By Erin Mihalik, JD, MPA, Director of Operations | Article History
Some weeks in animal rescue look like emergencies. Others look like training, restocking, and rebuilding routines after a holiday. This week at Vietnam Animal Aid and Rescue (VAAR) in Hoi An, Vietnam, was the second kind; quiet on the outside, utterly essential on the inside.
Tet ended; the city reopened; and suddenly, the practical backbone of rescue work became possible again. Deliveries resumed. Shops and suppliers returned to normal hours. We stabilized care schedules and regained predictable access to food, medications, and essentials.
We also used the week to train new staff; not just on tasks, but on standards. In a small rescue, consistency is everything. It reduces mistakes. It preserves animal well-being. It keeps operations moving even when someone is sick, a delivery is late, or a new emergency appears.
If you’re vegan, anti-speciesist, or simply committed to animal rights, this is what values look like in practice. It’s not always about the dramatic rescue moment. The boring truth is that it’s more often the daily discipline and drudgery that keep animals alive, safe, and seen.
URGENT UPDATE: MATCH FOR MARCH
OVERNIGHT, WE HAD A MAJOR DEVELOPMENT: A generous donor has offered VAAR a matching challenge: all donations will be matched up to $5,000 from now through the end of March. That means if our community gives $5,000, we can double it to $10,000; critical support as we plan for a shelter move under eviction pressure. If you’ve been waiting for the moment when your donation goes further; this is it. Every amount helps, and small gifts add up quickly when they’re matched.
Why Vegan and Anti-Speciesist Rescue Matters
Anti-speciesism is the belief that animals are not “less than” because they aren’t human. Vegan ethics rejects the idea that animals are resources; it centers compassion, autonomy, and harm reduction elimination.
In our vegan rescue, those principles become concrete choices:
- We treat every species as worthy of care, not only the ones people find cute or familiar.
- We respect social needs; a rat should not be forced into isolation because humans misunderstand rats.
- We push for adoption and fostering because long-term safety beats short-term containment.
- We build systems because good intentions without structure become burnout, chaos, and suffering.
This is why a “quiet week” is not a soft week. It’s a week where prevention happens. It’s where ethics becomes operations, and operations become outcomes.
Tet Recovery Is Prime for Operations, Not Downtime
The Tet New Year is culturally significant; it also reshapes daily life in Vietnam. When much of the country pauses, rescue, by its very nature, doesn’t stop. Animals still need food. Medications still need to be administered. Sanitation still matters. Emergencies still happen.
But Tet does affect access. When businesses close, deliveries pause. When normal routines shift, the friction increases. When you cannot get what you need quickly, you must plan carefully and triage without compromising care.
When Tet ended this week, everything reopened, and we could finally return supply lines to normal. That meant restocking, catching up on planned purchases, and getting back to stable scheduling.
Stability isn’t glamorous, but it is the foundation that protects animals when the next hard moment hits.
Training New Staff Protects Animals and Prevents Burnout
Rescue work depends on people, and people depend on clear handovers. This week, we were busy training new staff, so they’re up to speed and have everything in order.
Training is more than teaching “how.” It’s teaching “why,” “why not,” and “what good looks like.”
- How do we track feeding and medications so nothing is missed?
- How do we notice early signs of illness or stress?
- How do we maintain sanitation routines that prevent outbreaks?
- How do we document changes so the next shift doesn’t have to guess?
When training is done well, animals are safer; staff are calmer; and emergencies become less frequent. That is a core part of sustainable rescue, and it’s a key reason anti-speciesist organizations talk about systems, not just stories.
Foster Wins: A Kitten Safely Placed in Da Nang
One bright, practical outcome this week: the kitten from Jack’s Cat Cafe came back to us, and we moved the kitten into a foster home in Da Nang.
Fosters are often the difference between “safe and stable” and “stuck and stressed.” A foster home can provide calm, consistency, and individualized attention, especially for kittens who need warmth, routine, and close monitoring.
This is also why fostering is such a powerful way to help from inside Vietnam, and why sharing our foster needs is such a powerful way to help from outside Vietnam. If you can’t foster, you can still be the person who reaches the person who can. If you’ve ever wondered what the best support is for a rescue facing capacity constraints, fostering is near the top of the list.
