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Food shortage report

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Food shortage report

Covid – Spring-summer 2020

HISTORY:

In early March 2020, a virus called Covid19 surfaced in Europe. By the middle of March, the number of infected in Hungary increased dangerously, schools and kindergartens were closed overnight. Employees were required to work from home. Our phone started ringing non-stop “What will happen to us if there is no leftovers from the canteens? How are we going to feed the dogs? ”

Several organizations have well-established relationships and contracts with local food stores, where they purchase near-sell-by-date products. The shelter buys its meat and bakery supplies from them. We started feverishly brainstorming on this matter. Meanwhile, the panic caused by the virus lead the population to overfill their storage, which resulted in empty shop shelves and a basic food and meat shortage for the coming days. There was no surplus, there was no near-sell-by-date product, and there was nothing to buy.

As the Ant Community, we hold a monthly food rally, which is then distributed among rural shelters. Because all gathering and mass events were banned, this route was not available anymore.

We consulted with higher regulatory bodies but they were not sensitive to the topic. Meanwhile, the food reserves of the shelters were rapidly running out.
We had no choice but to turn to the public, to animal-friendly supporters.
We took on a big task, but we couldn’t wait any longer to see if the state, the official bodies, would step in.
As an umbrella organization, we felt obligated to help!
So we started our FOOD SHORTAGE campaign.

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INITIATIVES:

We have witnessed a fantastic community support. As the problem intensified, we were joined by animal lovers, groups of friends, companies and individuals.

We tried to use all the media opportunities and other forums to emphasize: “the biggest help if everyone invested in the shelter closest to them”. The shelters all indicated that there had never been so many helpers interested, never has so many food donations have arrived.

ACHIEVEMENTS:

It was devastating to see how many requests for help came in, many described that they considered us their last hope. In many places, there was really only enough food available for a few days, and they didn’t know how the day after tomorrow will look like.

Individuals:

The problem affected the entire country. We sacrifice all our free time to help animals, so – naturally, in this situation – we could not differentiate between dogs and cats, regardless whether they were stray or living with their owners.

41 requests for assistance were received from outside organizations. 26 civil animal rescuer or animal welfare teams and 15 individual animal keepers indicated that the feeding of the animals they cared for was at risk. Most have found themselves in this situation due to the loss of their own jobs. We were able to help a total of 675 dogs and 634 cats.

Animal welfare organizations (associations/foundations):

Requests for help from animal welfare organizations caused bigger issues, as they always take care of a larger number of animals. Our work was hindered by the fact that local shops ran out of food. Fortunately, a couple of rural stores such as Aldi, Lidl and Tesco were sensitive to the problem. When goods arrived, we could receive them in larger quantities. Transport to the shelter, on the other hand, was difficult to solve. Delivery of orders from national web-shops were delayed for weeks. We could not find any transport for the goods we collected in Budapest, because everyone was reluctant to leave their house and the transport companies also stopped operating. We kept answering phone calls, while our personal lives were also paralyzed. Because we had to find a solution immediately, a hungry animal can’t be told that we ordered it, only the truck is on the Polish border.

Every organization works differently. There are those who prefer to feed with dry food, whereas some swear by less food but with better quality. There are places where they cook locally or where they feed raw. Due to the situation, we tried to supply the food to which the animals are accustomed in every shelter. Dog owners know that a change of diet can lead to diarrhoea. Imagine this in a shelter with hundreds of animals: we didn’t want to cause trouble, we wanted to help. Many places had to blend their diets due to the emergency situation.

We allocated the donations based on the number of animals cared for per shelter (pretty much like a quota system). We didn’t turn down requests where special food was needed, the lack of which could cost the dog’s life (eg. kidney support…, etc.). In each case, we sought a quantity discount, to which the manufacturers responded very positively – so we could help a lot more than we originally thought.

We managed to support 93 animal welfare organizations, many of them multiple times. We were able to lend a helping hand in feeding a total of 7,303 dogs and 1,974 cats. You can find the list of organizations that received the donation at the bottom of the report.

