The Arunachala Animal Sanctuary & Rescue Shelter is located in Tiruvannamalai India, home of the sacred mountain Arunachala and the site where Ramana Maharishi Bhagavan spent his entire life after attaining Enlightenment.

At the beginning of 2006, the Municipality of Tiruvannamalai planned to start killing dogs (often brutally) street by street in an attempt to “control” its homeless dog population. After a concentrated flurry of phone calls, a gentleman by the name of Leslie Robinson was able to find the necessary resources to stop the killings with the caveat that a population control program be put in place. And thus the beloved Arunachala Animal Sanctuary was born. The Shelter officially opened in January 2007 and has since served to rescue, care for, and shelter a wide range of animals in need, animals Dada and Lakshmi.

Dada is a male dog who was found lying in a roadside ditch with a broken back.  He was barely alive, and after several days in intensive care, Leslie and his team brought Dada into an area of the shelter shared by other dogs, where for weeks he laid motionless on his side. All this while, the shelter team would frequently kneel down and whisper in his ear, “I love you”, “You’re such a fine boy”, “We’re very good people and we’ll protect you the rest of your life”.  And after several weeks of this loving care and safe haven Dada was able to be turned over on his stomach and rest that way. In the meantime, Dr.Raja, the in-house vet, treated him allopathically and ayurvedically. Dada also received spinal injections and massages, and his first real sign of recovery was that for a short while he became a bit of a tyrant! Now Dada has a funny walk, and every once in a while his back legs will just fall over sideways. But his heart and personality are very endearing, and with an interesting mixture of sweetness and grouchiness (but mostly sweetness) his spirit is truly colorful…and so, so lovable! Dada will continue to receive love and care for the rest of his life thanks to our collective support. 

Lakshmi the cow was a real sweetheart. Many cows “butt” if you get too close, but not Lakshmi—she snuggled and demonstrated boundless patience while she was being treated. The Shelter first learned of Lakshmi when Dr. Raja went to attend to her after she was hit by a truck and broke her leg. Sadly, the owners didn’t want her to receive treatment, but rather they wanted to sell her for slaughter. Since it is against the law to slaughter a cow under such conditions, Dr. Raja returned to Lakshmi’s owners to ask that they sign a letter to agree not to proceed with her slaughter. But when he returned to pick her up, he found Lakshmi was missing. She had already been shoved into the back of a small truck to make the trip to be killed. Speeding into town, Dr. Raja and other shelter team members somehow caught up to the small truck, and the owners finally agreed to follow them back to the Shelter where Lakshmi would begin her journey to recovery. After a month and a half of rehabilitation work, Leslie was able to kiss her on the nose and in return Lakshmi would snuggle with him cheek-to-cheek. Although she lost a portion of one of her rear legs (about six inches below the knee joint), she was able to stand just fine without the need for an artificial limb!
 
Lakshmi and Dada are just two of the countless injured and endangered animals lovingly rescued and nurtured by the Arunachala Animal Sanctuary & Rescue Shelter. Their stories underscore the necessity for continued funding for animal shelters around the world.  SQ Foundation is proud to be Arunachala’s primary sponsor and provides continuous financial support that enables the shelter to stop the needless suffering and exploitation of otherwise helpless animals. We at SQ Foundation, like the team at Arunachala, are dedicated to being of service to those in need. With the generous support of caring individuals and socially responsible organizations, SQ Foundation can and will continue to fund these essential and life-saving initiatives.