Sunday October 4th is World Animal Day! Please bring your (leashed) dog and join us for a peaceful Walk for Animal Rights.
When: Sunday October 4th
Time: 5pm
Walk Begins at Plaza de Toros (Plaza de Torture), Avenida Bonampak
Walk Ends at Parque de las Palapas
Remember: Bring your leashed dogs and don’t forget bags to pick up after them.
Afterward, at Parque de las Palapas we will hold a Mixed-Breed-Only Doggie Beauty Pageant! There are prizes for the first 3 places!
It started in Florence, Italy in 1931 at a convention of ecologists. On this day, animal life in all its forms is celebrated, and special events are planned on locations all over the globe. 4 October was originally chosen for World Animal Day because it is the feast day of Francis of Assisi, a nature lover and patron saint of animals and the environment. Numerous churches throughout the world observe the Sunday closest to 4 October with a Blessing for the Animals.
RAP is proud to announce that our second annual Spay and Neuter clinic will take place this October. We are doing this clinic in conjunction with CANDi - Cats and Dogs International, Vet Ventures and the Pan-American Medical Mission Foundation. The clinic will run for 2 weeks.
The first week will be in the jungle town of San Cosme, located half way between Cancún and Valladolid (Oct 12-16). The second week will be in Bonfil, just south of Cancún (Oct 19-23). Both areas have very high populations of stray and unwanted animals. Our goal is to sterilize 500 animals in those 2 weeks!
We need volunteers to help animals through recovery. You do not need special skills to do this, you just need to love animals.
There is more information for volunteers here: Volunteer Info [PDF]
To support the spay and neuter clinic we are running a fund raising campaign on Facebook. Please join the CANDi Cancún Cause on Facebook to see how you can help! Donations are greatly appreciated!
If you live outside Mexico take a working vacation to Mexico! If you live in Mexico we can use your help too! Please help the animals by volunteering for our sterilization clinic!
RAP has several dogs that are ready for adoption and need to be transported to New York City where we have volunteers waiting to take them and find permanent homes for them.
What we need is someone who is flying from Cancun to NYC sometime in July or August and who is willing to escort one or more dogs. The dogs will go in cargo, in kennels, but someone needs to be on the plane while they are on it.
American Airlines has direct flights to NYC, and they have early morning flights, which are best for the dogs (it’s not as hot). So it would be ideal to find someone who is already booked with American to NYC.
If your or anyone you know will be traveling to NYC from Cancun in July or August and would be willing to be a rescue dog escort please contact us right away!
Thanks for helping us rescue Cancun’s street dogs!!
What: Protest to Protect Needed Animal Habitat in Cancun Where: SM34, across from Home Depot When: Sunday, June 21, 2009 - 5:30 pm
Cancun city authorities are considering moving the Ayuntamiento (city offices) from the present location to one of Cancun’s last remaining green areas. The proposed location is in SM34, just west of the Cathedral, along Avenida Kabah (basically it’s just about across Kabah from Home Depot).
Instead of renovating and restoring dilapidated buildings at or close to the present site the thinking is to start all over and in the process destroy one of the last vestiges of native plant and animal life in Cancun.
Locating the offices in this new area would not only destroy needed habitat for animals and plants it would bring more traffic to the area and would cause huge parking headaches for residents who live nearby. People who live nearby know that Avenida Kabah is already VERY congested along there, more traffic in that area will cause serious problems to the flow of traffic there.
Cancun has grown so quickly that authorities here have rarely stopped and given thought to protecting green areas within the city. It’s time that they stop chopping trees without consideration for the long-term negative impact it will have on plants, animals and people.
There will be a peaceful protest against this proposal tomorrow (Sunday, June 21) at 5:30 pm at the proposed site in SM34, close to Avenida Kabah and Avenida Itzal.
Participants are asked to wear a white t-shirt with a large green dot painted in the center of it, to show solidarity. The green dot represents Cancun’s threatened green “belly button” (Cancun’s ombligo verde).
