Social Skills is a monthly column featuring community groups where you can meet new people through exercise or other enjoyable activities.
Furry friends from Foshan to Fangcun are finding shelter and comfort in the tender care of Animal Action Guangzhou (AAGZ).
The dedicated group of animal lovers, which recently celebrated their six-month anniversary, underwent something of a baptism-by-fire over the summer when the group’s members staged a dramatic rescue of hundreds of pooches from a truck bound for the slaughterhouses of Yulin’s controversial annual Dog Meat Festival.
What began as an ad hoc effort to tend to the rescued animals’ immediate needs has since blossomed into a permanent home for pooches in distress, and in turn a tight-knit community for the people who love and care for them.
The group of roughly a dozen core members, with an infusion of help from a rotating stable of sporadic volunteers, has made impressive strides in the short months since its founding. With charitable donations and proceeds from frequent fundraising events, these friends of the four-legged have managed to rent a large house with two full floors dedicated to meeting the rescued animals’ needs.
Many of the dogs from the initial meat truck rescue have since been rehabilitated and adopted, while new animals continue to cycle in all the time.
AAGZ offers many opportunities for compassionate Cantoners to get their hands dirty. Whether it’s coming by to take the dogs on a walk or pitching in to help muck out the kennels. Donations, of course, are always welcome, while folks looking for a little companionship are encouraged to foster or even adopt the animals outright.
Meanwhile, weekly events include fun social gatherings for people and pets alike to get together and build community, offering chances for newcomers to plug in. “We are all here to help each other,” says group cofounder Cathy O’ Sullivan. “Our main focus is making these animals better and giving them a life unlike the ones they had on the street.”
To get involved, add WeChat ID ‘AnimalActionGZ’
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