We are in contact with 220 organizations and we can say that the collaboration during these times was fantastic. The organizations stood together as one, and when they received surplus they handed it over to their counterparts in need immediately. They worked together, supported each other with no sign of jealousy or finger-pointing.

SPONSORS, DONORS:

It’s going to be a long list because we deliberately don’t want to miss anyone. The collaboration and combining of our forces meant that we were able to take on this huge task as a single organization. In retrospect, we can say, that with the help of our supporters, no sheltered animal had to starve during the first wave of the pandemic. Many brought a bag of food, some organized donations among their friends. There were also individuals who supported starving animals with an amount of over one hundred thousand forints. We owe a huge debt of gratitude to everyone because we couldn’t have managed this alone.

Community donations:

NIOK, the operator of the adjukössze.hu crowed fundraising site, immediately contacted us to offer a helping hand. Thank you for your support! HUF 3,019,000 was raised through our community fundraising, and HUF 3,231,425 was donated through our helpline.

https://adjukossze.hu/kampany/Elelemhiany-a-menhelyen-1905

The HáziPatika.com readers’ community provided a helping hand and in 4 days we received 4x as much support as we dreamed of. You can read our report here.

http://www.hangyakozosseg.hu/hirek/hazipatika-com-olvasoi-segitettet

For us, one of the most touching moments is when a small community feels like it has to do something to help. They were all like that. Thanks to their fundraising campaign, we were able to support puppies or sick dogs in a poorer condition not only with quantitative but also with quality food and special life-saving foods:

  • Customers of MANU soap
  • HEK A community of animal lovers who stood by us from the first minute
  • A fantastic team of 4CS who has become one of our biggest supporters by sewing mouth masks
  • Verkstaden – with its wonderful products
  • CIB Bank’s Uncrowned Heroes program, which included us in the EVAR initiative
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  • Muriel, Madrian and Mi van, Cicus!? bands and their fans (listen to them, very good!)
  • The group of “Season Opening Motorcycle Rally” whose event was cancelled this year due to the pandemic, and to which we were invited and were really looking forward to going to!
  • Ildikó Polgár and Dr Anita Panyik delivered food to shelters which was offered by Petissimo

Besides these, there were many, many smaller initiatives for which 4 pages would not be enough to list and without them, we would not be where we are today.

“And the most important! We were able to support the animals, who were on the brink of starvation with nearly 100 tons (97.67 tons) of food (!!!), all thanks to the help of the community. This is very unique! 87.09 tons of food was donated to dogs and 10.58 tons of food for the cats!”

 

We thank Díjnet and MagnetBank, who through their support program, gave us the opportunity to connect the community. Thanks to those who supported our movement in any other forums!

Material donations:

We also had many positive surprises with material donations. Carriers and donation organizers offered to deliver what was collected – of course in compliance with all hygiene rules.

Nearly 14 tons of food donations were received from individuals and companies.

  • Individuals: Food runner team, Naplás Gyöngye kennel, Nagy csapat, Márta arrived with premium quality food, Tamás and his friends, Zsüliett L., Ádám T., Katalin Hoffmann, Gödöllő group and last but not least Barbara Orosz
  • Animal welfare organizations also extended a helping hand to each other. The donations were exchanged where needed, if there was just a surplus passed on, and reached out to each other if a need arose. Everyone worked together as a huge team.
  • We also received a lot of inquiries from civilians, who brought a fair few bags of food to our suddenly appointed collection points. We believe that every little help.
  • Corporate assistance came from the following companies:
    • Partner in Pet Food Hungary Kft.
    • Petissimo.hu
    • Piko-Pet Food Kft
    • koronavirusosszefogas . hu
    • Cupák Pet food
    • district AlphaZoo Mátyásföld
  • Here we need to mention those who personally wanted to take the food they bought to the shelters or wanted to directly support the chosen organization and asked for our recommendation. We received feedback from many places that the support or donation had arrived. The amount of these was not tracked by the Ant Community, but it has greatly helped in the food collection.

Last but not least, we would like to thank all our volunteers who helped us at night, on weekends, pushing their daytime job in the background, and supported our work with creativity, administration, transportation, logistics, mailing! Thank you for being such a great team!

