The saviors of stray dogs, cats in Vietnam

In Ho Chi Minh City, several animal rescue and care groups have been founded over recent years.

“Full Houses” of dogs and cats

One such group is “Pet Mai Am” (Home for Pets) on Pham Van Chieu Street in Ho Chi Minh City’s Go Vap District, which was founded by a woman nicknamed Amy.

“Whenever I hear a meow on the street, I stop to look for him or her. Animal lovers are all keen to their desperate cries,” shared Amy.

The ground floor of the rented house is for the dogs, while the first floor is for the kittens and the second for the adult cats.

“These cats are in dire need of people’s love and attention, while those in the corner are ‘autistic’ and so don’t get on well with humans or the other cats,” shared Amy, surrounded by her cuddly friends.

Founded in early 2012 by Amy and her 20-member volunteer group called Gao Team, who are mostly local youths and students, the place is now home to some 40 cats and 10 dogs, including sick ones.

The house aims to provide shelter, food and medical care for stray, abused dogs and cats and seeks new owners for them, as well as raise local awareness of responsible treatment toward animals at the same time.

“At the beginning, we encountered numerous difficulties, particularly finding a place to house the animals. We were constantly on the move, as neighbors complained about the stink and noise,” Amy shared.

Amy and her group spend anywhere from VND20 to VND25 million (up to US$1,177) per month, which they receive in donations among local and foreign animal lovers, for food and medical fees for their animals.

They also train and update themselves on common dog and cat illnesses and coordinate closely with local vets to make sure the animals are healthy and happy.

Amy and other group members remember all their dogs’ and cats’ names as well as their own personalities, including “Dai Ca Meo” (Cat Gang Leader,) an aggressive, tri-colored cat with an imposing gait, and “Rach Nach” (Torn Armpits), a white fluffy cat whose flesh under his arms suffered gangrene when he was rescued.

“Everyone here is both the boss and servant of dogs and cats,” Terry, a group member, said laughingly with a cat sleeping soundly on his thigh.

Ken and Terry are two volunteers who live in the house. The two young men take care of all the chores, including bathing, feeding, tending to the sick, and cleaning up their waste.

Long, 26, another volunteer, collects packages of dog and cat food, and all other things donated by animal lovers.

“It’s easy to come here and play with the dogs and cats for one or two days, but it takes immense love for the animals to stay committed to the job,” he shared.

Another volunteer, who had a fresh scar on his leg, shared that as he rushed to a stray cat’s help in the rain, his bike tipped over on the slippery street. He was displeased, however, because he failed to rescue the cat.

Amy underwent four plastic surgeries and two hospitalizations for the injuries inadvertently caused by her beloved animals while she made attempts to stop them from fighting with one another.

“Once I was bitten by one of my dogs while I tried to push away the dog it was fighting with. I was in sheer pain, with my face distorted and arm and leg tendons torn. I was totally crushed at that time. But I’ve never given up what I’m doing as my love for them is boundless,” she said.

Thao, a high school teacher in Ho Chi Minh City’s District 8, has also been dedicated to cat rescue for four years, turning her own house into a cat ‘sanctuary’.

Thao brings home any cat which she and others find on the street, takes good care of them and looks for new homes for them. She welcomes at least two new feline members per day.

The 80-year-old cat lady

Le Thi Quy, 80, lives in an alley of Dinh Tien Hoang Street in Ho Chi Minh City’s District 1.

Quy’s home is the shabbiest structure in the alley, which is lined with several-storied houses. Her roughly 30 square meter shed also stinks the most and is invariably full of cats meowing and dogs barking.

She left her hometown of Hanoi and settled in the southern region after her marriage at 17.

One year later, she gave birth to her daughter right before divorcing her husband. Her daughter is now married and lives in the U.S.

In her loneliness, she began taking home and tending to stray, abused cats. Over the past 40 years, she has taken care of some hundred animals, mostly cats.

The old woman frequently brings home newborns which she bottle-feeds and takes meticulous care of.

At 80, with her bent back and other health issues, she still struggles to make her living selling fish sauce and grocery at District 1’s Da Kao market between 5:00 am and 2:00 pm every day, earning only a few dollars a day.

Once she gets home, she spends most of her time feeding the animals and cleaning their messes, sometimes well past midnight.

The shed lacks a bed, so she and her animals sleep on sheets of newspaper spread on the damp floor.

Despite her decrepit age, Quy remembers each of her animals’ personalities and where she found them, and loves fondling and talking to them.

Her neighbors and anyone who knows her usually donate rice and other food.

Concerned that she may run out of time soon, she has made arrangements with a local animal care association to care for her animals after she passes away.