middleeast.bestfriends.org
Egypt: Group SPARE to help the homeless animals of Lebanon
July 25, 2006 : 12:00 AM
Two visitors to Best Friends working to help pets of the half million displaced people in Lebanon.
<em>Photo: Many donkeys are among the animals in Lebanon needing help.</em>
Mona Khalil, Vice-President of SPARE (Society for the Protection of Animal Rights in Egypt) and Kristen Stilt, one of the Board Members of SPARE, have been at Best Friends this week.
“The Lebanese Embassy in Cairo has opened an account in the bank for donations, both monetary donations and donations of food and supplies," explained Mona. “But we can't be sure that these donations will reach the animals, because most of the donations will be for people.”
A further complication is that following the outbreak in Egypt of bird flu a few months ago, no dog or cat food is allowed to enter Egypt. Most dog and cat food contains chicken, so it was banned in order to prevent the spread of bird flu. Now dogs and cats in Egypt are fed meat and fish, along with vegetables or rice. This means that the food that SPARE would be able to send for the animals could also be used for humans, making it all the more likely that all the food that SPARE might donate would go to people, with none left for the animals.
SPARE is looking into other ways of sending food and supplies to the animals in Lebanon, tens of thousands of whom are now left homeless.
The best way in for supplies, thought difficult, they said, is by road from Jordan or Syria.
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