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Rocky isn't wearing his Christmas wreath on the first photo because at the time this picture was taken, he didn't like me touching him. When I first arrived, I was determined this was going to change. I began feeding him from my hand, and when I entered the run he'd hunker down submissively when I reached out to stroke his head. It did wonders for my ego, but little for him - he wanted space. I gave it, letting him take as long as he wanted to approach me for affection. And when he did, it was an honor. He's a favorite. |
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Bobby is Rocky's favorite, and one of mine too. While walking, Rocky runs up to Bobby to engage him in play. But Bobby is very independent, and often has other things on his mind. If given a choice, I believe he'd prefer being free on the street. He's always the last one back in the compound and often has to be coerced with food. He's also a car chaser, and has nipped the ankle of one or two people. He's gentle, loving but is his own dog. If he finds an old plastic bottle, he'll play endlessly. |
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Pampa is who I've had the most drastic change of heart. Initially I saw a crazed animal and thought she might turn on me at a moment's notice. She'd begin our walks with the rest of the Pack, but would always disappear to run home. As it wasn't tourist season, and cars and moto-taxi's were a rarity, this wasn't a big problem.
When I began being more relaxed with her, it became apparent she was petrified of everything. The reason she hadn't continued on the walks was because she was frightened of the narrow passageways leading to the beach. When I took the wider ones, she ran from the water and creatures in the sand. Gradually, her confidence grew, and one by one, all her fears overcome. She's been a real trooper and one of my favorites.
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Twecky desperately needs a permanent person to love. Although she's better with a bit of training, she still leaps up and wants nothing more than to lick someone to death. |
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Negra is utterly sweet when in an enclosed space, but if she spots another dog while walking, barks ferociously, bouncing up and down with hair raised, before chasing in their direction. It's a great show but she's always the first to retreat, even with the back-up of the Pack. Around people she's very low maintenance and doesn't ask for much in return - a very sweet dog. |
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Mamacita is actually one of Rosemary's house dogs, and she's the only one in Rosemary's care who could travel with us. She's intelligent (though that might just mean she and I have a connection), she understands quickly she's not permitted to be at all dominant with my two, doesn't leap up, bark or slobber. |
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Dog. A friend of ours, who's not a dog person, called her the perfect dog. She's affectionate and loving when she knows the person is amendable to that, is calm, intelligent and hyper-aware. Never fully asleep, she's always ready to send an alert to Bruiser to go invesstigate-something which she avoids doing, as she has a timid side. She's a bit of a princess. She hates getting wet, and hates getting dirty. She's equal parts cat and dog.
She's easily overwhelmed by large groups of dogs and there's times when I'll leave her inside the van while Bruiser and I go off wandering. I'll return and find she's been happily sleeping, far from threat. The contradiction is she's a naturally sexy creature, and males adore her. What's interesting is the ones she likes all have the same look. She's the first dog I've even taken into my life, and I love her dearly. She's eleven, as is Bruiser. |
COLAN, PERU
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As in many villages, dogs follow their people all over. |
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Initially, I only bicycled with the dogs, for fear I'd loose their interest at a slower pace. And it was impossible taking group shots. Now, they're a very organized pack, and there's times I'll have ten with me. No catastrophies yet... |
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Cats is my main concern while walking so many dogs. These are some of Rosemary's thirty, most who come and go as they please, always coming in at night. |
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Assistant Marie Luise cauterizing an ear which has been notched to signify the animal has been sterilized. Dr. Victor is working with her. They're able to do nine animals in a day. How many if an injection was available? Click on www.acc-d.org if you're interested in alternatives. |
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On one side where I'm staying is desert cliffs, on the other the ocean. |
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These dogs are all owned, but with no fences, are free to have their own lives. Here, they're interested in the white female who's in heat. |
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Dog and Bruiser in a happy moment. Much older than the other dogs, they don't interact at all, and during walks, generally act like curmudgeons. They're also not crazy about the heat. Soon, we'll be with llamas... |
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When I arrived, there were a number of dead sea lions on the beach. This one has been transported out into the desert, presumably because a home owner didn't want it in their view. |
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The dog version of a hammock, the canvas on the boat is dry, off the ground and comforms to body shape. |
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This area and the beach homes remind me very much of Holly Beach, Louisiana, before Hurricane Katrina wiped the town off the map. |
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This is part of the enclosure where five of the dogs live. If you're traveling this way, please come and take them out for walks! As far as enclosures go, it doesn't get much better. But these dogs prefer being out. |
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A dolphin possibly caught in a fishing net. |
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You'll notice the kids aren't wearing shoes in this store. For many, it's too great an expense. |
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I love fish. While living in a Costa Rican fishing village, I got tired of seeing animals I swam with being slaughtered. The same has happened again. |
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Fishing people are having a tough time this year. The fish don't seem to be biting is what I'm told. |
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Dogs congregate on the beach around 11am when free food comes from the sea. |
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A number of people have died in the village in the past few months. Women are cleaning pots outside, dogs gather for any leftovers. You'll notice the walls are mud. |
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A goofy looking dog with owner. |
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Rosemary has transformed a plot of desert land into a mini-oasis. This is the guest house for rent by the night, week or longer. |
