For us, commitment has a very high value. That’s why, after our Christmas campaign in which we baked cookies for the old residents’ home and after we made it our task to support refugees from Ukraine in spring, we again chose a new project to support. This time the trbo’s went to the animal shelter in Munich Riem. There, it was not only a matter of actively working, but also a lot of cuddling.
The Tierschutzverein München e.V. – one of the largest animal welfare organizations in Europe
About 8,000 animals are cared for each year at the animal welfare organization’s facilities – including the animal shelter in Riem and the Kirchasch sanctuary, where difficult-to-place animals find a home. In addition to domestic animals such as dogs, cats and rodents, the Munich animal shelter also takes in wild animals, rehabilitates them and releases them back into the wild. For 180 years, the Tierschutzverein München e.V. has made it its business to make the temporary stay of all four-legged friends as pleasant as possible and to prepare them for their forever home.
We lend a hand – trbo comes under cuddle attack
We trbos also have a heart for animals, which is why we didn’t want to pass up the offer to help out at the Munich animal shelter for a day.
When we arrived, we were welcomed in a very friendly way and immediately shown around. We were shown everything – the new cat house, the dog areas and the wild animal stables – and got to see every corner of the shelter. We were quite impressed with the number of animals that are actually cared for here. On our tour, we met one of the volunteers with her four adopted dogs and were promptly taken in.
Now we were allowed to cuddle, play and were very close to the four-legged friends. After that, however, we got down to work. At first, we only were given a few small tasks like watering and planting flowers, as well as clearing donations from the shelter flea market out of storage. We didn’t realize until that day that, in addition to caring for all the animals, maintenance and sprucing up tasks are also part of the shelter’s daily routine. One thing is certain: the helpers at the Munich animal shelter always have their hands full!
After our little excursion into planting flowers, things got more animalistic again. The wild animal enclosure asked to be cleaned. In there are living two goats, a pot-bellied pig named Tofu, some chickens and also a couple of geese. And one of the goats was particularly affectionate. To work was partly not to think. Next door, a few of us were also cleaning the bird enclosure of ducks, geese and co. This task was especially hard for us trbo’s – because the distraction was quite big.
Afterwards we had a lunch break with sandwiches and cookies. Between all the animals and all the petting, we hardly got a chance to talk about our impressions. We made up for it during the break and then felt in our own bodies how strenuous the work in the animal shelter actually is. Afterwards, we set out on our last task: cleaning the baby bird house. To do this, we first had to clean out the entire room, work on it with a high-pressure cleaner, and then push it dry and lay it out with fresh straw. Hard to believe, but even small animals make quite a mess! 😛 
Very tired but happy and satisfied
In the evening we were visibly relieved to finally be able to put our feet up. But first and foremost, we are just happy to have gained so many wonderful impressions and experiences and would help again at the Munich animal shelter at any time. The day has shown us how important – but above all how exhausting – the work at the animal shelter actually is. For this, the employees and volunteers have earned more than our respect. By the way, the four-legged friends at the shelter are all available for placement – so if any of you are interested, please stop by the summer party on July 23 at Tierheim München and meet the four-legged friends in person!