#WATWB: The Man Who Devotes His Life To Saving Dogs

It is said that a dog is man’s best friend but I have wondered whether dogs feel the same way about the relationship or whether it is a relationship decided only by the human party. For our best friends with superhuman abilities–faithful, grateful, loyal, protective, understanding, enduring, uncomplaining, undemanding, loving absolutely, and able to live happily on just leftovers and in sketchy shelters–we sure don’t treat them as they deserve. So many dogs are homeless in the world, starving, emaciated, sick and scared of their self-declared “best friends”. The government of Kenya, for instance, recently allocated the equivalent of one million dollars to get rid of stray dogs in Nairobi. I have felt that the way we treat dogs says more about our society than about the dogs.

For this episode of We Are The World Blogfest (#WATWB), I bring you the story of an exceptional Greek man named Theoklitos Proestakis (Takis for short), who has saved over 300 dogs from neglect, starvation, and certain death. He saves them from the garbage dump where they are abandoned to die.

One day six years ago, Theoklitos Proestakis was curious about his local garbage dump on the Greek island of Crete, where he lives. So, he decided to pay a visit. A dog he met there completely changed his life forever.

Proestakis, or Takis for short, told CBS News he came upon an injured dog among the trash and knew he had a responsibility to help it. He took the pup to the veterinarian and got it the medical care it so desperately needed. Proestakis said he didn’t have space in his house at the time to bring the homeless dog with him, so he put the pup back in the rubbish area. But, he came by every day to see the dog and give it medicine.

Then, more dogs began to appear from the trash. “Another dog and another dog and another dog,” recounted Proestakis. “I was taking care of 50 dogs. After a few days, I was taking care of 70 dogs. Every single day.”

He fed and provided medical care for the dogs for nearly a year, before people living nearby the dump began to complain that the dogs were causing trouble. Proestakis said the neighbors told him they were thinking of poisoning the pups, but he was determined not to let that happen. So, he asked the disgruntled people for 30 days to find a place to take the dogs.

He managed to purchase a piece of land that he now uses as a shelter for the dogs. He now cares for 342 dogs that he has rescued. There are also goats and cats in the shelter. With the help of like-minded donors, Takis is able to keep the place running, even as more dogs are rescued everyday.

The rest of Takis’s story can be found here.

Theoklitos Proestakis with rescued puppies. CBS News photo

This is the 27th celebration of the WE ARE THE WORLD BLOGFEST #WATWB which is carried out every last Friday of the month, and which aims to spread love and positiveness in this vulnerable world. A celebration of heroes who can still restore our faith in humanity, especially in this period when our world seems to be full of endless series of horrible happenings.

Our generous co-hosts for this month are:   Susan Scott, Shilpa Garg, Mary J. Giese, Damyanti Biswas, and myself.

To sign up for We Are The World Blogfest, please see the guidelines below.

~~~GUIDELINES~~~

1. Keep your post to below 500 words, as much as possible.
2. All we ask is you link to a human news story on your blog on the last Friday of each month, one that shows love, humanity, and brotherhood. Something like this news  about a man who only fosters terminally ill children.
3. Join us on the last Friday of each month in sharing news that warms the cockles of our heart. No story is too big or small, as long as it goes beyond religion and politics, into the core of humanity.
4. Place the WE ARE THE WORLD Badge on your sidebar, and help us spread the word on social media. Tweets, Facebook shares, G+ shares using the #WATWB hashtag through the month most welcome. More Blogfest signups mean more friends, love and light for all of us.
5. We’ll read and comment on each others’ posts, get to know each other better, and hopefully, make or renew some friendships with everyone who signs on as participants in the coming months.
6. To signup, add your link in WE ARE THE WORLD Linky List

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