It's also extremely difficult to facilitate and manage sterilizing the hundreds of homeless dogs, here -- who is going to capture them? And who is going to take care of them after their surgery or pay for the surgery? Secondly, while many people do keep their dogs contained in their homes and yards, it's not uncommon for people to let their dogs wander freely. They open the doors; the dogs go do their exploring and play with their friends; and they come back when they are ready. This is especially common in the campo, or rural areas. Even dogs with homes will roam freely. While they enjoy their freedom in this way, it does make population control difficult.
Initially, I thought that street dogs were just an accepted part of life here in Ecuador. But when I moved to Cuenca, I realized that there are dedicated groups working tirelessly to help out these sweet pups. At the park one day, I ran into a volunteer group doing a dog adoption event, and I signed up to work with them. I learned how they help rescue dogs from all over. Dogs in rural areas are especially needy, because there are often fewer food sources, and the culture surrounding dogs can be less kind there, as a result. Kind-hearted people who find dogs in need -- starving, injured, completely abandoned or puppies -- contact the organization I work with (or one of the others), and we help find these pooches care.
This care relies heavily on donations from the public since often the dogs we help are in poor shape and need a lot of rehabilitaton and even surgery.
I help out during dog adoption events, helping interested families meet the dogs and talking them through the adoption requirements.
