Ride to promote message on pets

Sure, everyone knows a pet lover who will go that extra mile for a furry friend.

But Davide Ulivieri is about to go roughly 4,000 miles — on a moped scooter, no less — to raise awareness about the need to spay and neuter animals.

The Italian native is set to leave Sunday from the Nebraska Humane Society in Omaha on his Vespa (which means “wasp” in Italian). Ushering him out of town to Lincoln will be members of the Omaha Scooter Club.

“Like one of those stubborn wasps that doesn't leave you alone, I will remind anybody willing to listen that if we don't spay and neuter, we will never overcome the tragedy of homeless pets,” said Ulivieri, 47.

It's just the latest animal rescue adventure for the former kayak and fitness instructor who is in Omaha visiting supporters.

He biked around Central America to raise money to protect homeless animals in Costa Rica.

He cared for abandoned dogs in remote woods of California, and worked at another sanctuary in Utah.

This latest project will take him back to the shelter in Kanab, Utah. On the way there and back, taking nonfreeway and back roads, Ulivieri plans to tout (it's not a fundraising effort) his message. In Utah, he'll meet with animal advocates interested in promoting population control methods that Ulivieri applied in Costa Rica.

So what possesses a man to ditch a cushy career to protect strays?

Ulivieri wanted a change after a decade catering to wealthy folks in Miami. He simplified his lifestyle and camped around the country with his three dogs before winding up at the Utah and California sanctuaries.

When his last pet died, he volunteered in rural Costa Rica for the McKee Foundation, which aims to solve the problem of homeless animals without resorting to building shelters or mass euthanasia.

Funds from the 500-kilometer charity bike ride helped put on a series of mobile clinics to spay and neuter dogs and cats. It was a first for that impoverished area, where rural families struggle to feed children, let alone wandering animals.

Pet ownership was a mostly foreign concept there, Ulivieri said. Dogs and cats typically roam and have multiple care-givers.

The clinic itself was crude: operations on animals were done on top of a desk in a school.

But Ulivieri said the effort produced immediate results. People began to ask about post-surgical care. They took an interest in the animals as pets.

Ulivieri plans to return to Omaha to stay with friends and plan his next project. He wants to create additional
“No shelter, no kill” clinics in Costa Rica and other developing nations.

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Will pedal 4 strays...

