Heres a *very* potted history of the group for the benefit of new members. Nicki Mortimer founded it on 17th July 2013, after watching some videos of Irina Nebleas daily grind, caring for between 50 and 70 dogs on industrial waste ground near Constanta harbour. Nicki already had a long, successful and honourable history of fundraising for dog rescue in the Balkan countries. I had no experience whatever but was desperate to help Irina. Asking Nicki to help was the only way I could think of to make a real difference, and oh boy did that ever turn out to be my best move ever! Nicki leaped into action, brought Irina to all her existing supporters attention and started raising funds from day one! Irinas situation was desperate. She had no income, the three jobs she had been doing to pay for the dogs having ended, and was drowning in debt following a catastrophic distemper outbreak in the spring of 2013. She also had the threat of eviction from the shelter land hanging over her. The one thing she had in her favour was a semi-derelict farm in Valcea county which had stood empty and vandalised since her grandparents deaths some 8 years before. This at least gave her somewhere to go if the worst came to the worst, although it was several hundred miles away on the other side of Romania. Her plan was to rehome as many of her dogs as possible - she estimated that she could perhaps get away with taking 25 dogs there; any more would cause too much outrage amongst her new neighbours. As it turned out, there was no time to reduce numbers because in September 2013 the axe fell, and the harbour authorities gave Irina 10 days to vacate their land. This time was spent desperately trying to find safe haven for the 45 or so dogs that Irina felt unable to take to the farm in Valcea county immediately. The very rough plan was that she would take approximately 25 dogs and her several cats to the farm, while her mother stayed in the family apartment at Constanta and cared for the dogs left behind. Irina would prepare the farm to sustain the humans and animals, then she and her mother Margareta would swap places and Irina would return to Constanta to care for the 45 or so dogs left there and resume her rehoming efforts. While this was being planned Nicki went into emergency fundraising and rehoming mode. She found several kind people local to her who were prepared to foster for us, plus a small but very lovely rescue on Merseyside (Rescue Me!) who would take several dogs and foster then rehome them. In just a few days we also raised approximately £2,000 between us to fund all this. The big problem that we simply could not solve was finding safe land to shelter the dogs in Constanta. Irina tried everything and concluded that the only thing she could do was move the dogs kennels (rough-built by her from scrap wood and scavenged materials) to public land and chain the dogs to them. We were all desperate about this, because the reason for the hasty eviction was the uproar of anti-dog feeling in Romania that followed the death of a young boy, allegedly killed by stray dogs. This was a terrible time when harmless dogs were being killed in the streets by the general public, and the thought of Irinas dogs chained and vulnerable where anyone could get to them was unbearable. When it became clear that this was the only option available if any dogs were to be left in Constanta, the core of iron about which Irina is built showed through. In a couple of days she loaded every single animal in her care into two lorries, plus as many kennels and as much dog food and equipment as she could fit in. With just the clothes they stood up in, Irina and Margareta travelled from Constanta to Valcea county. Irinas fears regarding her new neighbours reaction to so many dogs was unfortunately well-founded. Within a few hours of their arrival the police chief and mayor (as well as sundry lesser officials and police officers) had been summoned by horrified villagers, one of whom hysterically insisted that living so close to so many dogs would give her cancer! Thus began Irinas Sheltered Hearts time in Valcea county. Since then Irina has worked tirelessly for her dogs, and we have done our best with the infinitely easier job of raising the money needed to support them all. And if that were not enough, we have also raised something like £15,000 in the 15 months since that momentous move, to pay for the building of a purpose-designed barn shelter. We had hoped that it would be in place for this current winter, but land ownership and planning permission issues have proved too complicated and lengthy, so now we are planning on building in the spring, fingers firmly crossed! Irina and Margareta have had to overcome some devastating setbacks in the last year. Both have suffered broken wrists, which is bad enough for anyone, but ladies with the workload that they have need both hands to stand any chance of getting everything done. It has been so hard for them. Other heartbreaks have included the accidental deaths of several animals, the crippling of one in a traffic accident, outbreaks of parvovirus, and most recently a devastating return of distemper. We lost about 30 of our young dogs to that dread disease, and now have several with irreversible neurological damage who we hope will get no worse and will be able to live happy lives despite the harm they have suffered. Our triumphs have included the rehoming of several more dogs, the provision of running water to the house and yard, and the purchase of a car. The last may sound like a luxury item, but the nearest town is a 45 minute drive away and nobody will deliver so far, so everything has to be collected and if any animal needs emergency vet care then a car is the only thing that will save them. There have been so many events and issues Ive not mentioned - there is never a quiet time at the shelter, but I hope that this has given our newer members a flavour of what Irinas Sheltered Hearts is all about. We are grateful to each and every one of you for being here supporting our efforts and Irinas animals. It gives us hope for the future to know that we have such dedicated animal lovers on our side in this battle for life, health and happiness for some of the most embattled and vulnerable animals in this world of ours. Thank you for everything, and the very, very best of good health and fortune to you in 2015.
Posted on: Mon, 29 Dec 2014 11:51:10 +0000
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