We first saw Sophia on a cold winter night, as the volunteers of the shelter in Treviso had finally freed the Italian Jewels after a long hard struggle. There seemed an endless flood of photos of these beautiful but terribly thin and distressed Spinoni. Sophia was immediately recognisable with her white coat, sweet expression and lovely… Continue reading Celebrating Sophia 2011 – 2018
Phoebe was our first rescue from Italy, saved in the spring of 2015 from a cage in a puppy farm. She was six years old and had lived in a cage her whole life, with little human contact. She had no name, no comprehension of human kindness, no experience of being stroked or cuddled. In Italy,… Continue reading Celebrating Phoebe: 2009-2018
We are over the moon to announce that we’ve been recognised as an official UK charity by the Charities Commission. We are so pleased that the Commission recognised that our work was a benefit to the public, and filled a unique need. A huge thank you to our trustee Laura Norris, without whom we could… Continue reading SOFA is officially a charity!
In February we began to fundraise to support the rescue of a group of Spinoni near Rome. For the dogs’ safety we would still like to remain discreet about the details and would ask those of you who are aware of it not to post names. From your generosity, we were able to get some… Continue reading Rescues from Rome – the story so far
Our latest fundraising push is to help our Italian rescue colleagues support a large & complicated rescue currently underway in Italy. The Spinoni in question need better temporary accommodation and health care as well as specialist behavioural support, as several have had little or no human interaction and are terrified of their own shadows. We… Continue reading Fundraising for a new Spinone rescue
Roana was rescued in the spring of 2015 from a cage in a puppy farm. She was six years old and had lived in a cage her whole life, with little human contact. She had no name, no comprehension of human kindness, no experience of being stroked or cuddled. Irma was a young failed hunting… Continue reading Rehoming Stories: Roana and Irma
In January 2015, I was astonished to see Maria, a rescue contact in Cyprus, post a picture on Facebook, of a dog resembling a Spinone, in a kill shelter. In all honesty it was difficult to tell exactly what breed the dog was – it was so sick and emaciated. I asked the opinion of Bruce Auty… Continue reading Rehoming stories: Bruce
The Italian Jewels are a group of Spinone rescued from an abusive situation by the tenacious hard work of the ENPA Refuge in Treviso, Italy. These 22 dogs, many of which were very traumatised, now have wonderful experienced homes in the UK and the Netherlands. A long and emotional journey for everyone involved, there will… Continue reading Rehoming stories: The Italian Jewels
Lola was a little over a year old when a hunter left her tied up in an abandoned building to die. Luckily for her, someone heard her and she was brought to a kennel in Foggia, in the south of Italy. Marco, the volunteer who worked with her, posted photos of her on social media… Continue reading Rehoming stories: Lola
