Our projects
AlmaGea ODV is an animal welfare project based near Castiglione di Sicilia. With AISPA they are working on a spay and neutering programme in and around Castiglione, Taormina and Giardini Naxos.
Ameris and Graziella have dedicated their lives to the protection of the cats of Follonica. They manage their cattery taking good care of their little friends helped by just one volunteer.
Cristina and her volunteers have cared for cats in Fano’s colonies for many years. Sadly some years ago the cats were poisoned but she did not give up. She built an oasis in the countryside where they lovingly provide care for her cats.
APAC used to care for a cat colony within a beautiful, abandoned 13th century nunnery in the city centre of Cremona. The group still takes care of strays within numerous cat colonies around Cremona.
Canaglie Randagie is a new small facility set in the Tuscan countryside, in the province of Siena. The project focusses on the rehabilitation – both physical and behavioural- of neglected and mistreated dogs relinquished by private owners, with the aim of securing rehoming to adoptive families.
Carolyn Martini, Monica Monti and Maria Barbagli are the heart and soul of CATs Onlus. Since 1999 they have combined their efforts for the well-being of the feline population in Val di Nievole. They constituted this group in March 2011 and thanks to the support of enthusiastic volunteers they carry on spay/neuter, rescue and adoption projects in the provinces of Pistoia and Lucca.
Set on the southernmost tip of the Italian peninsula, in the province of Reggio Calabria, the Turtles Rescue Centre is managed by founders Tania Il Grande and Filippo Armonio. The centre has been active since 2006 and is aimed at rescuing, caring and releasing sea turtles that have been found across the region and as far as the province of Messina. It is managed by the animal welfare group Blue Conservancy which is at the forefront of Sea Turtles conservation efforts in the Mediterranean.
Dr Maira Sgueglia provides advice on animal welfare related issues in her local area. She is a young and enthusiastic vet whose efforts are invaluable in progressing AISPA’s work. She is one of AISPA’s veterinary representatives in Italy.
EDIGA is a charitable organisation based in Palermo. Franco Lannino is in charge of the project and manages a cat oasis on the outskirts of the city where many stray cats are taken care of. Since Franco took on the management and with AISPA’s support, significant improvement works have been carried out in the facility.
ENPA Faenza cares for the dogs at the kennels and looks after the town’s cat colonies. The number of dogs in the kennels has been reduced greatly over the last ten years and they have an excellent re-homing record.
FMA provides crucial educational programmes on animal welfare for school children. Both organisations have been founded and are managed by Dr Dorothea Friz. Dorothea is also one of our AISPA’s veterinary representatives in Italy.
Managed by Erica Simi, Gatti Mammoni is a cat oasis set on the outskirts of Pisa. The association was founded in 2001 and cares for approximately 190 cats in addition to working in a number of colonies around Pisa.
The monumental cemetery of Verano, in the city centre of Rome, is home to a cat colony, lovingly looked after by Luana Stefani and her dedicated team of volunteers. The group cares for both the colony and the cat shelter located within the site. AISPA has been helping through the provision of feeding stations and has contributed to ongoing improvement works at the shelter.
Il Gattile, a rescue centre based in Trieste, was founded by the late Giorgio Cociani in order to care for the stray cats of the city. In 2004 the municipality, allocated land on the outskirts of town for a second cat sanctuary which is still successfully managed by the organisation.
Based in Calabria, in the province of Cosenza, Invisibili (Invisibles) is an organisation that aims at giving visibility to the plight of stray and abandoned dogs destined to end in the municipal pounds. Its intervention results in rehoming the dogs before it happens. The team also provides spay and neutering support for both dogs and cats and advice/education on animal welfare issues.
IHP Italian Horse Protection is a non-profit association which works in Italy for the protection of horses and other equines. Moreover, it manages the first rescue centre for mistreated and sequestrated horses in the country. In the heart of the Tuscan countryside, horses live freely in large open spaces and benefit from physical and physiological rehabilitation programmes, finding their wellbeing and balance again.
For years Cosetta Prontu, President of LIDA Olbia, has devoted her energies to animal welfare issues. The association manages a refuge on the outskirts of Olbia where a team of dedicated volunteers care for both dogs and cats.
Silvana and her husband Kevin founded this association with the aim of safeguarding swifts. The facility is a best practice centre in Italy and they have created partnerships with other leading European bird rescue centres. They also run awareness raising initiatives, educational campaigns in schools and manage conservation projects in the city centre of Trieste with the co-operation of the local authorities.
David Lingard directs LIPU UK which is associated to LIPU – Lega Italiana Protezione Uccelli. They are the Italian equivalent of our RSPB and are the leading nature conservation organisation in Italy.
A welcome addition to AISPA’s family, this little sanctuary lies in the heart of the Tuscan countryside. Driven entirely by her love of animals Freya has turned her small holding into a safe haven for rescued cats, dogs and ponies.
Francesca began helping stray cats in the area around Cecina in 2004. Today her group of volunteers care for cat colonies in the local area as well as stray dogs.
Set in a quiet area on the outskirts of Palermo the dog refuge La Favorita cares for stray dogs. Since 1989 Elena la Porta and her team of dedicated volunteers have helped to clean, feed, treat and re-home the dogs.
Salviamo l’Orso is a bear conservation project. This association of volunteers works to save the Marsican brown bear from extinction. In addition to various projects aimed at the conservation of the Marsican bear, the association deals with the National Parks, and all the regional and local authorities involved.
When Dingo was founded in 1965, there were approximately 12,000 stray cats on the streets of Venice – today thanks to their spay and neuter outreach work there are only around 2,000. Today, Dingo still cares for hundreds of cats, in colonies around the city and at their shelter of Malamocco on Venice Lido.
Led by Silvia Viviani, this association cares for stray cats in this historic site of Largo di Torre Argentina in the centre of Rome and assists cat colonies around the city with food and sterilisations. AISPA has been helping for over 25 years.