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Make Your Own!
Vimaan Suan - Garden Paradise
Started by: Kelvin Wee
Vimaan Suan - Garden Paradise
I moved to Laos four years ago and immediately noticed the number of dogs and cats roaming the streets at all hours of the day and night. While I soon realized that many of these belonged to loving residents, most were actually homeless. Some of these homeless dogs or cats are fortunate to find refuge at one of the many local temples and are generously fed and cared for by Buddhist monks.
Unfortunately, not all are that lucky. Older and weaker ones often aren’t able to compete with younger ones that are stronger and end up succumbing to hunger or disease. The increase in traffic in Vientiane has also resulted in a dramatic increase in dogs and cats limping around after accidents, and countless dead animals - especially kittens - on the road almost every day.
As if those dangers are not enough, Laos is located next to Vietnam and South of China. Dogs and cats (yes, cats are also victims of the meat trade) here are kidnapped or bought and end up meeting painful, cruel deaths in cooking pots. Those that are rescued are often already traumatized or disabled.
As there are no shelters or sanctuaries for domestic animals, I converted the ground level of my house (I live in a house that is on stilts) by screening it in to create a safe-space for about 10-12 cats. I nicknamed my place Vimaan Miao (Cat Haven in Lao language) and wanted to make it a forever home for senior and disabled cats.
I began by taking in a pair of senior cats three years ago. Soon, others joined the group. This year, we were brought almost a dozen tiny kittens who had lost their mothers to traffic accidents and bottle-fed them every two hours, 24 hours a day. We have rehomed some and are still looking for homes for the others. In addition to cats, I have also adopted some cat-friendly dogs.
What is Vimaan Suan? (Garden Paradise Sanctuary)
What is Vimaan Suan? In Lao language, Vimaan means “paradise” and Suan means “garden.” Garden Paradise Sanctuary will be a no-kill, cage-free sanctuary for dogs and cat - with a focus on providing a forever home for senior dogs and cats and those with special-needs. While it is my wish that we will alway do our best to never turn away a dog or cat in need, I also realize that it is impossible to take in each and every stray animal.
The property I have paid a deposit on for Vimaan Suan is about 40 minutes from town in a semi-rural farming area. The total size is 5800 square meters (a little under 1.5 acres) — spacious enough to create a two separate cage-free environments for cats and dogs. Dog runs will include small houses that will be furnished with sofas and bedding to encourage the dogs to feel more like being in a home than in a shelter. The section for cats will include cat-proof fencing attached to the walls to keep the cats in, and two screened in enclosures - one for disabled cats, the other for senior cats. Other cats will be allowed to roam freely in the cat-safe area.
While it may be costly, it is critical that a safety wall is constructed around the entire property. The 2.5 meter (over 8 feet) wall will be topped with barbed wire to keep out intruders and other unscrupulous people who kidnap both dogs and cats to sell to the meat traders or export them to neighbouring Vietnam or China to be tortured and butchered.
It is also my long-term goal to be as green and self-sustaining as possible. I hope to implement solar power throughout the sanctuary as budgets allow - one step at a time - and experiment with rainwater collection. There will be a small organic vegetable garden to provide some of the fresh-greens needed at the sanctuary and fruit trees will be selectively planted to help supply the sanctuary teams with fresh fruits on demand. In addition, every section will have its own dedicated animal waste septic tank to avoid sending such waste to the landfills or trash incinerators. We will also begin using recycled pulp-based cat litter along with biodegradable pulp-based cat litter boxes rather than usual plastic ones.
While our primary mission and main priority will always be to provide a safe and loving environment for the animals to live out their lives, we also have some secondary missions that will be implemented in phases. They include:
• Capacity Building with Lao youth
• Responsible Adoption/Fostering and Sponsorship Program
• Recycling Program to recycle plastics into pipes to create dog/cat wheelchairs
• Community Education/Action
For more information, check out our Facebook Page (http://www.facebook.com/vimaansuan/ or Website (http://www.vimaansuan.com)
Wishlist
14 Supporters
- Paul Pereira6 years ago Love what you're doing Kelvin Best wishes xo
- Mindi Dryer7 years ago Thank you for helping the animals. You are doing great work!
- Anonymous7 years ago
- Ryoko Iwatake7 years ago Best wishes.
- Anthony and Carmen Rosa7 years ago In memory of our Kato Ishis Man. Best wishes on making this dream come true. Hope one day I can visit and see it for myself.
- Chew Chai Owi7 years ago Best wishes.
- Jenny Ng7 years ago Best wishes.
- Anonymous7 years ago
- Latonya7 years ago An awesome project. I cannot wait to follow its progress. All the best Kelvin
- Alvin Koh7 years ago Best wishes.
- Show 4 more supporters
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