cross - Male, not yet paper trained. Tends to mark at home. Needs a firm hand with lots of patience. An extremely cute and lively young boy.

Blind mongrel - Seems rather old, we are unsure of his age. He generally spends his days sleeping. Perhaps his inability to see prevents him from moving about too. He does nothing but sits in one corner the whole day without moving, except for relieving himself.

Female American Cocker Spaniel - Looks to be about 8 to 10 yrs old. The abuse and lack of love and care could make her look older than she really is. She has dry eyes and very weak hind legs. Is only able to do slow, short walks. She is constantly wheezing and needs to be on daily medication for her heart problem as she suffered a heart attack before. Spends her day sleeping and is very affectionte.

Blind poodle – We are not sure how old she is but she looks to be quite young, about 3 or 4. Possibly blind since birth. Extremely scared, constantly bumping into things and crying. She stops when you cuddle and reassure her. We believe that with tender loving care and patience, she can be trained and to feel a sense of security.

All of them are very sweet and having been abused, are extremely insecure and scared. The blind dogs are the worst off as they can neither see nor move about. We hope people can come forward to help foster these dogs and hopefully also help paper train them to give them a better chance of being adopted.

If you can help in any way, please drop us an email @ info@noahsarkcares.com On behalf of Mdm Goh, we are in need of assistance as HDB has already issued her a warning to remove the animals asap.

Thank you for reading this blog post.

My first fostering experience

It was past midnight when we picked up Sanuk, the first dog that I ever fostered. When I first saw her, she reminded me of a gangly teenager with her long legs and rather clumsy movements.

My dog, Monster, didn’t like Sanuk on sight. I made the mistake of introducing the 2 girls in Monster’s territory instead of bringing her downstairs onto neutral ground for their first meeting. Monster sniffed at Sanuk suspiciously and making up her mind that she didn’t like the newcomer’s presence, she growled and barked non-stop. All this was happening at 1.30am in the morning! I was so afraid that my neighbours would come knocking.

Initially, Sanuk was very shy and timid. She zeroed in under my bed and refused to come out despite my coaxing. After a while, I gave up, switched off the lights and tried to get some rest.

It was quite a comical situation. Nervous being in a strange new place, Sanuk constantly poked her head out from below my bed and twisted her neck around to peep at me. Catching sight of Sanuk’s head, Monster would start barking and Sanuk automatically retreated back under the bed. This cat and mouse game went on the whole night.

By morning, Monster had still not warmed up to Sanuk. She was jealous whenever Sanuk came near me and would growl her immense displeasure. However, Sanuk seemed to have gotten used to me and seemed happy to just ignore Monster. After a hearty breakfast of milk and a packet of Cesar’s, she was happily dashing about - sniffing and investigating different corners of the house.

I spent the morning bathing both dogs. Monster was a breeze. Sanuk, however, got a fright at her very first bath. She yelped, jumped and clawed at my toilet door, as if trying to escape from the ‘torture’. After that, it was an entire day of toilet-training and letting the two girls adjust to each other. Sanuk was a smart girl and learnt pretty fast. By the 2nd day, she ran straight for the papers whenever she needed to pee or poop.

Of course, there were still “accidents” during the nights. As there were no newspapers in my room, she would do her business anywhere on the floor and I’d wake up to the “aroma” every morning. Despite already being rather big in size, I had to keep reminding myself that she was still a puppy. Eventually, she lived up to her “street-smart” credits as a mongrel! Within the first week, she learnt to nudge me to open my room door for her if she needed to do her business. When she wanted to come back in again, she would paw my door. I was amazed at her intelligence!

Since then, Monster and Sanuk bonded really well. They played together, slept together and ate together. Both of them were practically inseparable. When it was time for us to part as Sanuk was going to a new home, both Monster and I missed her presence dearly. Monster became unusually quiet during the first few nights. It is quite fortunate that Sanuk’s home is a short distance away and both Monster and I look forward to visiting her almost every weekend.



Sanuk & Kori - Sisters that have been adopted to forever homes

*Article contributed by Suzanne, a first time fosterer