ARCHIVED - URGENT APPEAL from Andreas Animal Rescue as coronacrisis deepens

81 donkeys and 37 dogs need food now

The media is full of news about how the coronacrisis is going to affect our bank balances, the long-term economic effects for business, how much our pensions are going to devalue, how many people will die, but what about the devastating effects on charities and all those who are such a backbone of our community life, what about them?????????

Well, the truth is, a lot of the charities around whom our social lives revolve in this region are in trouble, because the State of Emergency declared by the Spanish government last week has effectively cut their legs from beneath them and left them with no shops to raise funds, no table top sales to raise funds, no fundraising events to raise funds and volunteers locked down in their homes, unable to get out there and rattle a tin.

And even a closed shop costs money to run; rents must still be paid, water and electric bills must still be paid and for the charities working with animals, food and vets must be paid.

Expats in the south of the Murcia Region are all familiar with the sight of Andrea collecting donations for Andrea's Animal Rescue or taking one of her donkeys along to the Christmas carol service at the St. Nicholas Ecumenical Church on Camposol, although few see her when she's driving up to Valencia with a donkey at death's door in the boot on a Saturday afternoon or sitting with a sick animal at 3am in the morning out in the stable.

She has 81 donkeys, 37 dogs and an unspecified quantity of rabbits and other rescues in her care at the moment and she desperately needs your help.

We talked this morning and she admitted that she doesn´t know how she's going to get through this crisis. The shops are closed, takings tailed off in the days up to the declaration of emergency as expats took the sensible step of limiting their exposure to each other, and the animals still have to be fed, housed and given medical treatment, costing thousands a month.

We've all been caught short by the declaration of emergency and although for most of us this means eating cornflakes for dessert as there's no fruit in the fruit bowl and no ice cream in the freezer, for the animals, this is altogether, life-threatening.

Andrea admits she was running around like a headless chicken trying to find food on Friday evening, "there wasn´t even a crumb left on the shelf for the dogs in Mercadona, not even any rice or pasta," she said, "and I sat in the car and cried with relief when I found a bag of baby carrots in the Tesco Food Co. for the rabbits."

Can you help???

Can you donate SOMETHING, ANYTHING to the charity to help them through this crisis and pay for their weekly food delivery?

You all know Andrea. You all know what a practical, down-to-earth fighter she is. She wouldn´t ask for help if she wasn´t desperate.

PAYPAL ADDRESS: ANDREASANIMALRESCUEMURCIA@HOTMAIL.COM

BANK DETAILS:

ANDREAS ANIMAL RESCUE AND THE HENRIETTA FOUNDATION

BANK: CAJA RURAL

A/C NUMBER: 3018 5740 68 20 15 84 66 17

IBAN: ES9830185740682015846617

BIC: BCOEESMM018

TEL: 690 906 965

CHARITY NUMBER 9.980/1a

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Contact us on contact@murciatoday.com or call 968 018 268 if your charity needs help or your community groups are finding practical ways to fight the coronacrisis.

What to do if you are in the Region of Murcia and believe you may have contracted the virus

The regional government has set up a special helpline to supply information to members of the public (900 121212), and also urges people to call the 112 emergency services line if they suspect that they may have contracted the virus rather than going straight to hospital or to a medical centre. Medical staff will be sent to your home to test for the virus.

The Region’s public hospitals have limited the number of visitors to just one per patient.

Sensible precautions

The advice being issued to members of the public by medical authorities all over the world coincides on the following points:

- Wash hands frequently with either soap and water or a sanitiser gel

- Catch coughs and sneezes with disposable tissues – and throw the tissues away immediately after use before immediately washing your hands!

- If you don’t have a tissue, use your sleeve – and wash the item of clothing used at the next opportunity

- AVOID touching your eyes, nose and mouth with unwashed hands

- AVOID close contact with people who are unwell

- Don´t panic!

- STAY INDOORS. LOCKDOWN MEANS LOCKDOWN AND THIS WILL MINIMISE THE CHANCES OF YOU CATCHING THE VIRUS OR SHARING IT WITH YOUR FRIENDS IF YOU ALREADY HAVE IT.