Help us at our dog shelter in beautiful Marateca, Portugal

Infos

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  Description

  PLEASE READ THE WHOLE PROFILE 🙏
  
  Hi everyone,
  My name is Teresa and I am a retired English teacher from Portugal.
  I always have had a big heart for animals, especially dogs. That's why I started rescuing them 20 years ago and now it turned into a big project over the years. We run our own NGO including a shelter where we host around 400 dogs and 10 cats. All our dogs are listed up for adoption. We also collaborate with a German rescue organization which help me finding the dogs a new home.
  
  We rely on volunteers and since there's always a lot of tasks to do, a helping hand is always welcome!🙏
  
  Come and join me on my farm,
  
  Obrigado,
  Teresa

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  Types d'aide et opportunités d'apprendre

  Bénévolat

  Aide avec des éco-projets

  Jardinage

  Bricolage et construction

  S’occuper des animaux

  Aide dans une ferme

  Aide à la maison

  Entretien général
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  Centres d’intérêt

  

  Bénévolat

  

  Soin des plantes

  

  Jardinage

  

  Animaux

  

  Nature
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  Objectifs de développement durable de l’ONU que cet hôte essaie d'atteindre

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  Qu'est-ce que c'est ?
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  Echange culturel et opportunités d'apprendre

  Your stay will be a great experience for yourself and your personal development.
  You will learn a lot about the behavior of a pack of dogs—how they communicate and treat each other.
  You have the chance to meet people from abroad and make new friends.
  
  Additionally, you'll have the chance to explore the natural beauty of Portugal, with its cork trees and diverse wildlife. The farm is located away from tourist spots, offering you the tranquility of pure nature. However, the nearest larger city is just a 30-minute bus ride away.
  
  The next bigger village like Setúbal or Lisbon are beautiful and beaches are also within range.
  
  Local food overall is available for fair prices and worth to try.
  Please be aware that Portugal has a high meat and fish eating culture, so sometimes it might be tricky to find vegetarian or vegan dishes.

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  Aide

  - PLEASE READ THIS CAREFULLY-
  
  We require a minimum stay of 1 week, maximum 3 weeks
  - 5 days a week and minimum of 3 hrs/day working hours
  (of course more is always welcome) Sunday is always off
  
  We expect our volunteers to be punctual, flexible, physically fit, attentive and keen to learn.
  You can work in the morning or afternoon, please make sure you finish your tasks before you finish your shift and you need to arrange your preferred working time with the shelter manager.
  
  !!! You will be given instructions about the work and your tasks and we expect you to follow them-
  f.e. you have to be careful when entering the kennel in order to avoid a dog escapes.
  Please follow these instructions, we work with animals, some things might harm them which we want to avoid of course.
  
  If you don't mind hard work, love being with dogs and don't mind getting dirty, this will be an awesome place for you and you will love it.
  
  The main tasks at the farm are:
  - Cleaning kennels (cleaning feces and urine)
  -Cleaning and refilling water baskets
  -Refilling the Food containers
  - Repairing things, for example fences or wooden houses
  -watering and caring for plants
  -weekly Assistance of vet visits
  -spending all of your time with the dogs (after your shift) including cuddles
  and more :)
  
  No special equipment or experience is is required. Only clothes and shoes appropriate to the season in which you are travelling. Winter - conditions can be cold and wet and therefore muddy. Summer - the weather is hot and humid and much time is spent outdoors. Whatever the season - ALWAYS wear sensible shoes that give support and comfort. Best would be old sneakers or so.
  
  MOST IMPORTANT:
  PLEASE, please do not write us if you are expecting to come to a petting zoo, we are an animal rescue organization, not a holiday campsite 🙏🏻
  The work is physical, and of course, it's a farm, so you will get dirty and clean a lot of poop everyday. There are bugs, spiders, mice and sometimes rats.
  In order for you to be happy here you will need to be a practical person that doesn't get tired very quickly and is ready to put an extra effort into helping animals.
  
