Adopt A Furbaby from Ruff Love this Sunday!

BY: Michelle Liew

From left: Eric Chappell, Jenn Ngan, Gabrielle Geetha and Arman Haiderr.

Animal rescue organisation Ruff Love will be holding its 10th pet adoption drive upcoming this Sunday on May 22 at Medan Damansara, with numerous cats and dogs looking for a loving forever home.

Ruff Love was founded in August last year by Gabrielle Geetha and Arman Haider after an encounter with a sick stray cat and several dead puppies, all in the same week. It was a week filled with plenty of tears and burials. After the entire experience, Gabrielle decided she had to do something, and Arman joined the crusade to continue helping stray cats and dogs that had been abandoned, aiming to help them recover, and to vaccinate and spay them, and find them better places to live.

Gabrielle’s vision soon reached the ears of many, and Ruff Love blossomed into an influential group, creating awareness on social media. The current team consists of four members, with Jenn Ngan and Eric Chappell joining Gabrielle and Arman, taking in strays and abandoned animals to foster them until they are healthy enough to be adopted.

Milo was a victim of a hit and run that was supposed to leave him paralysed. He had two plates put into his hips, he’s almost fully recovered now, and is walking fine and is full of energy!

Speaking to Jenn from Ruff Love, she enlightened on the objectives of the group.

“The original aim was to spay or neuter the stray animals and release them back into society, provided that they are healthy enough. This would help curb the population of stray animals. ‘Vaccinate, spay and adopt’ was our slogan,” Jenn tells us at Good News. “However, this has evolved over the last few months as we began to realise their dependency on humans and the loving nature of most of these animals. With any dog or cat that begs for attention and will not leave you alone, it feels almost cruel to release back onto the street.”

Currently, Gabrielle and Arman take care of the stray dogs whereas Jenn and Eric handle the cats, but most times, they have both cats and dogs. They house the animals in their personal homes, as they do not have an official shelter. As of now, they have 20 cats and 9 dogs altogether. According to Jenn and Eric, the most they have ever housed were 15 cats.

Sybill was rescued along with her 4 siblings during the floods in Klang, she is now 5 months old.

Jenn concedes that taking care of animals is not a walk in a park and is huge responsibility.

“The process is not easy, but it is a rewarding experience. Preparing animals for adoption requires a lot of time and attention. First and foremost, we need to bring them to the vet for check-ups to find out if they have any underlying diseases.

Most strays have injuries or diseases, so we will need to handle an array of matters to make sure the animals are in good health.”

After a thorough check-up, the animals are vaccinated to further boost their immune system. The process can be costly considering the growing number of animals, but Ruff Love has managed to pull through with the generous donations from the public.

“In fact, 80% of the medical procedures are sponsored by donations. We manage to cover the vet bills most times and whatever remaining money that is left we will use it to buy necessities such as food, milk, and cat litter,” said Eric.

Zola was suspected to have been hit by something or someone because she had wounds on her head and a broken hind leg. With plenty of rehab, Zola has now recovered but her hind legs have not yet regained full function.

Ruff Love stated that through adoption drives, many animals have found new homes and better living environments. Interested parties can also reach out personally to Ruff Love to inquire about adoptions. They will collect an adoption fee to help cover vaccinations or spaying and proceed with the handover after vetting the new adopter. The upcoming pet adoption drive this Sunday at Bar Roca will serve as a great opportunity to those interested in expanding their families with a new fluffy addition.

Not only that, but Ruff Love is also collaborating with several brands during this drive! Ace of Fades will be providing a free hair cut for every male adopter.

Woofsome Meals will be joining in with some homecooked pet meals, each person that adopts a pet this Sunday will take home a starter pack of homemade treats and meals too!

Barked Clubhouse will be giving away one free pet taxi or pet sitting service for each person who adopts a pet.

As for human treats, Edesia.my will be selling their mouth-watering Italian artisanal spreads that you simply cannot resist!

Don’t forget to save the date!