The dogs of Ethiopia
By Sharon St. Joan, Best Friends NetworkIt is estimated that there are 750,000 street dogs in Addis Ababa, the capitol of Ethiopia.
As two telecommunication employees left their office a few weeks ago, they encountered a shocking sight--several boys attacking a dog with stones. They stopped the boys and rescued the dog.
The whole, really sad, story emerged as they talked with the people who lived in the area, who knew the dog. Until a few days before, the male dog had had a mate, a female, with puppies. The male dog was blind with glaucoma, and the female dog fed him every day. Then, one day, a car killed his mate and her puppies.
Not being able to see, and emaciated from having nothing to eat, the dog wandered about aimlessly, sometimes in circles and sometimes bumping into things. The neighborhood children thought that he must have rabies because he was behaving so strangely. Rabies is a serious health threat in Ethiopia, and people die from rabies every year. The boys were attacking the dog because they thought he posed a real threat.
The two who had rescued the dog contacted HAPS, known as an animal shelter where dogs could be taken to be cared for, where they would not be put down. HAPS has had its own misfortunes and has had to close its doors due to lack of funding. Since they are no longer open and no longer have a license, they are unable to take in dogs now. However, Hana Kisle, the Vice-President of HAPS, responded immediately as soon as she heard about the injured dog.
She picked up the dog and brought him back to the shelter. What else could she do? At first the dog, having been treated so horribly and now finding himself in unfamiliar surroundings, growled at everyone. He was not badly injured though, and he soon recovered with food and treatment, in the atmosphere of kindness. However, the fact remained that he was handicapped. Both eyes were clearly blind, and the HAPS shelter, which had always been no-kill--was now closed and was no longer allowed to keep dogs.
In consultation with Efrem Legese, the President of HAPS, they came to a painful decision. The dog would have to be put down. Even this decision, in a country with few resources, can become complicated. There was no euthanizing solution with which to put down the dog humanely. In desperation, Hana called Dr. Anteneh Roba, in Houston, the founder of the Amsele Gessesse Foundation, who was a beneficiary of HAPS, to tell Dr. Roba about their predicament, and that, somehow, they would have to put the dog to sleep.
"Oh, no!"Dr. Roba, while understanding the situation, was still horrified, and responded, "Oh, no!" Dr. Roba, an American now, visits his original country often, and he promised Hana that, if he could find a home for the dog in Houston, he would bring the dog back from Ethiopia, on his next visit, this December.
Dr. Roba can be very single-minded and persuasive, especially where animals are concerned, so within three days, he had found the perfect home for the blind Ethiopian dog--a very kind woman who loves animals, a friend of an acquaintance of his.
When some of the Amsale Gessesse Foundation's supporters heard about the plans to help the dog, they began to call the dog "Toto." which they knew had been the nickname that Dr. Roba had been known by as a child.
In the new year, Toto will set foot in his new country and will go to live with his new family. In fact, his family has already located an eye doctor for dogs, who may be able to operate on Toto's eyes to restore his sight!
This is only the latest of happy endings that Dr. Roba and HAPS have brought to the dogs of Ethiopia. A few weeks ago, Efrem Legese, the President of HAPS, brought over from Ethiopia four dogs whose story you may already have read on International Friends. These dogs, whose story has traveled around the world (farther than the dogs themselves have traveled), were rescued from the Gido Cave in Addis Ababa. They had been thrown into the cave and left to die. In fact, the cave--a kind of deep well on unused land on the outskirts of the city had been used for many years as a place to dispose of unwanted dogs.
When Efrem was shown the cave, these four dogs were still alive down at the bottom. Then Efrem engineered a very challenging rescue operation to save the dogs, bringing them up out of the cave. Afterwards, Dr. Roba arranged with the government to have the gruesome cave closed for good.
The four dogs, who are just as charming and happy as any dogs who were never abandoned in a cave, are waiting for good homes--maybe you are the home they've been waiting for?
Hana and Hailey are a pair. They never stop playing together.
"The only boy and the quietest of them all is Tommy," says Dr. Roba. "He has a back injury (from being beaten?) and has hip dysplasia. That's why he is so quiet. It's painful when he walks, and he still needs an operation. One way or the other, I will get it done."
Dr. Roba says of Maria, "She is the princess. She is an Alpha woman that has to be in control. Even the way she walks is different. She walks like she owns the world."
How you can helpTo find out more about the Gido Cave dogs and all the dogs in Addis Ababa who need help, please go to the website of the Amsale Gessesse Foundation:
http://www.amsalefoundation.org/.
To read the previous articles about Ethiopia on the Best Friends Network, please go to:
http://network.bestfriends.org/international/news/19258.htmlhttp://network.bestfriends.org/international/news/18608.htmlhttp://www.network.bestfriends.org/unitedkingdom/news/18071.htmlTop photo: HAPS / Toto, as he was first found
Photos of the Gido Cave dogs: Sharon Babbitt