  Some people commit to us and then leave us after two days because they didn't realize that working with animals on a farm requires responsibility, dedication and a selfless spirit. Farm life is not for everyone, volunteering with us is an amazing experience but only if you love animals and understand fully the amount of daily work involved in caring for them. Farms are not apartments in cities where everything is sterilized. Sometimes it rains and everything gets muddy, you will get dirty, it will be super hot during the summer months and it will be tough to endure.
  If you are ready for all of this, please get in touch with us, if there are any doubts in you, rather don't apply, as we need the spot then for others who will be commited and enjoy helping us and the dogs.
  
  The sanctuary really needs the support of volunteers that understand all of the above.

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  Langues parlées

  Anglais: Courant
  Portugais: Courant
  Français: Débutant

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  Hébergement

  Your accommodation:
  
  We can offer:
  
  - First of all, a LOT of dogs! :)
  - One fully equipped Caravan with toilet, shower and a kitchen
  - one single bed room in a shared apartment directly on the farm, with private bedrooms, fully equipped kitchen and shared bathroom
  -one double bed room in a shared apartment directly on the farm, with private bedrooms, fully equipped kitchen and shared bathroom
  
  Bear in mind, our volunteer house is basic and is in the middle of the shelter and you might be woken up in the morning by dog sounds. Please do not expect a fancy apartment.
  
  - Towels and bed linen will be provided.
  - You will share the common areas with other volunteers.
  - The use of a wash machine is possible for free once a week
  - The apartment is in the middle of the dog kennels. So it can get loud in the night.
  (You might bring earplugs ;))
  - We will also provide a bicycle and a helmet, so you can get independently to the next village in a few minutes.
  - There is also the option to use the Shelter car, but is has priority for all sort of farm related trips f.e. to the vet, picking up dogs etc. A valid driver license is mandatory.
  - Unfortunately, we cannot provide meals. But you can get them for a low price in the next village.
  The water from the tap is drinkable.
  
  PLUS:
  - We ask you kindly to clean after yourself before you leave, we do not have much time to clean every time a volunteer leaves.
  - Whenever you want to go out for the night, you should sleep out - midnight being the limit to come back to the farm. The dogs will always bark once someone walks through the shelter, its very noisy and we ask to considerate the sleep of everyone else there.

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  Autres infos...

  !!!IMPORTANT INFORMATION!!!
  
  !SUNDAYS NO ARRIVAL/DEPARTURE!
  WEDNESDAY ARRIVAL AFTER 5pm!
  
  - ARRIVAL DAY-
  Please make sure when you book a flight, to keep in mind that you need to arrive at the farm latest 8pm on arrival day depending how you travel.
  
  Public transportation:
  1)When you travel by public transport and need a pick up from a close bus station, you need to be there latest 5.30pm! We can arrange a pick up at the bus station, if you let us know up front.
  Sundays is no public transport offered. Further instructions can be given.
  
  2)When you travel in your own (rental) car or by taxi, please make sure you also arrive at the farm latest at 8pm!
  
  If you arrive later due to unforeseen circumstances, inform Teresa(shelter manager) upfront via WhatsApp and we can try to find a solution. Otherwise you need to be aware that you need to arrange another accommodation the first night by yourself and you have to take care of the costs yourself too.
  
  -DEPARTURE DAY-
  If you have an early flight, please make sure to stay overnight somewhere else, as leaving the farm early in the morning is not possible. Also public transport might also not be available.
  
  Last but not least,
  We cannot host volunteers with their own dog. This would be too stressful for every party.

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  Informations complémentaires

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    Accès Internet

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    Accès Internet limité

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    Nous avons des animaux

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    Nous sommes fumeurs

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    Familles bienvenues

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  Espace pour garer des vans

  We can host maximum one camper van and bare in mind that the internet connection can be slow and weak.

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  Combien de volontaires pouvez-vous accueillir ?

  Plus de 2

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