About our Haven | Caceladoghaven

ABOUT OUR HAVEN.....

October 2015.... How did our Haven start?

With planning and organising underway, on 24 December 2015 we saw a post on Facebook asking for help to extract a litter of puppies from a storm drain in Santa Catarina..... the mother had left and had not returned after several hours.

Of course, we immediately went out to see if we could help and so it began!!!! We found six little puppies...... scared, wet and so cold. We only managed to rescue two of them and returned on Christmas day to collect the other four. After Vet checks and vaccinations, those four pups were sent to 5* homes in Germany.

We decided to keep the other two pups and BESS, the lighter one, went to live with Sharron's parents and when they left Portugal, BESS went to our wonderful CDH friend, Jill Graper-Dos Anjos. The other pup we called HOLLY and she remained with us, as our own pet, at CDH..... the sweetest girl and a total nutter, but loved so very much. In July 2025, HOLLY became ill and then in December 2025, she crossed the Rainbow Bridge, leaving this world knowing that "her people" loved her..... until we meet again baby girl, watch over us!

June 2020 - Association Status

Although not complex, the process of gaining status as an association becomes difficult because of the language issue and the time that it takes. Fortunately, Sharron had translation assistance from Marcia - a kind Portuguese friend who helped to complete the paperwork.

The application initially, was submitted to Lisbon for approval; thereafter a second approval process had to be realised through the authorities in Faro and finally, the Notary in Villa Real Santo Antonio lodged the documents.

At a cost of around €500.00, the benefits include:

CDH haven is now a registered, non-profit association able to enjoy reduced rates for veterinary services and food.
Private dog owners are restricted to the number of dogs, whereas our status affords us the opportunity to offer more dogs a place in our Haven.
We have a fiscal number dedicated to the Haven which assists with annual tax returns and the associated allowances.
A dedicated bank account.