Omagh woman saving Serbian strays

A LOCAL animal welfare activist who first travelled to Serbia 12 years ago will return to the region next month, as her mission to help the country’s thousands of homeless dogs continues.

Omagh woman, Lynda Hill, already has three suitcases prepared, packed full of blankets, collars, coats, toys and, even, doggy-paddling pools.

However, in addition to all the canine comforts already contained in her luggage, Lynda is appealing for local people to help her stock another with much-needed veterinarian medicine.

“As the two co-founders of Omagh’s Animal Support Trust, myself and Alison Lennon will be heading to Serbia on April 11.

“We want to bring items to make life more comfortable and pleasant for the dogs we work with, most of which are in a pound in a town called Ub.”

With so many sick and infirm dogs either stray on Serbian streets or being cared for in pounds, Lynda said medicine and vitamins can be the difference between life and death for these unfortunate animals.

“Between the impact of the conflict and the pervasive poverty, Serbia’s problem with stray dogs is about as bad as anywhere in the world. There are tens of thousands of them scattered throughout the country, many living very miserable lives.

“Through our work with the pound in Ub, we have improved the lives of thousands of dogs over the years, providing them with proper food, shelter and medical attention, and helping many that were sick or injured back to health.”

However, Lynda, who is the founder of Grovehill Animal Care, as well as the recently-closed Canine Care Dog Grooming, realises that relief work alone is not going to get to tackle the source of Serbia’s stray dog epidemic.

“Making their lives better is one thing, but getting to the root of the problem is another, which is why we also invest in neutering programmes.”

Working with vets and other actors on the ground, Lynda and Alison have facilitated the fixing of around 1,500 Serbian dogs.

“Most stray dogs are born into a world of suffering, so we want to make sure fewer have to go through that difficult, unnecessary life.

“For every dog that is neutered, that is a potential litter of pups saved from a life of pain.”

If you would like to help Lynda fill another suitcase with flea and tic treatments, multi-vitamins and worming tablets, you can do so by calling into Animal Support Trust, located at Unit A12 of Omagh Enterprise Centre, or, alternatively, you can donate via Paypal, ‘info@animalsupporttrust.com’.

Lynda signed off, “Our calculations suggest that it will cost about £1,000 to place an order large enough to fill a suitcase, and we already have £400.

“Hopefully, people will see this and be able to make up the rest so we can get some life-saving supplies to these poor, innocent dogs.”