„Who received help through our community:

  • 15 individuals
  • 119 animal welfare protection teams (organization and civil)
  • 10,586 animal received from the donations. Out of which 7,903 dogs and 2,475 cats in shelters.

The following 92 animal welfare organizations received support:

A Remény Rabjai Állatvédő Egyesület – Túrkeve
Ágica Sérültállat Menedéke Alapítvány – Solt
Alex Állatvédő Egyesület – Várpalota
Állatbarát Alapítvány – Nyíregyháza
Állatmenhely Nyílt Alapítvány – Cegléd
Állatokat Védjük Együtt Alapítvány – Eger
Állatotthon Alapítvány – Budapest
Állatvédők Vasi Egyesülete – Szombathely
Anita Állatmentő Egyesület – Nagykőrös
Argos Állatvédelmi Egyesület – Kecskemét
Árvák Menedéke Állatvédő Egyesület – Kunszentmárton
Battonyai Állatmentők Alapítványa – Battonya
Berettyóújfalui Kóbor Mancsok Állatvédő Egyesület – Berettyóújfalu -Kaba
Bodolai Ferenc Add a Mancsod Alapítvány – Debrecen
Bogáncs Zalaegerszegi Állatvédő Egyesület – Zalaegerszeg
Buksi Állatvédő Egyesület – Balmazújváros
Bundás Barát Állatvédő Egyesület – Gyál
Cerberos Pit Bull Rescue – Budapest
Csabai Állatvédők KHE – Békéscsaba
Csalódott Állatok Csodás Otthona Alapítvány – Mályi
Csellengő Kutyák Állatsegítő Alapítvány – Monok
Csellengő Tappancsok Állatmentő Alapítvány – Forráskút/Szeged
Csellengők Állatotthon Alapítvány – Gomba
Dél-alföldi Állatvédelmi Őrszolgálat Alapítvány – Szeged és környéke
Eb az Ebekért Állatvédő Egyesület – Kunszentmárton
Elhagyott állatokért első Sárréti Regionális Állatvédő Egyesület – Püspökladány
“Esély” Állat- és Természetvédő Egyesület – Békés
Frakk Várpalota és Környéke Állatvédő Egyesület – Várpalota
Füzesabonyi Állatvédő Alapítvány – Füzesabony
Győri Puha Praclik Egyesület – Győr
Hajdúszoboszlói Kutyabarátok Egyesület – Hajdúszoboszló
HEROSZ Ózdi Szervezete  – Ózd, Kiskapud
Igéző Állatvédő Egyesület – Hódmezővásárhely
Junior Kisállat Rezervátum – Szolnok
Kántor Állatvédelmi Alapítvány – Pásztó
Karma kutyamenedék alapítvány – Farmos
Kis Mancsok Nagy Szívek Állatvédő Egyesület – Harkány – Siklós
Kiskunhalasi Állatvédő Egyesület – Kiskunhalas
Kismaszat Állatmentő Egyesület – Budapest
Kisújszállási Kutyabarát és Állatvédő Civil Egyesület – Kisújszállás
Kóbor Mancsok Mentéséért Alapítvány – Csongrád-Szentes
Kóborlók Állatvédelmi Egyesülete – Nyírmada
“Kóbor Szívek” Állatmentő és Környezetvédő Alapítvány – Karcag
Komlói Állatvédő Egyesület – Komló
Kondorosi Állatvédő Egyesület – Kondoros
Kuci Kisállatmenhely Alapítvány – Budapest
Kutyabarátok Egyesülete – Szentgotthárd
Kutyakötelesség Állatvédő Alapítvány – Nagykáta
Kutya Mentsvár Alapítvány – Gyömrő
Kutyamentés Állatvédő Alapítvány – Tiszafüred
Kutyások a XV. Kerületért Állatvédő Egyesület – Budapest
Lelenc Kutyamentő egyesület- Vácrátót-Őrbottyán
Léleklánc Állat- és Környezetvédő Alapítvány – Országos
Macs-Eb Remény Egyesület – Sátoraljaújhely
Magyar Macskavédő Alapítvány – Országos
Mancs a Kézben Kutyamentő Alapítvány – Kiskunhalas
Mancs a Szívben Állatvédő Egyesület – Salgótarján
Mancsos Segítőtársaink Terápiás Állatok Alapítvány – Paks
Menedék Állatvédő Egyesület – Dánszentmiklós
Mentsvár az állatokért Alapítvány – Lajosmizse
Mini Mancsok Állatvédő Egyesület – Békéscsaba
Mogyoró Menedék Egyesület /Mogyoró Állatotthon/ – Szentes
Német Vizslák Fajtamentő Egyesülete – Dunaharaszti
Olt-Alom Állatotthon – Vásárosnamény
Orosházi Állatvédők – Szikhát Kutyamenhely – Orosháza
Országos Állatvédőrség – Országos
Osiris Alapítvány – Békéscsaba
Összefogás a Bajai Cicákért Egyesület – Baja
Összefogás az Állatokért Alapítvány – Mátészalka
Pacsi Kutyamenhely Alapítvány – Hajdúböszörmény
PCAS Állatmentő Egyesület – Nyíregyháza
Pelyhes Peti Alapítvány – Tata
Puli Állatvédő Egyesület – Debrecen, Hajdúsámson
Réno Kutyaotthon Alapítvány – Ladánybene
San Lazaro Állatvédő Alapítvány – Balassagyarmat és környező települései
Segíts a Macskákon Alapítvány – Kiskunfélegyháza
Speciális Állatmentő Egység Alapítvány – Budapest
Sünbarát Alapítvány – Budapest
Szentendrei Árvácska Állatvédő Egyesület – Szentendre
Szent Ferenc Állatotthon Alapítvány – Ócsa
Teli tál- teli pocak Állatjóléti Egyesület – Szolnok és környéke
Tordaszoo Állatmentő Farm – Gyúró
Tótkomlósi Állatvédő Egyesület – Tótkomlós
Tündérmajor Állatvédő Egyesület – Miskolc
Ugat-Lak Közhasznú Alapítvány – Kisvárda
Új Esély Állatvédő és Állatmentő Alapítvány – Csongrád
Újhold Állatvédelmi Alapítvány – Budapest
Vackoló Közhasznú Állatvédő Egyesület – Szentkirályszabadja
Váczikai Cerberus Alapítvány – Paks
Vagabond Állatvédő Egyesület – Budapest
Viharsarki Állatőrség Alapítvány – Viharsarok
Zemplén Gazdátlan Állataiért Alapítvány – Sátoraljaújhely
Zseton Egyesület – Érd

