Essay - Volunteering Germany by Karla
- Details
- Created on Monday, 06 March 2017 05:38
- Written by germany
Erasmus +: Volunteering Germany / Karla
I personally think that volunteering is very important for the people and also for animals, as it mostly improves the life conditions and helps to enlighten the atmosphere of the concerned. When I made some research on volunteering in the animal sector, I finally found out about the “CDR” (Corfu Donkey Rescue) in Greece. I started to read a lot about the “CDR” to find out more about this organization and in the end I also decided to spend almost 2 months in Corfu to volunteer at the CDR.
The CDR is a farm in the northeast of Corfu, hosted by an English woman. They take care of old and sick dogs, cats, and mostly of donkeys. In Corfu, donkeys are very often used as pack und production animals for their whole lives. The Greek people, especially the poor, are very dependent on these animals. Sadly, almost all of these donkeys are left alone when they become old, because they are too weak to still carry on working for their owner. But also sick animals, for example when they have a broken leg or huge problems with their teeth are simply left alone, as their owner also often cannot afford a medical treatment for them. That’s the point when the work of the CDR starts. Often the donkeys are brought to the farm, but there are also many of them which are simply left alone, for example in a forest. The CDR also searches for those animals all across the island. They sometimes even manage to save animals from being brought to a slaughter in Italy. All of these donkeys, but also old and sick dogs and cats, which are either brought to the farm or found by volunteers, are able to spend the rest of their lives at the CDR. At the CDR, where a lot of volunteers work throughout the year, there is always someone to take care of these animals and of course they also have the chance to get the needed medical treatment there. At his place there is no pressure anymore on the animals to work, they simply get enough food and the right treatment, so that they can live happily in company.
It is very important to know that the CDR is financed by donations or by adoption of a donkey (which costs 90€ per year). That is the reason why there are so dependent on volunteers from all around Europe, as they all work for free. The CDR is also very successful. The farm opened in 2004 and since then they helped more than 700 donkeys.
I am very excited for my own experience on the farm and I am really looking forward to help all the animals!