January 26, 2010 Watch as well-wishers support Davide as he starts his journey from Dogtown at Best Friends on to Costa Rica. See the video! January at the sanctuary is not always the balmiest time of year — certainly not when it comes to cycling. Even so, avid cyclist and former Best Friends’ staffer Davide Ulivieri didn’t even flinch when strapping on his gear, despite the snow drifts outside and the fresh snow falling all around him. He had a bike ride to tackle, and the weather was just going to have to accommodate him one way or another. This was no jaunt around the block, either. Traveling on nothing but his own muscle power — and perhaps more than a few energy bars — Davide plans to cycle some 3,000 miles from Best Friends, USA, clear down to San José, Costa Rica. And he’s doing it all for the animals. Ride with purpose Davide used to work as a fitness instructor in Florida for a number of years. Tired of the lifestyle and ready for a change, he packed up his bags in 2002 and headed west with his dogs. He ended up at Best Friends, where he worked as a dog caregiver for two years. Afterward, he moved to California to manage a sanctuary in the middle of a forest. Looking after some 100 dogs, Davide lived in a 9’x9’ cabin in the woods without running water or even a bathroom. Talk about roughing it! But by living such a scaled-back, simple life, Davide was able to save up and prepare for something rather incredible. Davide wanted to donate one year of his life to help homeless pets. Combining his love for animals and love for cycling, Davide started an organization called Cycle 4 Strays. During the past year, Davide has been biking through Central America, trying to raise awareness about the importance of spay and neuter. And, he’s carried it one step further than just education. He’s helped set up actual spay and neuter clinics to help the strays in those struggling communities. The Cycle 4 Strays motto is: "Whether across town or across the border, if we can help, we have a moral obligation to do so." And have no doubt, Davide is one who walks the walk, or rather, cycles the course. "I don’t think we should short-change the animals in any country, just because we have political differences," explains Davide. Keep riding Early on in his cycling efforts to help stray animals, Davide connected with the McKee Foundation, a nonprofit group that focuses on promoting spay and neuter in Central America and the Caribbean. The McKee Foundation also runs a training facility in Costa Rica that teaches local vets how to perform small incision spay and neuter surgeries. Many vets from developing countries are not taught this low-cost, minimally invasive procedure. With this training in place, more animals can be treated. Once Davide realized a mere $10 will get a dog or cat spayed or neutered, he couldn’t wait to help out even more. His first ride for the animals was in early 2009. (At a distance of 300 miles, it was one-tenth the ride this current one will be.) Even so, Cycle 4 Strays more than doubled their intended fundraising goals on private donations alone. Inspired further, Davide immediately set to work planning a bigger ride. Cycle 4 Strays 2010 is much more ambitious, in both mileage and financial goals. Davide and team hope to raise $20,000 for the animals by the end of the two-month, 3,000-mile ride. Every dollar of the donated funds goes to the McKee Foundation, which in turn will use the money to set up spay and neuter clinics in the countries Davide will be grinding through on his bike. "Ten dollars is a lot of money in these countries," Davide points out. As part of the big ride, Davide will be making stops along the way to talk with the communities and to see how the McKee Foundation can help them. When he started making plans for the big ride, Best Friends (which supports the McKee Foundation) was at the top of Davide’s list for being the staring point for the ride. The communities he plans to raise money for "tend to feel very isolated," Davide explains. He wanted to start the ride in the United States to let them know we do care. We do, and want to lend a hand, so what better place to begin such a ride than where he first began his work for the animals? Supportive send off Back at the sanctuary for the start of the ride, Davide was thrilled to see some of the old dogs he used to love and care for. Paris, Newton, Chow Baby, and Boomer were just a few of the familiar faces. For a guy who stops and says hello to every dog he meets, it should come as no surprise these dogs were thrilled to see their old friend. People and dogs alike lined up at the starting line to cheer him on and count down the grand departure. Several caregivers even showed up with bikes to escort him down the road. Yes, the snow was falling, but that didn’t dampen anybody’s spirits. Besides, there was a method to the madness of starting a bike ride in January. Down in Central America, it’s summer. Plain and simple, he had to start now or he’d have ended up hitting the rainy season when he got far enough south. In a world where many people have a hard time riding a bike across town, here’s a guy riding through world climate zones — and all for a great cause! For anybody interested in following the journey, Davide has set up a Twitter page to share every backbreaking mile on the road. As with every Cycle 4 Strays’ ride, all who would like to participate are welcome to join him on the road for one mile, or one thousand. It’s not a race. It’s a chance to help homeless pets in a part of the world that has more than its fair share of them. Of course, while not everybody can pedal a bike over mountains and across continents, a small donation to help the cause is all Davide and Cycle 4 Strays could hope for. Best of luck on the adventure of a lifetime, Davide. And thanks for all you’re doing. Story by David Dickson Photos by Sarah Ause and Molly Wald Davide is promoting the importance of spaying and neutering around the world. For more spay/neuter resources, check out the Best Friends online library.

NEWS

GEPDA AND CYCLE 4 STRAYS TEAM UP IN MEXICO

January 18, 2010

Gente por la Defensa Animal (GEPDA), a Mexico City nonprofit that works to promote animal rights in Mexico and Cycle 4 Strays have joined forces for the benefit of all Mexican strays. Founded in 2005 by a group of animal advocates, GEPDA is a small organization that, relying mostly on the work of volunteers, is making a difference in the way all animals, but especially companion animals, are perceived and treated in Mexico.

“The issue of animal rights in Mexico is in its infancy,” says Ana Karla Perez of GEPDA. “Whereas in other nations animals are protected by a system of laws governing society, the situation in Mexico differs, where animals are still considered property or objects without rights of their own.  Gente por la Defensa Animal seeks to address the apathy that characterizes both Mexican society and its government as far as animal welfare is concerned.”

 

GEPDA will be one of the stops on the Cycle 4 Strays charity ride that will connect

Best Friends to the McKee Foundation in Costa Rica. McKee and GEPDA share many common elements. They both approach animal welfare with a No Kill, No Shelter model focusing on spay and neuter to control population, a network of foster homes to assist animals in need and strong outreach programs that are designed to help communities grow into becoming more welcoming environments for animals. “We are trying to work together, sharing our strengths and addressing weaknesses. Hopefully, the results will be beneficial to strays throughout the region…” says Laura Hoffmann, one of the riders that will be in Kanab as part of the C4S team.

 

GEPDA’s work can be summarized as focusing on four different areas of community outreach/education: cruelty reports, education, adoptions and spay & neuter campaigns. Because of the fact that GEPDA does not maintain shelters, all animals rescued from the street are placed in foster homes while the adoption staff works on a match.

