While Israeli children enjoy their summer vacation before the school year starts up again, nearly 60 puppies wait at the Sderot animal shelter in southern Israel to be adopted.
The puppies are all rescues, born over the past few months to stray dogs in the fields and open areas belonging to several Western Negev regional councils. Some of the puppies were found suffering from dehydration, hunger, and extreme heat, and would likely not have survived if the Western Negev Veterinary Service had not intervened.
Both the puppies and their mothers were rescued and treated by veterinarians from the Western Negev Veterinary Service.
While the shelter provides the dogs with food, medical treatment, vaccinations, and human interaction, staff emphasize that nothing can replace a proper home for them to live.
"Our teams work throughout the year to rescue animals in distress, but during the whelping season the workload increases dramatically,” said Western Negev Cluster CEO Bella Alexandrov. “Every puppy here has a rescue story behind it. Our mission now is to find each one a family. Every adoption gives a puppy a new life and allows us to rescue the next one waiting for help."
Western Negev Veterinary Service Director Dr. Evgeny Komlev explained that the dogs’ whelping season brings a large number of stray puppies and that without the service’s intervention, “many of them would not survive the harsh conditions in the field.”
“We do everything we can to rescue them, care for them and look after their mothers as well, but the best place for every puppy is a loving home,” Komlev said. “Alongside the adoption efforts, we continue our spay and neuter programs for stray dogs in order to reduce the phenomenon and prevent unnecessary suffering in the future."
Western Negev vet services overwhelmed since Oct. 7
Since the October 7 massacre, the Western Negev Cluster's veterinary services have been taking care of animals left behind after the Gaza border communities were evacuated, stray dogs that crossed into Israel from Gaza, and assisting residents returning to their homes to their regular responsibilities.
Nearly three years later, the workload remains exceptionally high.
During the whelping season, the workload grows even more, with teams heading out every day to rescue puppies and stray female dogs, provide emergency treatment, and work around the clock to save animals while protecting public health.
The Sderot shelter invites the Israeli public to meet and adopt the puppies. All puppies have undergone a veterinary examination.