Camila, the poor dog that was facing nightly abuse at the hands of her owner, has been saved. When we first learned of Camila’s abuse we reported it to authorities.
When authorities did nothing we organized an Animal Rights March. The March raised community awareness of the plight of abused animals in our city. It also made it clear to authorities that the people of Cancun wanted them to stop Camila’s owner from abusing her.
The pressure worked. The day after the March the “Perrera” (Cancun’s dog pound) arrived at the home of Camila’s owner and took Camila away. At first the Perrera stood in the way of Camila’s adoption to a new home. And RAP was prevented from adopting Camila because we are a shelter, by definition a temporary home and not a permanent one. But on Thursday April 23, four days after removing the dog from her abuser’s home, Camila was allowed to go to a new home.
On Sunday April 19th RAP organized a March for Animal Rights. The March was organized in response to the regular abuse of a dog here named Camila. We reported the abuse to authorities, but when they did nothing it was decided that a March was needed.
The March raised awareness about Camila’s abuse and it also showed authorities here that the people of Cancun do care very much about the treatment of animals.
Here is a video from the March (thank you to CancunCanuck for making this video).
People in the Tikal area of Cancun have been hearing the regular nightly cries of a dog being abused. Neighbors decided to climb a tree next door and video tape what they were hearing. This poor dog is being abused by this man each evening in the same horrible manner. Warning - this video is disturbing.
There are no protection laws against abusing a dog in Cancun - nothing that can be enforced by law. RAP has been trying to save this dog. Unfortunately our resources are very limited and with no support from the local government or the people, we may not be able to save this dog from his daily torment. We are looking for support to save this dog, please help if you can.
UPDATE: This dog was rescued and has been adopted into a new and loving home. See the full story of how Camila was saved.
RAP is in the process of forming both a Board of Directors and an Advisory Board. We are currently reviewing applications for places on both boards.
Board of Directors
Certain Board of Directors members will have nominal legal obligations and therefore must be Mexican citizens. The board of Directors will meet quarterly (4 times per year).
Advisory Board
The Advisory Board will meet once per month and members will be expected to be actively involved in RAP’s events and fundraisers.
How to Apply
Please send us an email in English or in Spanish detailing your experience with animals and also with charity work. Please describe any experience you might have with fund-raising or community organizing. Also detail for us your level of commitment to RAP and to the problem of homeless animals, and describe your work experience, job skills and anything else which might be relevant. Send emails to info [at] rapanimalrescue [dot] org.
RAP always needs volunteers. Below are some of the specific duties we need help with right now:
Foster Care. We always need good temporary foster homes for dogs, especially for puppies and injured dogs with special needs. Being in a good, attentive foster home helps the dog become socialized and helps to prepare it for a permanent home.
Shelter Volunteers. RAP needs volunteers to help us at the dog shelter to walk the dogs and get them more socialized.
Adopt a Dog. Adopting a dog from our shelter makes room for another dog to be rescued. We have contacts at airlines to help you fly the dog to the U.S. or Canada easily. See our Adopt a Pet page for more info.
Clinic Volunteers. RAP needs volunteers to help us at the clinic, duties include dog walking, feeding the animals, cleaning kennels and cuddling puppies.
In January 2009 RAP opened Cancun’s first low cost Veterinary Clinic. The RAP Veterinary Clinic is located just a few blocks north of our Animal Shelter in the Bonfil area of Cancun. The Clinic is non-profit and charges only to cover its operating costs.
The mission of the clinic is to provide low-cost veterinary care to pet whose owners need financial assistance. The clinic also works to educate pet owners about responsible pet ownership, especially regarding the need for sterilizing pets to prevent unwanted puppies and kittens
RAP Veterinary Clinic Hours
10 am - 9 pm Monday to Saturday
Closed Sunday
Special Rates for Sterilization
Cat Sterilization $300 MXP
Dog Sterilization $500 MXP
Getting There
View Map of Location of Clinic
The clinic is located in Bonfil just 2 blocks south of the Bonfil central park.
