Rags to Wags

01/03/2024

12/02/2024

A sterilization campaign was to be held in Vedado, Havana last week with the proceeds from the last auction. The weather didn't cooperate so only these 12 cats were sterilized as they were already trapped. Sometimes it's hard to get photos on the ground, but wanted to share these since we got lucky that there was someone taking pictures! More sterilizations (and hopefully more pictures) to come! Thank you all for your support!

17/11/2023

Thanks to everyone who participated in the auction! We raised a whopping $1,559! Approximately $280 will go towards sterilization (stay tuned for updates), $370 will go to helping the street animals of Cuba through CeDA, and the remainder will go towards Chili's (Aquiles) dental. Chili had his dental yesterday and the total was $2000, so the proceeds from this auction helped pay for half of this. Thank you!!!

A picture of Chili recovering after his dental surgery:

16/11/2023

Good morning! All items for prearranged for pick up in Kanata are now there. Please message me if I didn't reach out to you with the address and contact information. All other items are in Westboro for pick up at your convenience.

If you haven't done so already, please send your payment to [email protected] and message us to arrange a pick up.

Thank you!

13/11/2023

*AUCTION WINNERS LISTED IN COMMENTS*

Payments must be made within 48 hours. Please send e-transfer to: [email protected]
We are set up for autodeposit, but if you need a password, please use: auction

***ONCE PAID, PLEASE SEND US A PM (PRIVATE MESSAGE) WITH YOUR PREFERRED PICKUP LOCATION***
1. Westboro
2. Kanata
Address will be communicated through PM, as well as any necessary instructions.
Please let us know if you are outside of Ottawa and we need to set up shipping or another arrangement.

*If I got anything wrong, let me know and I will make it right.

13/11/2023

THE AUCTION IS NOW CLOSED! Thank you to everyone who donated, shared and bid! Another update will be sent shortly with results and instructions.

04/11/2023

04/11/2023

BID: Saturday, November 4 - Sunday, November 12 8:00 PM EST
To place a bid, comment on the picture (at least the minimum bid, in minimum increments of $1 unless otherwise stated).

PICK UP:
Westboro or Kanata (Ottawa)
November 15-30

Payments and donations can be sent by etransfer to:
[email protected]

22/10/2023

Hello friends,

We wanted to share some advice about what you can do to help stray animals you may come across at your Hotels during your vacation.
We know every single one of you have huge hearts for the little ones and you want to do what is best for them - so it is important to know what is “helping” and what is “hurting”

Hurting:
-Feeding strays close to restaurants or rooms. Guests while you’re there and even after you leave may not like animals, the animal returns to where you feed them, which causes these guests to complain. This, in turn puts Hotel Management in a difficult position needing to address the complaints in order to protect Hotel reputation. This isn't a happy ending for the strays.
-Bringing strays into your rooms. This is a tough one, we KNOW you want to give them a safe place to sleep - however, when you leave, that animal will return to your room and the next guest may complain, hotel management also does not like animals in rooms as they most likely have fleas which will then be in the room you have vacated when your vacation is over.
-Finding a litter of young puppies or kittens and immediately removing them from the area you found them. Their mama may just be gone looking for food and water and will return soon, animals this young have a very difficult time surviving without their mothers, even if they are with a person who is experienced in caring for them.

Helping:
-Always, always feed animals away from rooms, restaurants and highly populated areas. In hotels with cat cafes only feed the cats at the cafes.
-Do not bring animals into your rooms. If you find an animal that needs medical attention or one that you want to adopt get in touch with an animal welfare organization. If there is one in your area that can help they will be able to give you specific instructions about how to keep the animal safe until someone can come.
-When you find a young litter of puppies or kittens watch and wait at least 1-2 hours before you decide they are on their own. If their mother does not return contact an animal welfare organization and wait for instructions before moving them.
-Research animal welfare organizations before you leave so you know who to contact if help is needed.
-Donate/Volunteer. Animal welfare organizations in Cuba are always looking for donations of supplies to help the animals and always looking for volunteers to help get the supplies to us, reach out before you leave and find out what you can do to help.

All of us here at APAC have personal experiences with helping strays at hotels and have even made some mistakes ourselves. Just like you, our hearts kick in full throttle. But through time and experience we have learned some of these actions are actually detrimental to the safety of the animal we are trying to help, which is why we want to share our knowledge with you.

