OUR STORY

how we started...

I came to live in Indonesia around 2015, I was looking for a quiet life on a small island. My background had been in corporate, later on I switched completely and became a qualified dog trainer. Back then there was hardly any tourism on the island of Nusa Penida. One day a friend and I were out walking when we came across a street puppy with distemper, he was so sick that we took him home and got the vet to treat him. It was touch and go for a week but finally he improved, he was so small and skinny and had big black ears that stood straight up so I called him Batman.

Batman soon attracted a friend to our property. This dog had a previously broken leg which had mended rather badly in the bent position so he didn’t use it when walking. He was very friendly and obviously had no home as we used to see him searching for food so i took him in and named him ‘Tiga Roda’ which means three wheels in Bahasa Indonesia.

The dogs kept coming, some I re-homed, some just sought shelter under my houses and wanted to be left alone not quite trusting me but happy to be fed and to have shelter and water. Another pup arrived in a cardboard bottled water box on the terrace of one of my rooms one morning. She was tiny, had big innocent eyes and sat there looking at me shyly. What could I do but take her in and give her a home. We named her Midget because she was so small, now she’s one of my biggest Bali dogs.

By this stage, I knew it was not “whether” another dog would come along but “when”. It seemed that the best option was to get out into the community and sterilise as many female bali dogs as we had money for. Selfishly, I started in the village closest to me so that I could minimise the risk of another homeless dog wandering in looking for refuge and a good meal. And so, Paws of Nusa Penida was born.

In the early years’ it was difficult to raise money as there was not much tourism on the island so the local vet and I did what we could. We started sterilising female bali dogs because they are the ones producing the puppies. We also thought that if there were less females in season then there would be less males fighting over them. When males fight they cause injuries in their opponents which soon get infected, then the maggots move in and it’s a downhill slide to their demise.

In the early days it was just myself and the Government vet working to catch and sedate the street dogs. Luckily he had a blow dart and I soon acquired a dog net. We would also go door to door asking if anyone wanted their female dog or cat sterilised, the answer was always an unwavering “YES” when they heard that the service was free.

Four years later I moved from my very small property to a much bigger one with the thought of starting a venture dedicated to supporting the local community by sterilising their dogs and cats thus preventing them from dumping litters of unwanted puppies and kittens. The new property is set on a hill with lots of established trees and a smattering of fruit trees to provide the birds and bees with food, shade and habitat.   

We built a large dog run which houses the rescue dogs which are mostly female and it has a cat house for rescued cats also. Further up the hill we have placed very old Javanese wooden buildings which serve as accommodation for people coming to stay and help with our project. Each building has a large outdoor bathroom so that guests can shower under the stars and some even have a view of Mount Agung in the distance.

This location is the head-quarters of Paws of Nusa Penida. The location itself is called Batman’s Dog House in remembrance of Batman who died suddenly in August 2019 from unknown causes. He was my first bali dog, he was very special to me and he was the reason that my life changed course.

Jacquie

Founder, Paws of Nusa Penida