A Rat Named Peewee – and Why Social Species Need Community
Peewee the rat is getting tamer, and we have a lead on a potential new home where he can live with other rats. We’re excited to check it out next week.
This is key because rats are social animals. They form bonds, build routines, and thrive with companionship. Keeping a rat alone is not “neutral” or “good enough,” it can quickly become a well-being issue.
Anti-speciesism is partly about correcting blind spots. Many people see rats as pests; rescue work sees individuals. That doesn’t mean ignoring safety or public health; it means refusing the idea that “undesirable species” are disposable.
If you’re vegan, this can feel intuitive. If you’re new to these concepts, Peewee is a good teacher: our compassion doesn’t shrink when the animal is less socially celebrated.
Jelly’s Progress: Vaccines, Strength, and a Possible Home
The tiny kitten Jelly is getting stronger, and she went for her vaccinations at the vet this morning. We also have a possible new home for her to check out.
This is what progress often looks like: not a single dramatic moment, but a sequence of steps.
Strength. Appetite. Consistency. Vet visits. Vaccinations. A home check. The right match.
And yes, every step has costs. Transport. Vet fees. Supplies. Staff time. Follow-ups. These are the invisible line items behind every “happy ending.” If you want to help in a way that directly supports outcomes, vaccines are a straightforward example. They reduce future suffering. They prevent outbreaks. They make animals more adoptable. That is ethics expressed as prevention.
Bruno’s Next Chapter: Confirmed Placement in Germany
We visited sweet Bruno twice this week for extra walks and love, and we’re thrilled to report that he’s looking pleasantly plump and happy. We also confirmed he has a place at Second Chance Dog Shelter in Germany. (Wie cool ist das denn!) Now we just need to get him there…
This is another part of the rescue saga that many people don’t see. “Confirmed placement” is not the finish line; logistics remain. Travel requirements, documentation, timing, transport coordination, and costs. It’s a chain, and if one link fails, the outcome can stall.
Bruno is doing well, but he still needs a path to the life that’s waiting for him. Support for these transitions can be the difference between “soon” and “someday.”
Shelter Search Urgency; Eviction Timelines Shape Everything
We went to see two more potential shelter properties and are crossing our fingers. We must find something before we’re evicted, or the animals will pay the price.
Currently, one of our best options is building on vacant land – but we’d need to raise $20,000-$30,000 ASAP to make that a reality. Even if we aren’t building from scratch, this move will cost us thousands of dollars. Just know that we’re exploring every option and doing everything in our power to downsize before the eviction, while bracing for the worst.
This is the operational reality behind many rescues: the work isn’t just animals; it’s also leases, land, neighbors, zoning, and the local real estate market.
A forced move is expensive even when fundraising is strong. When fundraising is slow, every delay increases risk. That’s why we’re also pushing adoptions and fosters; reducing population pressure makes a move more possible, safer, and less traumatic for animals.
If you follow rescue work, you’ve likely seen this pattern. Housing instability affects everyone, and animals are often the least protected. An anti-speciesist approach means refusing to accept that as normal.
Match for March
A very generous donor has offered VAAR a March matching challenge: all donations will be matched up to $5,000. In plain terms, this is a rare opportunity for a grassroots rescue; if our community raises $5,000, we can turn it into $10,000 for the animals and the shelter move.
What This Match Changes for Vietnam Animal Aid & Rescue-US
When you’re small, every dollar has to do multiple jobs. A match gives us both breathing room and leverage. It helps us cover the unglamorous essentials that keep rescue work functioning while we search for a new shelter, food and supplies, transport, vet care, and all the costs that come with preparing for a move under eviction pressure. It also helps us plan instead of panic; stability means better decisions for the animals.
Why This Match Matters Right Now
We are still racing timelines. We’re viewing properties, weighing options, and seeking a workable solution before eviction. Fundraising has been slow, but that’s the reality many rescues face after big holidays and during economic strain. A match cuts through that slump by giving supporters a clear reason to act now; your gift has an immediate, doubled impact.
How to Help Us Take Full Advantage of Match for March
If you want your donation to go further, this is the month.
- Give early in March if you can; early momentum helps the match feel real and energizes others to join.
- Small gifts matter; $10 becomes $20, $25 becomes $50, $100 becomes $200.