Thank you for taking the time to review these tips and for all you do for the animals in Cuba.

All People for Animals in Cuba

19/10/2023

🧡ADOPCIÓN🧡
Bahía, Habana del este

Esta tierna cachorrita 🥰 está en busca de una familia que le brinde amor 🫶🏠. Fue rescatada ⛑️ de la calle hace unos días, pero su rescatista no se la puede quedar. Es una cachorra que ha sufrido de maltrato 😪 tiene mucho miedo a los ruidos fuertes y si levantas la mano se o***a del miedo😢 Poco a poco va entrando en confianza, y dejará ese miedo atrás.😄
Garantizamos su esterilización de forma obligatoria y gratuita una vez esté lista para ello ✅

Si quieres adoptarla, contacta al número de la imagen solo por WhatsApp, o toca el siguiente enlace para ir directo al chat ⬇️

https://wa.me/message/YTDEBALACY2FG1

‼️COMPARTAN‼️

❤️Según el Ministerio de Salud🩺, adoptar responsablemente una 🐾mascota🐾 no solo contribuye con el bienestar físico🐕‍🦺, emocional🐱 y mental🐶 del animal, sino también de quien decide adoptarlo👩🏽‍🦱🧔. Ya sea que adoptes un cachorro o adulto, un gato, un perro u otra mascota😍, esté sano o necesite rehabilitación por algo🩹, será un regalo🎁 salvar esa vida de la calle🛣️, solo debe ser consciente🤔 de si puede cuidar bien ese gran regalo🎁
Ten ❤️ para adoptar y no 💰 para comprar.

10/10/2023

Rags to Wags will be hosting an online auction starting November 4th. It will be an album on our page. All proceeds will be going to help Cuban street dogs. Primarily: 1) help cover vet expenses for Chili (aka Aquiles) who has been going through heartworm treatment and will need a full dental (in Canada) 2) sterilizations (in Cuba) 3) CEDA (https://www.facebook.com/CeDACuba). Items will be local pick up (Ottawa, ON) or ship at buyer's expense.
Please spread the word!!!

11/07/2023

Another 21 stray cats trapped, sterilized and will be released back to their respective colonies. Thanks again to Lisy and team for making this happen on the ground and The Rig Boxing for sponsoring with the proceeds of the cash class!

09/07/2023

Did you know that an estimated 25% of dogs in shelters are purebred? These purebred pups are frequently rescued from puppy mills or surrendered by families that purchased the pet. While we cannot emphasize enough the awesomeness of a mixed breed dog, if you or someone you know if set on a specific breed, please, please look at your local shelter! These pups - like every other pet in the shelter - didn't sign up to be there and they all deserve a second chance!

wingsofrescue.org

07/07/2023

Lucy is looking so good! 😍 She will soon be looking for a good home. So happy for this girl. She's come so far!

06/07/2023

Yay!!!

26/06/2023

Look who's up for adoption! Esperancito is up for adoption in Havana. Although adoption through Rags to Wags is not available due to the commercial import ban, we can aid personal adoptions in Canada (advice, contact, procedures etc). Adopters would be responsible for transport (Air Canada only).

😍Adoptado😍

🧡ADOPCIÓN🧡
Centro Habana, La Habana

¿Se acuerdan de mí? Quizás no, he cambiado mucho ❤️‍🩹, para bien. Antes solía ser uno de los tantos perros callejeros que pasan desapercibidos antes tantos ojos 👀 , vagaba por las calles lleno de sarna 😢y con una desnutrición 😩grave, era solo huesos 🦴 Pero un buen día mi vida dio un giro de 360º 🧭, unas muchachas de PASOS 🐾, me recogieron y me empezaron a atender 💉. Y es así como hoy soy este perro tan hermoso 😍, y tengo un nombre: Esperancito💖 Ya estoy desparasitado 💊 interna y externamente, estoy totalmente saludable. Soy muy agradecido, me encanta recibir y dar cariño 🥰 , y me encanta jugar 🎾. Soy de tamaño pequeño, y joven. ¿Me quieres adoptar? Te prometo a cambio mucho amor y alegria ❤️

Si quieres adoptarme💚 y formar parte de mi anhelado final feliz, contacta al número de la imagen por WhatsApp.

