Profile information
Host rating
100 %
Last replied
30 Apr 2025
Reply rate
92.3 %
Usually responds within 2 days
Feedback
38
Email verified
Badges (4)
Details
Description
We operate a non-profit focusing on rescuing, rehabilitating and rehoming street dogs around Lake Atitlan, Guatemala. Our mission is to improve the lives of these dogs and we work closely with other individuals and organisations in the area to ensure all our dogs are vaccinated, sterilized and are ready to go to new homes.
Our staff includes Aaron (founder), Pablo & Sonny (dog-site managers), and Maria (local dog-food chef).
Volunteers are an essential part of our operation. If you volunteer with us, you can expect to be part of a team of up to 10 people living amongst the dogs on one of our sites in Tzununa. While there's always plenty to do and some days can be tough, you can work happily in the knowledge that you're improving the lives of our greatest animal companions.
Types of help and learning opportunities
Art Projects
Language practice
Help with Eco Projects
Gardening
DIY and building projects
Animal Care
Creating/ Cooking family meals
General Maintenance
Interests
Self development
Vegetarian or vegan
Events & social
Charity work
Farming
Music
Plant care
Languages
Drawing & painting
Architecture
Books
Hiking
Yoga / Wellness
Nature
Fitness
Camping
Videography
Sustainability
Pets
DIY & crafts
Cooking & food
Gardening
Carpentry
Animals
UN sustainability goals this host is trying to achieve
Cultural exchange and learning opportunities
We live in Tzununa, a small Mayan town in a steep valley on Lake Atitlan. Unlike many other towns in the area, it is relatively undeveloped for tourism (besides a few foreign-owned businesses) and therefore provides a close-up look into modern Mayan culture. There are several indigenous languages and dialects still spoken around Lake Atitlan. The local language in Tzununa is Kaq'chikel, which our local employee, Maria, is always happy to share with volunteers. Spanish is also spoken as the common tongue between locals and foreigners. English is rarely spoken by locals but much more prevalent in the larger towns. There are several language schools around the lake where you can take Spanish classes.
Staff and volunteers at the shelter tend to be from all over the world. We learn a lot from each other through conversation, music, cooking and working. Come with an open mind - not everyone will share the same views!
We're hoping to eventually expand our activities to include education of local children on appropriate animal care - we'd love any ideas you have about this!
Help
The shelter has a plethora of tasks to be done on a daily basis. These range from the mundane (picking up poo, washing dishes, cleaning common areas) to the fun and exciting (building/designing new spaces, walking dogs, adoption fairs, sterilisation clinics). We are open to suggestions and will happily work with your strengths, but nobody is exempt from the less appealing aspects of running the shelter.
The schedule is flexible and we can work around your preferences (as long as the work gets done). The dogs do not respect our working hours - they need constant care and attention. Some of our permanent staff work around the clock but we don't expect this from everyone. Please communicate clearly your needs so there is no confusion. We are happy to spread your working hours throughout the day, or if you want to work only in the morning/evening, this can be arranged.
An ideal volunteer will use their initiative to complete tasks, often without oversight. The managers here are busy, so organising your own work is an essential part of keeping things running smoothly. This means you have a lot of freedom - if you're a passionate cook, we'll be thrilled to let you focus on the kitchen while the exercise fanatics walk all the dogs! All volunteers are entitled to 2 days off per week. As the shelter needs to be constantly staffed, please bear in mind it may not be possible for volunteers to take all days off together.
The most important aspect of volunteering here is having a love of animals and wanting to improve their lives. This is not a free holiday - many volunteers in the past have struggled with the noise, cleanliness and workload. If you come here expecting to work hard and make a positive impact in the world, you'll thrive and we will love you for it.
Languages
Languages spoken
English: Fluent
Spanish: IntermediateThis host offers a language exchange
English, intermediate Spanish, and beginner Kaq'chikel (the local Mayan Language). Happy to exchange languages.
Accommodation
We currently have 6 beds in shared rooms, including 2 double beds (preferably for couples or friends). We also have plenty of camping options on the shelter land (if you can bring your own camping supplies you'll be especially valuable).
Conditions are liveable but rustic. We have running water on all sites, and electricity/WiFi on 2 of our sites. Many of our buildings are open to the air and as it can get rather cold at night it is recommended to bring warm clothes/blankets/sleeping bags to use alongside the bedding provided. We have an indoor toilet and a hot shower.
Volunteers are expected to do their own laundry - either by hand on site or at a laundromat in town. This includes bedding at the end of your stay.
