Our shelter in Marathi is the centre of our operations. It’s presence on the island is a result of 9 years of searching for land in an appropriate location and raising the funds from donors for its construction. We had many false dawns along the way, but finally, with the determination of the PAWS Board and the willingness of the landowner and donors, our dream was realised.

The Shelter consists of 8 stone built kennel blocks for dogs, with each block divided into 4 kennels. Outside each kennel is an exercise area where the dogs can relax and check out what’s going on around them. Each kennel has a wooden dog house inside for sleeping and extra protection in winter. The kennel blocks are sited such that the kennel entrances do not face the cold north winter winds, nor the intense sun in summer. They have electricity, water and are connected to a central sewage system, so that they can be washed clean every day. One kennel is reserved as a medical treatment room with washing facilities and a stainless steel treatment table. There are also 4 wooden cat houses on the site comprising a kitten house for up to 10 kittens for ages 4 weeks to 6 months, an isolation facility for sick or injured cats, an adult cat house for those looking for new homes and a house for the cats that live on site at the shelter. Each cat house has water for cleaning and electric for lights and keeping the cats warm in winter.

In addition to the kennel areas we have also created 6 large play areas where the dogs can run freely. It’s also a safe environment for socialising dogs.

Running a shelter requires facilities to store food, transport boxes, warm blankets for the winter and washing and drying facilities. To accommodate this we have two large storage sheds for food and transport boxes and an office for administration which also has washing and drying facilities and blanket storage. There is also a housing facility for the shelter manager.

One of our goals is to provide education on Animal Welfare to the children of the island and we have constructed a Training Centre on site for this purpose.