‼️COMPARTAN‼️

❤️Según el Ministerio de Salud🩺, adoptar responsablemente una 🐾mascota🐾 no solo contribuye con el bienestar físico🐕‍🦺, emocional🐱 y mental🐶 del animal, sino también de quien decide adoptarlo👩🏽‍🦱🧔. Ya sea que adoptes un cachorro o adulto, un gato, un perro u otra mascota😍, esté sano o necesite rehabilitación por algo🩹, será un regalo🎁 salvar esa vida de la calle🛣️, solo debe ser consciente🤔 de si puede cuidar bien ese gran regalo🎁
Ten ❤️ para adoptar y no 💰 para comprar.

24/06/2023

25 stray cats were sterilized in Havana last Monday. Thanks to Lisy, Ycel, Picallo and Arelys (the vets) and everyone else on the ground for all of your hard work. Also big thanks to The Rig Boxing for your donation to make this possible.
Sterilization leads to a healthier life for the cats, prevents fighting and stops the suffering of future generations.
Another campaign is scheduled in 2 weeks.

20/06/2023

A little photo update on Esperancito, also doing much better. Quite a friendly little fella too!

20/05/2023

Wow! Amazing what a little love and tlc can do in such a short period of time. LUCY!!!

19/05/2023

One more pup we are trying to help is Esperancito. He was posted through the group Protección Animal SOS - PASOS a few times in the past weeks in attempts to find him a temporary. Although no foster has been found yet, they tried to contain him with a cat colony that they take care of, worried that he may run away as he is fearful. As expected, a day after he was captured, he ran away. As my friend Lisy (the same friend that helped me with Lucy) was attending to her B&B (maderobnb.com), she saw the dog walk past! Her and another couple were able to capture him and he is back in PASOS' care.

Finding a foster is more difficult than finding food these days as more people leave Cuba and, therefore, more pets end up on the street. Animal protectors are full as adoptions, especially of older dogs (1+ years) are near impossible. So, like shelters here, there is no more room. And, as previously mentioned, food for people and animals is very difficult to get as well :(

It's an impossible situation. All that we can do from here is donate money, which goes a long way in Cuba, but these cases are not easy.

Due to the commercial import ban, Rags to Wags isn't able to bring dogs to Canada anymore. We are able to assist in personal adoptions, so if you are interested in adopting a dog in Cuba, (specifically in Havana since this is where we have our networks), we can help with the process.

And of course, we accept donations that go straight to the care of the animals. Please etransfer donations to: [email protected] and in the message you can identify if there's a specific animal you'd like to help. And $10 usd ($13.50) sterilizes one animal, which prevents future suffering. No donation is too small to make a difference.

Thank you for your support!

18/05/2023

Meet LUCY!
Lucy has been in care for a week now. Her foster reports that she is doing well. Her appetite is good and her skin is improving (you can see the progression in the pictures). She has had several baths with Clorexidine shampoo, as well as coconut-neem-olive oil for her damaged skin. She has been given Omegas and other vitamins to help strengthen her immune system, which is needed to fight off the mites that cause the mange.

Thanks so much to Eliviana and Cheryl for your donations towards the care of Lucy, as these cases are not easy or inexpensive.

I'm so happy to know that she is in good hands being loved and taken care of.

28/04/2023

Our local shelters are running specials every month now, just to try to make space. Within a couple weeks, they're filled again. This is happening all over 😑

11/04/2023

29/03/2023

27/03/2023

This past weekend, Rags to Wags sponsored a 2-day sterilization campaign led by CEDA. This was made pawsible thanks to very generous donations made by Mission Pawsible, an anonymous donor and a few individual donations. Thanks to you, 74 animals (30 dogs and 44 cats) were sterilized and 13 more cats from 2 colonies will be sterilized later this week. Thousands of animals saved from the cruelty of the streets.

Thanks so much to Claudia from CEDA for organizing, Violeta for offering your home, all the volunteers and of course the vets for making this happen on short notice. Also a big thank you to Sandra Zimmerling for collecting supplies and connecting us with the amazing donors.

It really takes a village! Thank you!!!