MAYA – NOT AN ILLUSION,
A TRANSFORMATION
Wherever I travel in the world I find amazing people and amazing projects.
Here is a story by a fellow Canadian volunteer Marilyn, who lives full time in Sri Lanka.
She not only helps the children at the children's home I worked at but also rescues dogs at her own expenses and with the funds others try to organize for her.
It is always exciting to see what individuals can do when they get an idea to help in their own way. No one needs an NGO or organization to make change when they see a need.
Marilyn in a good example of this...just do it..... Sunyata
It is always exciting to see what individuals can do when they get an idea to help in their own way. No one needs an NGO or organization to make change when they see a need.
Marilyn in a good example of this...just do it..... Sunyata
MAYA's Story By Marilyn
Love these before and after shots!
Maya means “illusion” so I thought that was an appropriate name for the little leather pup found on the premises of Suriya Women’s Development Centre in Batticaloa in October, 2016.
She was approximately 2 months old when I first noticed her, scratching her hairless body uncontrollably until she was covered in blood. She was starving, her wounds already infected due to a severe case of mange. Parts of her were bright red as the scorching sun of Batticaloa burnt areas of her body that were most exposed.
Most people avoided this sad little dog as the smell emanating from her spoke to a reality that she was near death.
Dr. Dushyanthan, our trustworthy vet in Koolavedy, immediately gave her a mange and antibiotic injection which lasted 5 days. A week later I took Maya back for a second mange injection to kill off the remaining larvae. Daily lunch parcels were delivered to her consisting of roast chicken and rice – once a day only – as she had to build up her capacity to eat. With her weekly baths of antiseptic shampoo, Maya began to grow a beautiful coat of golden hair. Her energy returned quickly and soon she was running through the Suriya compound and scaling the cement walls to escape onto the street.
Maya is now almost 6 months old and is a delightful young dog.
She recently was spayed, having worn the plastic collar donated by COLORS/Hope for Wildlife for a week to ensure that she did not remove her stitches.
We were hoping she could remain in the Suriya compound but because she went into heat then many male dogs from the street also began entering the premises and searching her out in the office itself! It was time for Maya to find another home. One of the Suriya staff has taken her home to begin her new life in Kallady.
During the Christmas vacation I was cycling through Batticaloa town and came across a young female dog lodged tightly in a drain amongst bottles, glass and garbage. She was panting in the heat of the day but seemingly unable to move. For the first few days I fed her daily and then made the decision to bring her home. She was suffering from starvation but otherwise did not have any external injuries.
For a week I fed her in our garage as it was during the heavy monsoon rain period. I realized that if I had left her in that exposed drain in town that she would very likely have drowned the very evening I brought her home.
Dr. Dushyanthan again came home to assess her and I was informed she had been hit some time ago by a vehicle, had internal injuries and was paralyzed from the waist down. She hadn’t been able to find food or move about which had caused wasting in her lower half of the body. Sadly, we had to make the difficult decision to put her down. She was buried in our backyard. Being a Buddhist country, it is in fact illegal to euthanize any animal. However, our vet claims that he has taken a veterinary oath to never allow an animal to suffer so he carries out euthanization as a humane method of caring for an animal where there are little alternatives.
THANK YOU PROJECT COLORS
The total cost of caring for these two dogs was Rs. 5,000 plus food (or CDN $50.00). I am deeply indebted to COLORS and all of you in Canada and abroad who generously supported this initiative of Rescue Animals. We must continue to lobby the government in Sri Lanka for more vaccination, spaying and neutering programs for street animals and educate civil society on their own responsibility to care for the well-being of all creatures.
Thank you for helping me, help these, helpless animals. It is a rewarding day to see Maya transformed from a hairless pup on death’s door to a vibrant, happy and energetic young dog who now is healthy and has a home.
You have done that with your support!
By Marilyn (the Dog whisper)