Thank you for this ACHIEVEMENT!

Pictures can be viewed here:
https://www.facebook.com/pg/HangyaKozosseg/photos/?tab=album&album_id=2846515275439611

This is a fantastic thing, an incredible miracle is happening right now with us, with them, the dogs!

The hardest part of our job is to respond immediately when there is trouble. Regular donations provide a solid basis for this, allowing for more predictable assistance.

  • For individuals: Please, if you have the opportunity, support our work with a regular donation, even if with a small amount each month. As “Ants”, we believe that: “A lot of little goes a long way”
  • For companies, corporations: The legislation provides the possibility that with our donation certificate, 20% can be deducted from the tax base after a single grant and 40% after a 3-year regular grant signed in a contract. As a non-profit organization, members of the Ethical Fundraising Organization, our work is transparent and traceable.

Contact: info@hangyakozosseg.hu

Thank you for letting us help!

Please support the homeless if you can.

  • Bank: MagNet Bank Zrt. Ant Community
    Bank account number: 16200223-10044991-00000000
  • Paypal: PayPal.me/hangyakozosseg
    IBAN: HU06 1620 0223 1004 4991 0000 0000
    SWIFT: HBWEHUHB
  • 13 600/82 – You can support our work with 500 HUF by calling or texting to our helpline
  • Remember your 1%, think of stray animals. We do for them
    Tax number: 18732993-1-42

Ant Community Foundation

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