It’s no surprise that I fall in love with animals at every turn, no matter the type, age, or size. THEY ARE ALL ANGELS.
I had the opportunity to travel all over Havana, Cuba, a city alive with an endless supply of vibrant culture, movement, and energy.
The architecture and street art were truly spectacular, unlike anything I've ever seen. It was like time traveling back to the 1950's with classic cars filling the streets; the unique Cuban experience. But my most favorite part was the lovingpreciousadorableperfect dogs and cats that wander the streets. They were the cuddliest of creatures, wanting to snuggle by your side and accept any love you’d be willing to give. Fair warning, probably definitely need to wash your hands after because they didn’t smell great, but dang they were cute.
This was my heaven, but seamlessly arose some frustrations.
I was upset seeing how extremely dehydrated their fragile bodies felt. Like most animals without homes or living on the street, they had no access to water. I watched as they’d try to drink from what few puddles there were in the cracks of the streets. This made me think long and hard about the bigger picture. What we can be doing to help animals in 3rd world countries gain access to water? If it’s a struggle for people to get water, imagine the animals.
One of the days I was there, it happened to rain. You could see water flushing out of the gutters onto the side of the street. Enough of a puddle, and these animals would flock to the water. This sparked an idea in my mind. How amazing would it be to attach bowls to the bottom of gutters to collect rain water for animals to drink?! I have absolutely zero logistics, and no concrete plan. But for now, this thought is going to keep me all jazzed up.
One of my dear friends on the trip told me that she had heard of an initiative in Argentina with the same concept going forward to hydrate their street animals!! I couldn’t find any further information about it on Google, so if anyone knows any further information regarding that topic, please comment and let me know!
Luckily for these animals, there are some epic improvements by the Cuban Association for the Protection of Animals and Plants (ANIPLANT), a non-governmental organization founded by none other than Cuba’s first prima ballerina, Alisia Alonso. Its focus is on improving the lives of dogs and other animals in Havana by eliminating animal suffering through massive spay and neuter campaigns, public education, animal health promotion, and hands-on intervention in cases of animal suffering.
If you have the opportunity to travel to Cuba, I urge you to look into this organization, or others similar before you leave. Cuba’s lack of resources is a tremendous problem and even something as simple as basic animal medications for wounds, heartworms, or anxiety can be thrown in your carry-on. The impact we can make with the supplies we have access to is limitless.
I’m happy to be sharing with you all this dream, because maybe we share the same dream. Maybe we share this same goal to save the world one paw print at a time.
Let’s be brave.
xoxo,
Lex
