-
Duration
1-24 Weeks -
Accompanied age
12+ -
Minimum age
17+ -
Start dates
1st & 3rd Saturday -
From
$260
-
Duration
1-24 Weeks -
Accompanied age
12+ -
Minimum age
17+ -
Start dates
1st & 3rd Saturday -
From
$260
Sri Lanka street dog rescue
Quicklinks
Do you love dogs as much as we do? We need your help in Sri Lanka with our street dog initiative that aims to help protect and care for man’s best friend and to improve the animal-human relationship within the local community.
Being a dog in Sri Lanka is a hard life and one of the things you will notice when you first arrive onto the island is just how many strays there are wandering the beaches and streets – upwards of 3 million! The lack of food, shelter and care drastically reduces the lifespan of a street dog and with the rising prevalence of rabies, the future unfortunately does not look good for most.
We urgently need volunteers like you to help monitor, take care of and feed all of the street dogs that have currently been identified in the local area and to also look after any rescued dogs within our small dog sanctuary. You will contribute to a long term and sustainable programme that aims to reduce the number of streets dogs within the local village and then further afield through sterilisation campaigns, education and re-homing initiatives.
Background to the street dog programme
One of the major problems in Sri Lanka is the vast number of stray dogs wandering the streets (island wide). It is estimated that there are currently over 3 million street dogs in Sri Lanka, many of whom suffer immensely through malnutrition, untreated diseases and horrific injuries generally caused by humans. This evident suffering and misery is heart breaking for any animal lover to witness, let alone walk away from.
Rabies can be a fatal disease which is transmitted by many animals, but mainly dogs in Sri Lanka. There are a large number of dog bite cases on the island, which is becoming a growing concern for locals and tourists alike. With the risk and associated fear of rabies, stray dogs are often demonized, leading to cruelty at the hands of humans.
The Sri Lankan Government have recently adopted more humane methods to control the population and spread of diseases, focusing now on neutering and vaccinating stray dogs. As a result, there has been a significant drop in the number of human rabies deaths and incidents and we hope to continue this trend within the local area.
With daily dog feeds and interaction with our volunteers, the dogs within the local village can live a happier life (as much as possible). On top of this, our local team and volunteers will rescue dogs in urgent need of care, to ensure they can rebuild their strength and health within our safe haven, before being released or re-homed when suitable to do so.
Our long term goal is to offer vaccinations and neutering, so we can start to manage the stray dog population and reduce the risk of diseases, especially rabies.
Where will I be volunteering?
You will primarily be volunteering in the village of Akurala, where our volunteer accommodation and programmes are based. You will be spending the majority of your time where it is most needed, out on the streets with the dogs!
You will have the unique opportunity to explore this traditional Sri Lankan village as you get to know the local community and the cute dogs that call it home. You will walk through the jungle, over the railway tracks, through people’s gardens, wander through the temples and around the wetlands to help all stray dogs in the area.
You will also spend time each day within our small purpose built dog sanctuary where we rescue and rehabilitate any street dog who is in need of urgent care.
On an ad-hock basis you will also get to visit, observe and provide an extra pair of hands within a veterinary practice in the nearby town.
What is my role?
You will have the pleasure of having the most important role, caring for the street dogs on a daily basis and ensuring they are healthy and fed. You will have the incredible opportunity to do your bit to help protect and care for these lovely canines and your time will have a massive positive and long-term impact on their lives.
Most importantly you will feed all of the street dogs in the local village every single day. You will need to prepare the meals by cooking rice, chicken and / or fish and to find some suitable leaves to use as makeshift plates. Everyone will then head out with a large bucket of delicious (but very smelly!) food in our dedicated dog rescue tuk tuk.
You will spend time identifying the dogs and carrying out a general health check. Any dogs that you and the local team think are in need of any care will be noted and the vet will try and provide any necessary treatment on their next visit.
During this time you will also take your time to provide all of the love, cuddles and interaction the dogs are happy with. By interacting with the dogs on a daily basis, everyone’s trust levels will increase and there will be less aggression from both the dogs and humans that could result in unnecessary injuries.
You will also spend a lot of time within our small purpose built sanctuary, where you will be responsible for the welfare of any dogs who are currently being looked after. You will need to feed, wash, administer any medication (with the help of the local team) and play with all of the dogs here, along with ensuring the sanctuary is maintained and clean.
At least twice a month, a vet will accompany you and the other volunteers to provide treatment to any street dogs that need it. On top of this, you may have the option to observe and shadow a local vet within their practice to see how treatments and service differs to back in your home country. It is here you will also learn about how street dogs are treated and some of the injuries they can suffer.
What will a typical day look like?
You will spend all of your time with the dogs, providing all of the love and attention they need.
During the morning you will assist the local team in preparing and cooking the dog food and then head out in our dedicated dog rescue tuk tuk to feed as many dogs as possible within the local village.
Every day you will take a pre-defined route around the village looking for as many street dogs as possible. You will do your best identify the dogs from our database, carry out health checks and of course play with them! The walk will take between 1 and 2 hours. When you return back to the volunteer accommodation you should complete any required paperwork and you will then have some free time.
You will need to take time each day to ensure any dogs within our sanctuary are fed, have water to drink, give any medication required and play / interact with them.
A typical day will see you volunteering between 3 and 4 hours, with the rest of your day free to explore the local area or to assist on our other programmes – including sea turtles, childcare and teaching.
Where will I be staying?
We cannot think of anywhere better to stay when volunteering in Sri Lanka! Our volunteer accommodation is just a stones throw away (10 second walk) from a quiet golden sand beach that is lined with palm trees – paradise! It’s the perfect place to come and relax each evening and witness some incredible sunsets. Not only this, but you can snorkel in the crystal clear waters that have an abundance of colourful fish swimming around the coral reef and you may even see a sea turtle swim by!
The touristy backpacker town of Hikkaduwa is just a 10 minute tuk-tuk ride away where you can visit many restaurants and bars that back right onto the beach. A favourite town amongst most volunteers, there are many supermarkets, quirky shops and water activities on offer – including surfing. The fishermen town of Ambalangoda is just another 10 minute tuk-tuk ride away in the other direction and offers a more local and traditional way of life. You can visit markets, devil mask museums and also see the largest laying down Buddha statue.
The accommodation is also conveniently located close to the historic town of Galle and well known beaches including Mirissa and Unawatuna.
Other things to consider
Student / Qualified Vets - If you are currently studying something relevant at university then we may be able to tailor the programme based on your course requirements.
Top destination - Sri Lanka is widely considered by our volunteers to be our best volunteer destination. The majority of our feedback suggests that this is due to the superior local support offered by Charith and our local team, the volunteer programmes making a real difference, value for money and accommodation location. With this in mind, we believe that Sri Lanka is the perfect destination for first-time travellers, under 18's and families with younger children.
Helping on multiple projects - Whilst in Sri Lanka and as a dog sanctuary volunteer, you will also have the opportunity to get involved with all of our other programmes. This unique experience will allow you to help within the dog sanctuary, but also assist where wanted on our sea turtle, childcare and teaching programmes for no additional charge.
Weekends and free time - You will have every weekend off from volunteering and this is the perfect time to explore everything this beautiful island has to offer. You are more than welcome to simply relax around the accommodation and enjoy the nearby beaches, but most volunteers will use this time to travel and see the country. Further down this page you will come across many suggestions and ideas on where you could go. Alternatively, if you are looking to see as much of the country as possible during this time, travel with other volunteers and be accompanied by one of our local team members, then you may be interested in one or more of the organised weekend trips we run.
Further Information