Volunteers are expected to contribute to the food: we buy food together, pool food money, and meal-plan as best as we can as a group. We have two locations so it can prove difficult to eat at consistent times, and in anyway one is able to help by cooking/planning/and helping contribute towards our group meals is a huge plus. However if you’re no good at cooking that’s okay too: we have great cooks on-site but need to plan how we share meals (with two locations and sometimes needing to move food from one to the other) together!
There is a market every Sunday where you can buy cheese, meat, fish, vegetables etc, and also several small stores in town with a decent selection. The Sanctuary provides a small budget for market-days on Sunday so we should always have some ingredients on-hand to make food with daily. How much or how little depends on the group and our ability to acquire the resources to do so.
What else ...
The lake is a thriving tourism hotspot so there is always plenty to do, such as paddle boarding, cliff jumping, kayaking, volcano hikes, ATV rides, yoga retreats etc...
There is also a lot to do in Tzununa, surprisingly. The local businesses that have been started by foreigners and travellers have beautiful accommodation and interesting spaces like Community Permaculture Gardens, Organic Gardens, an Apothecary, a large Dance Temple that focuses on contact-dance, and a Mushroom Cultivation School and community. Tzununa and neighbouring towns also have lots of businesses run by the local Mayan community, and offers lots to the traveller community. Tuk-tuks can drive you around the lake at very inexpensive prices, and there are boats that can take you from town to town for equivalent prices.
Rules!
You must be physically fit and mentally resilient - Tzununa has very steep terrain, you will be walking up and down these hills multiple times per day. The work can be stressful and you must be able to cope.
All volunteers must work hard and contribute to all tasks (yes, even washing dishes and cleaning dog poo) - no exceptions.
Absolutely no violence or sexual harassment - you will be immediately kicked out.
You MUST work as a team - dogs can sense negativity and we will not tolerate childish arguments.
You MUST listen to the permanent staff members and obey the shelter rules.
No stays under 2 weeks will be considered free of charge. Daytime visits are an option! Longer stays will be prioritised.
All applicants must complete a video interview via WhatsApp.
A little more information
Internet access
Limited internet access
We have pets
We are smokers
Can host families
Can host digital nomads
Yes! However, not so good for constant visual streaming. Also, it's a dog shelter so it will never be silent!
How many Workawayers can stay?
More than two
Feedback (21)
Our visit coincided with a time of transition—just before we arrived,… read more
The work is usually pretty simple - walking, feeding, and caring for the dogs, plus cleaning the sanctuary and general maintenance. There were times when we were just dogsitting while Aaron ran… read more
Photos
Feedback
These are extra optional ratings when members leave feedback. The average rating left for each option is displayed.
Accuracy of profile:
(4.6)
Cultural exchange:
(4.7)
Communication:
(4.7)
Our visit coincided with a time of transition—just before we arrived,… read more
The work is usually pretty simple - walking, feeding, and caring for the dogs, plus cleaning the sanctuary and general maintenance. There were times when we were just dogsitting while Aaron ran… read more
Anna is confident in her strengths and regularly uses her initiative to help in the best ways she can - she used… read more
My main tasks included caring for the dogs (walking, feeding, and keeping the area clean). I loved spending time with them, and each one became really special to me.
One of the highlights was a boat trip with the dogs and other volunteers, nothing better than seeing… read more
We are always looking for hardcore dog lovers who can put aside their own comforts for a while to help our dogs, and Janika is a perfect example of an ideal volunteer.… read more
I'm sure Marah will be a valuable team member for… read more
The shelter is very special. The dogs are super friendly, the common area is very cosy, where you can cuddle with the dogs all the time and… read more
I cannot recommend her enough for ANY kind of work. She was one of the sweetest, nicest, most beautiful (:O), and just super-helpful volunteers we ever had. She even came with a friend and as a team: they were dynamite!
Walking dogs everyday on huge long walks, taking care of puppies, cleaning, cooking,… read more
Grace was a super hard worker, helped with the puppies all the time, walked lots of dogs, and was always nice and conversational to be around. We love great company like her, and would recommend her for any workaway type of… read more
We really enjoyed being in the middle of the nature of Tzununa with great views and nice trails for walking the dogs.
All the dogs are friendly contemporaries, that love to be at your side for cuddling,… read more
Aaron is our example of devotion and resilience.
We felt dirty and tired but filled with canine love for two weeks.
Being part of this pack was one of the best experiences of our lives.
The dogs are all very well behaved, there was not a single moment where we felt insecure in front of them. They are the sweetest and kindest… read more
From the day I arrived I felt at home, firstly thanks to Aaron, talented and brave man that is doing an incredible and important work.
Also the location of the shelter is… read more
I helped mostly with construction but always keeping an… read more
So, this is a really yong project, it just a guys from Florida passionate about dogs that choose to come in guatemala to build his own rescue center… read more
