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Our animals need your help!

5.0
(8 reviews)8

The experience

We need volunteers to guarantee a good level of welfare to our cats and dogs in our shelters! Please come and help! Your task will be primarily to walk the dogs and to play with them, brush and cuddle them and check that they are in good health, especially the puppies. We have paid staff to clean and feed the animals, but sometimes special care is needed.

What you offer

32 hours of help per week

Building & Repairing: Help with a wide range of repairs or building.

Animal Care: Help look after and take care of animals.

Additional fee required

Amount: € 10 Per day

Fee pays for: Benefits for travelers

Description: We request our volunteers to contribute 10 Euros per day to cover their accommodation and the transport to the shelter. They can cook their own meals in the communal kitchen, so food won't be a big expense (3-5 euros/day).

What you get

1 day off per week

Shared Dorm: You will have a bed in a shared room, which means you will share the same room with other travelers.

Use our equipped kitchen: Feel free to use our kitchen and make your own delicious food.

<span class="translation_missing" title="translation missing: en.reward.certificate.name">Name</span>: Finca Ganadito will offer you a volunteering certificate.

Requirements

Intermediate English or Intermediate Portuguese

Between 18 and 60 years old

Welcomes solo volunteers, couples, and partners of volunteers

What's not included

Flights, Travel Insurance, Internal Transportation and Visa

Program Details

Our organization includes 4 locations: a clinic, an office/volunteers' house/cats shelter, a dog shelter and a hostel for backpackers.

This volunteer program is especially tailored for those of you who want to experience the love of our puppies at the shelter while working with the local staff. Walking the dogs during your working shift will allow you to build a strong relationship with our beautiful four-legged guests! Extra bonuses are a good physical exercise in the sun, a swim in the nearby beach and finally the daily rides in our pick up!

Clear instructions will be provided for accomplishing single tasks and volunteers are required to perform them accurately also for safety reasons. Volunteers are required to follow the instructions published on our portal for volunteers, and to ask for advice in case they collide with instructions received from the paid staff at the shelter.

Activities & Shift

The help we need varies depending on your skills. We expect someone who is a self-starter and can work independently with a very high degree of motivation. Work is per shifts: morning from 7:30 to 12:30 or afternoon from 13 to 18. Transport to/from the shelter is provided for free when needed by the paid staff.
Most basic tasks at the shelter (cleaning, feeding) are performed by local paid staff - we have 5 dog carers. But, we always need help with delicate tasks such as playing with the dogs, walking them brushing the cats, changing the beds, and taking care of ill animals. Notably, volunteers will (1) work in the place of paid staff when they are missing and (2) supervise the work of the local staff to ensure the highest possible welfare of the animals in our shelters. Clear instructions will be provided for accomplishing tasks and volunteers are required to perform them accurately.

Rules

Volunteers for any position will be asked to perform their tasks per shifts with a fixed timetable. When the task may need a different schedule, depending on various factors, among which availability of the local staff, special needs of the animals, check-in/out times at the hostel, shops opening times or any other need on the side of the volunteer or of the organization, a new time schedule must be agreed on.
We ask our volunteers to contribute 70 euros/week. We are a non-profit organization and we must use our funds to feed our 150 animals every day and to pay the salaries of our 14 local employees. We thank you for your understanding.
The rules of the house are published on our portal for volunteers, together with any other useful info, and will be made available in due time.