When I first started AnimalCare in 2009, the plan was to raise enough funds to subsidise the neutering of 10 animals per year. We exceeded our target that year, subsidising 660 cases, and have since gone on quite an adventure, from providing neutering funds to medical treatment, even to doing some pound rescues in the initial year. We have also provided petfood for 4 years. From supporting the caregivers in the Klang Valley, we are now supporting animal caregivers all over Malaysia.
But there is a time for everything and now, it’s really time to go back to basics.
We had a discussion with PetFinder.my today and since they and we are both providing subsidies for medical treatment but only we are providing for neutering and vaccinations, we have decided that PetFinder.my will handle the medical treatment claims while we handle the neutering and vaccination claims.
This is for more efficient channeling of funds and streamlining each organisation’s efforts at fundraising. Hence, if you like to support the medical treatment of street animals, you may like to donate through PetFinder.my when their cases are profiled. If you like to support neutering and vaccinations (back-to-basics needs of every street animal), you may donate through us. We will maintain our Medical Fund, but only to provide subsidies for neutering and vaccinations as per policy.
We have provided for neutering, vaccinations, medical treatment and petfood for more than 4 years now, and it’s time to go back to basics….and take a rest too! We have been processing more than 100 cases per month for a long time now. It’s VERY hard work and definitely very challenging to continuously raise funds to help so many cases. We hope those who have benefited understand that we too need a rest.
As always, there will be complaints from disgruntled applicants or those who do not qualify. We have reasons for our policies but we understand that our reasons cannot please everyone. So to all those who are unhappy with our subsidies and policies, we extend our apologies to them and hope that they will find other organisations that can provide what they need to their satisfaction. We have truly done our best to provide within our means.
To those who have worked together with us in the spirit of goodwill and understanding, we thank you most gratefully for giving us the opportunity to help your animals. We hope you can get help from other sources for your medical claims now and you can always come to us for your neutering and vaccination claims. Our committee agreed that no grace period was necessary for this (unlike the food subsidy where we gave a 3-month grace period) because for medical claims, there are other organisations that provide subsidies too. So, you won’t be left in the lurch. PetFinder.my has been offering medical subsidies for quite sometime now; we have already discussed this with them (actually we were waiting for their answer before making this announcement) and they are happy with the arrangement whereby they will do the medical claims and we do the neutering and vaccination claims. With this arrangement, we do away with the hassle of having to cross-check because there is no duplication anymore.
To all rescuers, especially the bigtimers, it may be good to think of starting your own society and fundraise for your causes. Animal caregiving and rescue requires funds, and it may not be wise to solely depend on charitable organisations to fund one’s work on the long term.
We have also revamped our application forms to reflect the above change and also to provide a greater degree of respect for personal data. Please use our new forms with immediate effect.
Our Medical Fund
Effective immediately, our Medical Fund will only provide subsidies for the following:
(a) Neutering
(b) Two vaccinations per animal
For medical treatment claims, you may apply to PetFinder.my or other organisations that provide such subsidies.
We will, however, still honour the medical claims if the application forms have already been posted to us (for cases in which we had already been informed by email).
Application Forms
Effective immediately, please use the following forms for your applications:
AnimalCare Neutering Subsidy
AnimalCare Vaccination Subsidy
We thank you for your kind understanding and let’s work together for a great year!
Comments
11 responses to “Medical Fund to provide neutering and vaccination subsidies only (closure of funds for medical treatment)”
I’m sure a great deal of discussion and reflection went into this decision. Dr. Chan, those of us who have been reading your blog since 2009 have marvelled at the amount of work you do for Myanimalcare — everything from your stupendous fund-raising efforts to processing all the claims and disbursing the funds. I can’t imagine how many hours you spend each day solely on the operation of this charity.
A couple of weeks ago, you posted that the Berjaya Cares funds are about to run out, and my heart clutched. What a lovely windfall that was, and it helped so many animals! But as you said, with the end of that money, you are back to raising all funds by selling products (including hand-stitched blankets, which require time to make) and requesting donations.