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This is in Sechura, the town I was camping outside of when I contacted Rosemary. |
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This is the building I'm staying. |
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All over, I see kids with a strong bond with their animals. I also see people petrified of dogs. I think some people have a genetic disposition towards animals, like anything, some of it is what we grow up with, and some educational. |
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Though dogs may not always be invited into homes, they're very much a part of people's lives. |
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Libertad, both ways on the main street. |
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This dog was taken to the closest vet in Piura, (an hour away if you have a vehicle) to have its eye sewn shut. |
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I have a lovely desert garden outside the building I'm staying. |
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More, one of Rosemary's workers, who uses a horse and cart for his work. He's coming down from the hill behind where he's gotten sand for building needs. |
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Gas is $4 a gallon here, which is ludicrous for people earning so little. The moto rickshaws have been in use for about 15 years in Peru and are used as taxi's. This is the main drag into Colan, and dogs regularly lay in the middle. I hope they move to the side when tourist season begins in a month... |
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One of the more expensive beach homes. The smaller wooden ones you've seen go for $40,000 approximately. Many had severe damage during a tsunami about ten years ago. |
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This is Noe who is an educator for Rosemary, and Marie Luisa, who's a vet assistant, a Noe's relative Kirk and dog, Rambo. |
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Noe, during a de-worming session for the public, Rosemary's in the background. |
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Noe de-worming animals outside where I'm staying. Notice what is used for fencing. |
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Pigs have a crappy life in many parts of the world. This one will spend much of it's life in this enclosure until it's slaughtered. |
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Rosemary and More at one of the entrances to the sanctuary. |
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Rosemary walking with a few of her animals through the pueblo. |
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Rosemary outside a house in the pueblo with a moto taxi. |
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During a Spanish lesson at one of the empty vacation homes. |
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Marie Luise adjusting a light during surgery.
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Rosemary Gordon
Colan, Peru
When Rosemary Gordon was eleven, her father and Peruvian mother moved to his land of birth - South Africa. Rosemary was later sent to a Catholic boarding school in England where like many young girls, she dreamt of being a nun. The idea of submitting to something larger than herself was entrancing. But as the young girl grew into a woman, this dream like many, was forgotten. Two marriages and divorces later, she returned to her land of birth. Rosemary had a simple plan - to immerse herself in her passion for painting. She bought a small plot of land next to the Pacific Ocean and began building a studio in a place with less than one thousand people. When she wasn't in front of an easel, she became proactive in organizing the cleanup of the local garbage, which without regular pickup services, grew and grew. Since the community dogs - canines who are accustomed to being around humans, but aren't necessarily owned by any one individual - foraged on the garbage, their population also grew. Rosemary initially ignored this aspect of the situation.
Then one day a dog turned up on her doorstep. She couldn't turn El Gauchito away, nor did she know what to do with the cats and dogs who were procreating at an alarming rate. Like it or not, this new challenge had her name on it. Once word got around that Rosemary was an animal lover who made a difference, neighbors began dropping off unwanted animals, while others turned up asking for help with the medical needs of their pets. Rosemary was overwhelmed with a dilemma many animal lovers face. What made her situation unique, was that her little plot of land next to the Pacific Ocean wasn't in California, Oregon or Washington. Rosemary's land of birth was Peru. She knew the Spanish language from her Peruvian mother, but the culture was foreign as were some of the day to day difficulties. The nearest vet was a two hour drive away - by car. Rosemary bought what many purchased for transport - a horse and buggy. It was the mid-1990's.
She soon realized she had a dilemma; there was a limit to how many animals she could adopt. The size of her property was small, as was her pension. And it was a sanctuary she wanted, not a shelter. Trap Neuter Return, or TNR, is a concept commonly used in the United States for trapping, spaying, then returning feral cats back into their environment, and is the only realistic approach when there's an overpopulation of dogs in developing countries.
Rosemary began appealing for donations from HSI and WSPA (Humane Society International and World Society for the Protection of Animals), which enabled her to pay a Peruvian vet with an assistant to spay and neuter. Rosemary also realized animal care was better taught by Peruvians to Peruvians, so she found teachers at nearby schools who agreed to add the concept of kindness to animals into their curriculum. Other animal loving Peruvians began taking these same ideas into the bigger community, along with doses of de-wormer. Rosemary also began a program to assist farmers with their horses and donkeys.
But that didn't pay for feeding the animals she'd adopted when she thought sheltering was the solution, which by this time numbered thirty cats, three house dogs, and six others in her immediate garden area including one who was lame, along with the five Pack members.
Rosemary was caught in a dilemma so many working with animals face. How to pay for the care of so many animals? Some in her position would walk away. A highly intelligent woman, Rosemary began making artwork with animal motifs for tourists who came to Colan. And with the help of a few workers, began transforming a plot of desert land into an oasis with a purpose.
By the time Dog, Bruiser and I arrived, a car given to her had replaced the horse and buggy, and Rosemary had just finished the second of two adobe guesthouses. The bungalows provide extra income during the tourist season, and housing for volunteer veterinarians, vet-techs or animal lovers who love the idea of spending time by the ocean, but want to leave with more than a summer tan. One woman, one purpose. Rosemary's childhood dream came true - she's given herself over to something bigger than herself - the animals.
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