What we do
We rescue street dogs that are sick, injured or too small to survive on their own. We heal and sustain them and ultimately find them forever homes.
Why?
Because outside of the Western world, dogs are not welcomed as family members and often deemed undesirable once they’re no longer puppies. We believe a life is a life and advocate for those who cannot help themselves.
How we do it
We build and leverage our global community to help those in need by raising awareness, donations, and finding adopters for the dogs in our care.
(Jon and Claire Harris)
Originally from England, we came to Thailand on holiday and during our time here, we rescued our first dog after seeing it all alone, injured and afraid. On that day, we found our calling and our lives were changed forever. Rescuing dogs started in 2011, with our own funds, but our PAWS charity didn’t start until 2018, and our website wasn’t launched until 2021 (during the Covid-19 pandemic).
We have gained a great amount of support through the local community and friends, which has kept our charity operating. We do not believe that animals should be killed because they are homeless, sick or injured and we will never change this view. Our dream is to educate people on de-sexing their animals, and to fight the mindset that street dogs are vermin. Every life is precious.
We work and live at our sanctuary, providing care and love for our dogs, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. There are so many street dogs in Thailand. You never know what the next day may bring.
Why are there so many stray dogs in Thailand?
As is the case in most of Southeast Asia, the stray dog problem in Thailand comes down to two coinciding factors: pet owners failing to sterilize their animals and dogs being abandoned once they no longer serve a purpose or can be taken care of.
Many dogs are deemed undesirable once they’re no longer puppies. Puppies are effortlessly cute and amuse children and guests. But older dogs prove less fun to play with, and once dogs reach adulthood, they can develop aggressive traits. Dogs are also costly to take care of. With the widespread poverty in Thailand, having an extra mouth to feed can strain a family’s resources. If acquiring a dog has not been adequately thought through, Thai families have to prioritize their livelihood over their animals’.
With limited restrictions and resources regarding adoption and rehoming in Thailand, thousands of dogs are cruelly abandoned on the streets every year, regardless of their age and nature. Many dogs are dumped at Buddhist temples assuming that monks will feed and care for them, but this is often far from the truth. The uncontrollable stray population affects everyone, and unwanted pets are seen as an annoyance and a strain to most resident monks.
Un-neutered stray dogs will freely mate on the streets, birthing puppies on roadsides, sometimes born with diseases, who remain unwanted and homeless. Those who survive can prove most hostile without ever experiencing human love, so the vicious cycle never ends.
Dog bites account for as much as 95 percent of all human rabies-related deaths in Thailand. Dogs can also spread rabies to other species like cows and cats, with which the Thai population interacts regularly. Rabies cases have more than doubled in Thailand in the last three years, and that’s largely down to the stray dog population. Yet, many stray dogs remain un-vaccinated and un-managed.