 

In the past few years GEPDA managed to make a difference in hundreds of cases ranging from animal abuse (both of wild life and domestic pets) to rescuing stray animals in dire need of assistance. 

 

Citlali’s story serves as an example. Citlali was just a puppy when she was rescued along with twenty other dogs living in squalor in a very poor neighborhood of Mexico City. GEPDA volunteers stepped in, rescued the animals, provided much needed medical care and placed many in foster homes. Today, Citlali is very happy with her foster parents. She is still a little underweight, but eating well and enjoying lots of playtime with the other dogs that live in the same home. Playful and affectionate, Citlali dreams that one day she too will have a permanent home to call her own. Meanwhile, GEPDA volunteers check on her regularly and make sure she is well taken care of as they continue their efforts to place her.

 

Moreover, GEPDA actively cooperates with established and well recognized organizations in the United States and abroad, such as the Wildlife Sanctuary in Colorado and the World Society for the Protection of Animals in Costa Rica (WSPA).

 

 

As more animal advocacy groups join hands and share experiences and resources, the fight to end the tragedy of homeless pets becomes a global phenomenon. It is our sincere hope that one day we will be able to reach out to every community in every country where there are animals in need of assistance.

 

What can you do:

Visit  www.gepda.org if you wish to support their work in Mexico.

Visit www.cycle4strays.com to follow the ride as C4S riders cross Mexico and link with GEPDA.

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News 

Cuba: Cycle 4 Strays

November 18, 2009

 

Davide Ulivieri has spent the last year pedaling through developing nations to raise funds and awareness about the conditions of homeless companion animals.  Recently, he visited Cuba as part of the Cycle 4 Strays program and shared his impressions with the Best Friends Network.
 

My personal Cuban adventure begins in San Jose', Costa Rica, when I find out that, as an Italian, I need a visa to fly to La Habana.  The direction to the embassy reads "located 200 meters north of El Chicote, 50 meters west, 100 meters north", which means that first I must locate the El Chicote restaurant, proceed north for 2 blocks, cut west for half a block, then turn right and head north again for 2 more blocks.  Sure enough the embassy is exactly where it is supposed to be and I feel like I just followed some pirate's treasure map that lead me to the hidden booty.

I am traveling to Cuba to make contact with the Spanky Project, a Canadian foundation dedicated to improving animal welfare on the island.

True to the Cycle 4 Strays motto that reads "Whether across town or across the border, if we can help, we have a moral obligation to do so" I intend to find out if there is anything that we can do to bring some relief to the strays that roam La Habana and the rest of the island.  After all, the strays of Cuba are as hungry and needy as the ones that struggle to survive on the streets of other nations and should not suffer because we cannot settle our political differences.

The C4S volunteer in La Habana picks me up at the airport in a convertible  '54 Chevy Bel Air painted a beautiful aqua blue that screams "Welcome to Cuba!"

I toss my bag in the back seat and jump in, he hits the gas and we are off in a cloud of black smoke that spells o-z-o-n-e  d-i-s-a-s-t-e-r.  We cruise the wide open boulevards and I immediately think of the Ramblas of Barcelona.  The colonial buildings that line the streets are spectacularly decadent, worn and beaten by both weather and lack of maintenance.  Still, they project an aura of such dignified elegance that I am instantly captivated.  They tell a story of old aristocracy now fallen from grace. The Avenidas are vast and wide, lined with beautiful trees; traffic is sparse, so we rapidly cross town and enter the Old Habana which pulsates with a totally different rhythm.  Gone are the residences of the foreign diplomats and heads of state of Miramar, here the streets are narrower, traffic is hectic, the sidewalks jam packed with pedestrians, vendors and strays. This is the Habana I had in mind, one where you can actually touch, feel and taste the real Cuba.  The Agros (markets where the locals shop for fruits and veggies with the Peso Nacional, different from the Peso Convertible which allows you to shop in the more upscale markets favored by tourists) are packed with shoppers, but the selection available is scarce.  Stray dogs roam the alleys, negotiating the crowd and begging with ease.  The feeling is one of dignified poverty and the strays carry themselves with the same friendly attitude that I found all over Central America.

