Much has been said about the havoc that 2020 wrecked across South Africa and the globe; but as organisations and individuals alike start to slowly emerge from the pandemic and consequent economic disruption, it’s easy to become so focused on moving forward that we neglect to think about those who are still struggling – especially when it comes to our four-legged friends.
Refusing to allow animals in need to be forgotten, dotsure.co.za has made a generous donation of R300,000 to the Animal Anti-Cruelty League (AACL).
“This donation wouldn’t have been possible without our dotsure.co.za family – our policyholders themselves,” explains David Roache, Chief Operating Officer at dotsure.co.za. “Whenever a client buys a dotsure.co.za pet insurance policy online, we donate a portion of their first premium to the AACL at no additional cost to our clients. This allows us to ensure that organisations like the AACL continue to see support, so that they can in turn support others.”
As is the case with many organisations, 2020 was one of the most difficult years the Animal Anti-Cruelty League (AACL) has faced.
Amid cancelled fundraising events and social distancing measures that reduced their staff numbers, the AACL began receiving more and more desperate requests for veterinary care from people who had become unemployed – a painfully paradoxical situation where they were busier than ever but didn’t have enough resources to help all those in need.
Despite these mounting challenges, the AACL got to work by setting up a feeding scheme for their local community members to assist them in feeding their pets; an approach with the twofold impact of helping curb the influx of animals that would have been handed over to them for financial reasons, along with alleviating the trauma caused when an animal is handed over and a family unit is spilt.
“Although the day-to-day expenses for the care and feeding of the animals is always a priority, the pandemic has brought its own share of unexpected challenges,” explains AACL Marketing Manager Carren Nickloes. “The supply of oxygen was prioritised for human hospitals as part of the essential treatment of COVID-19, which means we have struggled to maintain a constant supply of oxygen, which is needed for use in our veterinary hospitals.”
“Once again dotsure.co.za has come to the rescue to support the animals in our care,” says Dr Faizel Suleyman, Principal Veterinarian at AACL JHB, “This time, in light of the huge increase of surgical procedures, it has enabled us to purchase a much-needed Oxygen Concentrator.”
This vital piece of equipment is not only cost-effective in the long run but also enables the AACL to play a part in alleviating the struggles that the pandemic has caused.
“It’s very humbling when our corporate partners like dotsure.co.za are still able to support us during difficult times like the current pandemic,” says Cindy Price, General Manager of AACL JHB.
“I thank them for recognising the work that our staff, our most valuable resource, has continued to do. This has enabled us to adapt our services to the community safely while celebrating 65 years and so continue with our commitment to the care and protection of animals.”