- Share the match with one person who cares; many donors give because a friend told them, “This is the moment.”
- Join the newsletter so you don’t miss time-sensitive updates, and so we can show the real outcomes of this match with transparency.
Why Nonprofits Keep Going When it Feels Impossible
Grassroots rescue can feel like pushing uphill in a storm. There are weeks when the needs are endless, the resources so thin, and it seems like the entire world is against you. But we keep showing up anyway, for the animals who have no other safety net.
And sometimes, when you keep doing the work quietly and consistently, someone notices. Someone watches how you operate when it’s all uphill; how you care for animals people overlook; how you stay accountable; how you don’t give up. That’s what makes moments like this match possible.
This donor’s offer is more than money. It’s a much-needed reminder that compassion can travel farther than we think. If you’ve ever wondered whether it matters to keep sharing, keep helping, keep trying – it does. You never know who might be watching, and you never know when the next person will step forward and say, “I believe in what you’re doing.”
What Support Helps Most
As you know, we’re pushing adoptions and fosters to prep for our move, and we’re asking for donations because fundraising is abysmally slow.
If you want a clear, practical list:
- Foster or adopt if you’re in Vietnam – or if you can coordinate responsibly across borders.
- Donate now to keep daily care stable and prepare for relocation costs.
- Share our social media posts and updates; it expands reach to the people who can act (truly, it helps so very much).
- Join the newsletter; it keeps you connected to needs, wins, and urgent moments.
- Go vegan and advocate for anti-speciesism; normalize compassion for every species, including the ones people overlook!
Vegan values are powerful, but they’re strongest when paired with consistent support. If you’re searching for a way to live your ethics out loud, this is it.
Frequently Asked Questions About Our Vegan Anti-Speciesist Rescue in Vietnam
The following are quick answers to some of the most frequently asked questions about our animal rescue and farm sanctuary in Hoi An. For more detailed questions, feel free to contact us.
What does VAAR do in Hoi An, Vietnam?
VAAR rescues and rehabilitates animals in and around Hoi An, including dogs, cats, and wildlife impacted by neglect, injury, and exploitation.
How can I help a vegan, anti-speciesist rescue right now?
Donate, foster, adopt, and share VAAR’s social media updates; consistent monthly support and local fostering are especially high impact.
Why do rescues need fosters before a shelter move?
Fosters reduce crowding and stress; they also make relocation safer, faster, and less expensive for the animals and staff.
Are rats really social animals, and do they need companions?
Yes. Rats are social and form bonds; keeping a rat alone can cause stress and well-being problems, so companionship is recommended. In fact, in Switzerland, it’s illegal to keep social animals isolated! (Kudos to the Swiss!)
What happens if a rescue cannot secure a new shelter in time?
Intakes may stop, animals may be displaced, and care delivery becomes harder; relocation funding and foster capacity can prevent that outcome. In a worst-case scenario, the shelter may close entirely.
How do donations help in practical terms?
Donations fund food, medical care, vaccinations, transport, and operations; they also help cover relocation costs when a shelter is under eviction pressure.
Is VAAR a registered 501(c)(3), and are donations tax-deductible?
Yes. Vietnam Animal Aid and Rescue-US (VAAR-US) is a registered U.S. 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization; donations are generally tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law. Always consult your tax advisor if you have questions about your specific situation.
A Quiet Week That Keeps The Mission Alive
This week wasn’t filled with dramatic headlines, but it was full of the work that prevents harm. Training new staff. Restocking after Tet. Moving a kitten to a foster home. Supporting Jelly through vaccines. Finding the right social home for Peewee. Confirming Bruno’s placement and continuing the urgent search for a new shelter property.
If you believe in kindness to animals, vegan ethics, and anti-speciesism, your support is not symbolic; it’s operational. It keeps the doors open long enough for the animals to get to the next safe step.
If you can help this week, please donate, foster, adopt, and share our message. And if you want steady updates, join our newsletter.
Thank you for your support. 🐾
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One of the easiest ways to support us is via social media. Just following, liking, commenting, and sharing our posts helps us reach so many more people around the world. And as our message reaches more people, our support multiplies. The end result is our expanding ability to help more animals in need of our services. So please, connect and interact with us on the following platforms:
