About us
The Animais de Rua project came to be bit by bit, almost without us noticing its creation. In 2005, a group of friends got together with the purpose of raising funds to neuter a stray cat colony that lived in very poor and neglected conditions in Oporto city. All the necessary funds were raised and all the cats were neutered and treated for parasites. The increased quality of life for these animals, previously malnourished and wounded on account of territorial fights and continuous breeding, was now evident in their shiny coats and well-fed figures. This dramatic change made us want to improve the lives of yet more stray animals. Being aware of so many daily cases of litters of cats and puppies being drowned or buried alive, being runned over by cars and succumbing to disease, we decided to get busy and create a work-group dedicated to neutering strays and other animals in deficient conditions.
Ideally, the Animais de Rua project shouldn't need to exist. In an ideal world, all pets should have a home Gata e Filhotes and owners that protect them from all danger. However, knowing that such dream is still a long way from coming true in Portugal, the Animais de Rua project needs to exist in order to ease the suffering of stray animals. By not allowing them to breed, we are dramatically decreasing the number of cats and dogs who may become victims of malnourishment, suffering, hunger and disease. Our work is parallel with, and supplements that of, animal protection associations, which harbour stray cats and dogs and promote their adoption.
The Animais de Rua project does not have a physical space of its own, so we are unable to collect and house stray animals. Our work consists in aiding the capture and neutering of stray animals, which are then returned to their familiar grounds.
The Animais de Rua project does not have a physical space of its own, so we are unable to collect and house stray animals. Our work consists in aiding the capture and neutering of stray animals, which are then returned to their familiar grounds.