Ultimately, the decision to focus solely on vaccinations and spay/neuter seems sane. You, as one person doing the fund-raising, cannot sustain this level of giving. The primary source of the animals’ suffering is their numbers. If we reduce the number of stray animals, we diminish the suffering. Spay/neuter gets at the root of the problem. It’s prevention, rather than cure.
None of us wants to see an animal suffering, but unless we turn a blind eye, we all do. We have to make painful choices: do we help? CAN we help? How much can we help, and in what ways? Unless the Malaysian government decides to set up fully subsidised veterinary clinics, we all face these questions, and unless we are independently wealthy, we must find answers that we can live with and ways to fund the help that we give.
As I look up at the statistics box on the blog page, the animals you’ve helped with medical treatment stands at 1778. As an NGO with one person doing the fund-raising, that is a remarkable number! I’m very grateful that you’re carrying on with the spay/neuter/vaccination assistance rather than retiring from the animal welfare scene altogether. As always, many, many thanks! (Sorry for my long-windedness… :-))
As with all things in life…Nothing is permanent. Change needs to be embraced and good will come out of it. In this case…Your sanity and your health. I support this decision wholly Dr. Chan. *HUGS*
I cannot thank you enough for initiating and continuing this arduous journey. Thank you.
Thank you Dr Chan for the generous subsidy provided to my cases which I thank you from the bottom of my heart.
I appreciate all the effort and time you have put into running this noble cause. This new change will bring goodness to everyone.
Regards,
Dr Chan,
I have been following your blog for several years and I am amazed how you have single-handedly helped so many stray animals.
It is not easy to find someone as dedicated as you – to put in so many hours of hard work and at the same time having to deal with some ungrateful rescuers.
My hats to you Dr Chan.
Warmest regards,
Jennifer
Thanks Dr. Chan for all that you have done. The animals have definitely benefitted from your blog. God bless!
Thank you very much for everyone’s kind words. We’re still helping with neutering and vaccination claims, so we hope to see a surge in the neutering claims (which would mean more people rescuing street animals and helping at the root of the “problem” – breeding). And vaccination provides the basic protection against street diseases, so it actually feels good to be able to provide this basic need to all street animals. Now that we concentrate only on this, we can go full swing in providing subsidies for this purpose. It’s good to “specialise”!
I totally agree with AnimalCare’s decision to subsidies only neuterings and vaccinations. By doing this, AC is addressing the root of the problem heads on of how stray animals came about in the first place -“that they are not neutered, no population control thus over breeding later become strays when they are abandoned or thrown out.”
Having experiences of being a rescuer and then sponsoring rescuers/caregivers I can fully understand why AC have to come to this decision. Even the ones that we sponsored at a certain point in time – we have to cut the cord – rescuers have to learn to become independent as the funds are limited. Education in economics for me which ‘opportunity cost’ is truly a real life deal i.e. in which a choice have to be made or best multiple choices have to be made due to limited resources.’ I make them all the time. In order to survive I have to make changes which sometimes is difficult or unpopular but necessary. It is true for a sponsor and even for a rescuer – just do what one can handle – just be good enough not perfect – no apologies, no excuses, no explanation is needed.
Hopefully one day the power that be will consider to build a fully subsidised veterinary clinics/hospitals for stray animals/all animals so all medical needs of animal can be taken cared of and without rescuers/owners having to make difficult choices.
Dr. Chan has single-handed handled all the claims, issues, problems in her course of helping animals, rescuers/caregivers all this while.I’m sure the choices she made has resulted for her to sacrifice her health, peace, time and quality time with loved ones and that is a mighty sacrifice!
Best wishes and the all best for the future.
I would like to express many thanks to Myanimalcare and Dr Chan personally for helping me with many of my medical cases.
I will continue to do what i’m doing now, and hopefully all our efforts, will collectively open other people’s minds to be more passionate and caring towards animals
Yes, the root cause is definitely breeding, and this is exactly what we need to campaign for. TNRM
Happy New Year and May God bless all of you
thanks
mas
My mum and I would like to thank Dr Chan and AnimalCare for all their help and support they have provided thus far. Without them, we doubt many strays are happily walking and playing around at this very moment so on behalf of the strays as well, thank you.
Thanks Dr Chan and myanimalcare for all the neutering subsidy. It’s really helped me a lots with the neutering subsidy. Thank you!