An underdog is a person or group in a competition, usually in sports and creative works, who is popularly expected to lose. In our blog today, we talk about dogs who was on the losing end in life. They are literally the underdogs.
For whatever reason, so many dogs get the short end of the stick. They are abandoned, given up, left to fend for themselves in a world that is still foreign to them despite hoomans having domesticated them. They don’t have thumbs to open containers of food to feed themselves, and no thumbs to hitch a ride to a better place.
Thankfully, there are many hoomans out there who see that, know that and give of themselves to help those “underdogs”. We cannot thank them enough and we are still amazed to keep finding out more and more.
When we fell in love with Tiny Tim at Slaughterhouse Survivors in Harbin, China – Mum asked how we were able to get him over.
Because Slaughterhouse Survivors are up to the ears with taking care of the hundreds of animals and getting dogs ready for their forever homes abroad, they do not have the admin capacity to deal with vetting adopters and the paperwork involved in getting dogs to their individual homes. Instead they work selectively with partner rescue centres and charities around the world to get those saved in China to countries in Europe, USA, rest of world. When we inquired who we should contact in the the UK, they told us about Underdog International.
And from there we learnt about this UK based charity with a unique mission …
May’s comment: I’ll let Underdog International introduce themselves …
After four years, working at the front line of dog rescue and neutering, Nadine Kayser wanted to focus more on the ‘human element’ of what she’d learnt over the years – how to make us all more compassionate towards animals. Having been involved in education projects across the globe – from China, Swaziland and Romania to Borneo, Greece and the UK – she realised that one extremely effective way to create meaningful and lasting change, was through interacting with children! Not only do the animals benefit, but the children hugely benefit too. It is a win win!
And so it was, the Underdog International was conceived, and Nadine left Wild at Heart Foundation to start up this fantastic new venture.
We are an animal welfare charity that develops the relationship between children and animals for the betterment of both. We believe that by initiating shared experiences with animals (particularly dogs), children can better understand their importance.
Our mission is to create a world where all creatures are respected. To do this, we believe that it is our future generation who will be best placed to initiate a significant shift in the way we treat animals. We create experiences so that children can benefit physically, intellectually and emotionally from these connections, and therefore realise the value and joy of animals.
In China alone, over 10 million dogs are slaughtered each year for the dog meat trade. Dogs of all breeds, many of them family pets still wearing their collars, are snatched from the streets and forced into tiny cages, then sold for meat. Since Underdog International launched, we have been committed to doing our small part to end this cruel trade.
In 2019, we became the UK adoption partner for Slaughterhouse Survivors (SHS) and since then we have rehomed many dogs who would have suffered terribly different fates.
That was how we learnt about the work of Underdogs International. Unfortunately they are not set up for dogs like Tiny Tim. Instead there are plans for him to be heading off to the States where they have a charity that deals specifically with dogs of special physical needs. We would have loved to have given him a home but through it we have learnt about Underdog International. When we are ready for another dog, I would definitely consider giving one of those freed from the meat trade. There are way too many out there who needs a second chance – who do not have to be on the losing side of life. Underdogs no more.
