TACN Shelter
Improvement Project

Since the beginning of 2014, the shelter in Beijing which TACN supports, has welcomed many more newly rescued animals and has reached its current kennel capacity. Although there is more space that could be made use of, the shelter urgently need to improve the extra space and build more kennels to facilitate the growing number of animals rescued. Since establishment in 2009, the shelter hasn’t had any major improvement done, and many kennel components are in desperate need of repair and replacement.

The shelter management also plan to host more educational programmes at the shelter, where visitors, especially young people can have the experience of interacting with animals and learn more about them. There are many senior and disabled animals at the shelter and this would set a great example for educating people about caring for animals who are in need of some extra gentle care.

We rely soley on donations for:
Building materials and labour costs, animal care and veterinary equipments and kennel components

• Add solar power panels

• Replace kennel components and repaint the walls

• Build more kennels to facilitate more rescues

• Improve the kennel interior for elderly and disabled animals

• Create a separate veterinary examination room

• Purchase basic equipment to facilitate on-site veterinary services

• Renovate kitchen extend counter space to improve sufficiency

• Renovate hygiene area

• Add a grooming corner within the kennels area for easy access

• Build drainage for cleaning and disinfection

• Clear the floor and lay lawn over the top

• Improve the outside walls of the kennels

• Improve the floor and drainage in the courtyard

• Extend admin area/room to facilitate future educational programmes and projects

• Replace fences between courtyard and dogs’ kennels

• Extend the outside space to reach sunlight

• Replace the rain roof

• Add an extra layer of floor and steps to increase space

• Repair the floor surface for easy cleaning and disinfection

• Installed air conditioning for the kennels

• Replace fences to improve security

• Build separate exercise areas and walking paths

• Plant trees and various easy to maintain vegetations by the edge

• Create extra exercising spaces in the courtyard to facilitate walking programmes for volunteers, training, visitors and other services

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As part of the shelter development plan, we will host educational programs at the shelter. Through these educational programmes, visitors and volunteers, especially young people, can have the experience of interacting with animals and learn more about animal protection and welfare. Many of the in-house animals are seniors and disabled. Many animals are also long-term residents at the shelter due to the very low adoption rate. The low adoption rate is largely due to the low public opinion of shelter animals. The common misunderstanding of shelter animals is that they are cheap, dirty and damaged.

The current underdeveloped state of animal shelters in China has further reinforced such opinions. Through our shelter development and educational programmes, we will be able to educate the public and change how people value shelter animals. We will help more people to see that shelter animals are not only beautiful and loveable but also potentially the most loyal and precious family members. We will guide people to realise that they can save lives by adopting shelter animals. We, as animal rights advocates and rescuers, must first be able to show the world how these animals should be valued by providing the care that they deserved. Only in this way, will we then be able to change how shelter animals are seen by the public at large.

As the inforgraphic demonstrates, animal shelters in China are in a dilemma where most of their rescued animals are not truly saved once they arrive at the shelter. In China, most of these rescued animals never find their way to a loving family once they arrive at the shelter. With an endlessly increasing number of animals in a given shelter, these animals are left with a very poor quality of life. While they may not be killed in the outside world, they are nevertheless not living a happy and pain-free life either.

One of the shelter’s missions is to change this situation for shelter animals in China. Not only do we make sure that all basic needs are provided to every single animal that is under the roof of our shelter in Beijing, we also make sure that they receive a good quality and enriched life that we believe all animals deserve. We believe that only when the quality of lives of shelter animals is enhanced can they be truly saved from misery and offered a second chance at a happy life.

The shelter we support in Beijing is among a minority of animal shelters in China that has set an animal resident quantity restriction and shelter standard protocols to ensure quality lives for all of its animal residents. Our goal is not only enabling the shelter to provide the best possible care for all of its residents, but also to help many other shelters in China to also achieve the same goals. Our development plan for the shelter in Beijing is being developed with the education and training of other Chinese animal shelters in mind. We hope our future success will completely alter the perception and realities of Chinese animal shelters and ultimately bring true happiness and hope to all the shelter animals.

We need your help to make this happen.

As a grassroots non-for-profit rescue shelter, the shelter we support in Beijing is run by a few devoted and dedicated individuals, including the shelter manager Xiaoli and one full time staff member. With no grants or support from the government, the shelter depend solely on donations from loving and caring supporters to provide for daily operations and future development of the shelter.

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• Every dollar raised through your donations will be fully and publicly accounted for on the TACN Website and TACN Facebook page
• We will periodically post a detailed report of our progress on the shelter development project, so that you can see how your gifts are helping to make China a kinder, more humane place for all animals.

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