What we did in September 2023

What we did in September 2023

Animal rights education is fun and colorful

For the past year, ROLDA has been working on an educative project of massive importance, very close to our hearts, too: ROLDA coloring book addressed to future pet owners. The idea behind it was to harness our internal resources (a talented designer, a copywriter, and a big team of people with great ideas) and create interesting material to reach kids in particular from rural areas, where people need education to respect animals.

Our previous projects revealed that children are open to learning how to do things right, more empathetic, and more consistent when applying what they have learned. Give a group of children the right advice, and you have made more steps toward changing the world.

And this is what we have done with our coloring books that contain a lot of practical advice, deliver fun and are made so easy to understand. Plus, we believe that spending time on page coloring will help the information seep in. Our funds have allowed us to print 3000 items, and we have distributed them for free in schools in Braila, Tulcea and Suceava counties as well as Bucharest.

We are so proud of this project success!

ROLDA to the rescue of…. The Saved by the Vet Association in Solca

From the beginning, our mission has been to save as many animals as possible. Yet, even though we have managed to build amazing things from scratch (several times), we still want to surpass our physical limitations. Therefore, we decided to reach out to other organizations that share our mission and purpose and extend our wealth of knowledge. And funds.

The Saved by the Vet Association in Solca, managed by Elisa, is one such organization. They have been running their own shelter, offering medical care, and organizing sterilization campaigns since 2021. Currently, they have 250 dogs and around 20 cats in their care. Since they became operational, they have spayed and neutered over 1100 animals. Trying to do the math to see how many unwanted pups were prevented from ending up under the wheels of cars is already making us dizzy.

It is important to note that these struggling organizations get no state support, funds, or help. But their work helps change the lives of hundreds and thousands of animals. This is why we think it vital that we allow and extend the support and trust people have in us. It’s all for the benefit of animals.

Still supporting those stuck in the Ukraine war

As the war in Ukraine continues, it is evident that fewer and fewer organizations are interested in keeping up their support. Well, ROLDA is not one of those organizations. Mainly because we know what it is like to depend on help for survival, we learned to spot the signs of “help fatigue,” most importantly, we know how demoralizing it is to see you are starting to lose your lifeline.

But this will not happen to the shelters in Ukraine that ROLDA has been helping since the beginning. We are talking about the shelters run by the hard-working, warm-hearted people in Irpin, Kharkiv, Kherson, Korosten, Nogayske, Odesa, and Zaporizhezhe.

It is difficult for a state to protect its citizens during war fully. Animals fall further down the priorities list. And it is a shame. But ROLDA will keep up its support, as the fighting cause of these Ukrainian organizations has become our own.

ROLDA shelters are located very close to the border with Ukraine and to a military base where other NATO troops often come to exercise. Often soldiers from US come for a short while to practice.And leave. Some fall in love of dogs they see on streets, roaming around the military area.Some others can’t leave without taking one with them home.Soldiers like Guillermo. Some weeks ago, Guillermo asked for our help to take a dog back to US, to become part of his family.

ROLDA is helping Ukrainian rescuers reduce the number of homeless and unwanted dogs and cats in the most humane way: by sterilize them!
During 2023 we sponsored 6 sterilizations campaigns across Ukraine and one of them was organized by Tetyana in Vilniansk where 36 cats and 6 dogs were fixed.

ROLDA Facebook contest winner!

The public has spoken, and our September Facebook contest winner is the ‘Pisicutele Norocoase’ (Lucky Kitties) organization. The organization that got 63% of the votes currently cares for 105 cats in the Ramnicu Sarat locality in Buzau County. What started as a small rescue center has already increased in size year in and year out, making the shelter more welcoming to an even more significant number of kitties, lucky enough not to have to spend the cold season in the streets and struggle for food.

We are happy to see that people don’t only appreciate cats in their social media videos but that they are willing to help them. Congratulations to the Lucky Kitties association, and best of luck in their renewed efforts to expand the shelter once again.