I snap pictures and talk to passersby, who are friendly and warm.  My first impression of Cuba is of a country where people love each other and life, smiling and laughing, dealing with shortages, limitations and restrictions on a daily basis, but still managing to find the time to chat with a complete stranger and tell the story of the dog that hangs out on the corner.  In the end, animal lovers are alike the world over: always willing to share and help.
I am instantly touched and fascinated by the street life.  I absorb the noise and the colors, listen to the music that spills out of the open doors of people's homes, squat next to the dogs that walk by me and feel excited yet sad as I always do when I encounter so many homeless pets.  I gaze deep into the dark eyes of a happy mutt, lean and worn by a life spent on the street, and they tell me a story of long distances covered in search of food, nights huddled in the entrance of buildings and fleeting moments of love handed out by strangers.  In true Cuban fashion, though, he smiles happy, licking my hand and face, as I take a break and share my snack and water with him.  Then, with a last glance in my direction, he takes off, tail held up high, darting through traffic with the consummate ease of a true ¨Callejero¨ (street dog). 

Later in the week I sit down with the doctors of the Consejo Cientifico Veterinario de Cuba and we discuss the programs being implemented to improve animal welfare. One thing is instantly clear: this is not a developing nation.  Here, we are a far cry from the situations that I have become accustomed to throughout Central America and the rest of the Caribbean, where vets graduate from medical school without knowing how to perform advanced spay and neuter surgeries or where veterinary care for small animals is simply not commercially viable.  Not to mention the often complete lack of educational and outreach programs and neighborhoods that are overwhelmed with hundreds of strays roaming the streets and living off garbage.  In Cuba, doctors learn and practice advanced surgical protocols, the Consejo publishes and distributes material promoting spay and neuter, adoption and responsible pet ownership.  This is a country where education is taken in great consideration and where garbage is routinely removed and disposed. The streets are clean and reasonably well maintained, housing, medical care and other social programs are in place and operational.  Still, supplies are very, very limited and animal advocates struggle to make a difference, yet perform miracles with very few resources.

Throughout my visit I try to stay focused on the animal welfare issue, but, inevitably, the conversation spills into more politically charged areas.  The older the people the more supportive of the Revolution, the younger the more impatient with the restrictions imposed and lack of opportunities in the capitalistic sense of the expression. Still, this is a society that functions in a totally different way and I am fascinated with it.

I walk the entire length of the Malecon (boardwalk) and reach the El Morro fortress and the old Cathedral.  Here the buildings are perfectly restored and the cobblestones that pave the alleys take you back to the days when Spanish galleons were routinely moored in port. Street vendors offer a vast assortment of antique books and art, images of el Che (Commander Ernesto ¨Che¨ Guevara, one of the leaders of the Cuban revolution) and cigars branded with legendary names like Partagas and Corona.

After 10 days in the streets of La Habana I caught a glimpse of the life that Cuban strays live and I am determined to offer my small contribution to help make a difference.  Back in Costa Rica I discuss the issue with the managers of the McKee Foundation and we decide to extend a helping hand.  Stay tuned for upcoming information.  Who knows? Once the 2010 Cycle 4 Strays (a bicycle charity ride departing from Best Friends and arriving in Costa Rica, visit www.cycle4strays.com for more information) is completed, we could consider riding in Cuba.  Sporting events have always been a great way to bridge cultural and political differences and pedaling for the strays of Cuba to raise funds and supplies is the right thing to do, whether you wish to follow el Che or not.

What can you do:

-support the Spanky Project, visit
www.spankyproject.org for more information on how
to donate supplies that can help make a difference in
the lives of Cuban strays.

-support Cycle 4 Strays, visit www.cycle4strays.com
Your donation ensures the continuity of the outreach programs that the
McKee Foundation implements for nations in need.

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NEWS
Buzzing for Strays: The McKee Project
September 02, 2009

LatinAmerica&Caribbean.bestfriends.org

By Brandi Bennett

The fundraiser and spay/neuter clinic was a huge success in Costa Rica! 

When Alonso Castro walked in the San Juan de Sarchí Public School I knew we had succeeded.  We were just getting started with the first Spay/Neuter Clinic organized in this area by the McKee Project, a US non profit that focuses on the long term solution of homeless pets in impoverished countries by promoting Spay/Neuter and teaching the Small Incision Method to Local Veterinarians.




Alonso, a 24 years old mechanic, cradled a small female dog in his arms. Rosita, he explained, had wondered into the local high school a few days ago, obviously lost, hungry and in need of assistance. The kids involved the teachers, the teachers involved the community and Alonso and his wife decided to help. They contacted the McKee Project volunteers who were busy advertising the S/N clinic scheduled for May 9th and signed Rosita up.  More...