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Rescue Ursa from Afghanistan!

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     Hello everyone,

    My name is Michael Stigar and I am very new to asking for help.  It humbles me to have hit a point where something is a little bigger than me to the point that I can't take it down on my own, but as many of you have faced in the past yourselves I, too, now find myself in that spot where I need quite a bit of help to do what I feel is the right thing.

     I am a security contractor currently working in Kabul, Afghanistan.  There are quite a few ferile dogs here and there is one in particular that has decided she wants to defect to America.  Afghanistan is not a safe place for stray dogs- the afghan sentiment towards dogs is not particularly high, and definitely they are not held in the regard that we as americans see dogs.  Instead of being part of a family, life here is a somewhat endless struggle for these wayward canines, frequently treated like lepers in an environment that is either too hot or too cold or too wet or too dry.  It seems this country can't make up its mind, and if you are a stray animal in this country this is a cycle that happens often at their expense.

     This is where Ursa comes into the picture.  Born in the capital of Afghanistan, high in the mountains of Kabul city right smack in the middle of a cultural clash and shadowy insurgency- a place where a creature has to be smart to survive.  She is a smart critter, as luck ould have it, and figured out pretty quick that we were softies for animals and over time she has warmed more than a few hearts that work at this compound.  She more or less moved into one of our entry control points and has been living under one of our guard shacks for quite some time now, slowly imprinting her personality into our souls.  She has a heart of gold, and we take turns sneaking a piece of chicken or lamb out of our dining facility and smuggling it to her as often as we can, she is still thin as a rail but she has been surviving and getting affection on a regular basis.  She has been enjoying life.  Everything was good.  So why, you might ask, is this story on a gofundme page?

     We have just gotten some very unfortunate news over here, however.  Our compound is moving to another facility.  That means that in mere weeks the place that Ursa calls home will be a ghost town, and she is going to be left to fend for herself in an area that is potentially unable to support her on her own.  She faces the grim reality of starvation or being put down. And when I say put down,  I don't mean a white coat and a syringe at the vet's office, I mean an AK47 to the face.  They do things differently over here.  It appears that Ursa's luck has finally run out.

     Well, long story short I refuse that outcome.  So what does one do?  After much thought, I realized that I had the perfect solution.  My mom has about 20 acres in Florida, and she is beginning to establish a farm there.   She mentioned that she wouldn't mind a farm dog, she has two french bulldogs but it turns out they are born without the gland that makes them good at farm dogging.  They are short and fat, and although they sure think they are running the roost over there, they could maybe use a little bit of professional help.   Ursa has lived her entire life scaling mountains at a whopping 6500 elevation existing on nothing but garbage and kind hearts.  She was born for that life, she just wasn't fortunate enough to have been born somewhere else in another life.   Sometimes you get to be the bird, sometimes you have to be the statue.

      This is where you come in.  I had contacted a rescue agency here in Kabul created for soldiers to adopt animals they have bonded with while in Afghanistan ( my EXACT same situation), and for $4000-4500 they will cover the tests, immunizations, quarantine, and airfare to get Ursa to her new home in Florida so she can whip those frenchies into shape and keep the squirrels off of the tomatoes, the rabbits off of the zucchini, but most importantly the raccoons out of the chicken coop.  She can use her naturally honed territorial instincts she developed here and apply it to an actual job at home in the states.  Its a win/win for all parties involved.  Ursa definitely deserves this. I am not certain if they test her to find out if she is in the taliban or not, but you'll just have to take my word for it that she's cool.

     $4000 is a hell of a lot of money.  It is an enormous fee, although a necessary evil in this particular situation.  I wonder how many of you are like me and have a soft spot for an animal that is down on its luck- you couldn't have found more of an underdog right now than Ursa if you tried.  Presently I would not to peek at her tarot cards, but this fate can be changed.  With the help of all of you, we can get her into a doggie utopia and make her the envy of all the other dogs instead of one they might have pitied.   This is her chance to have a dream come true that she never knew she had before, (because she is a dog and I have no idea what dogs dream about but I imagine it's about simple things like peanut butter and slow moving postal workers) moving into a life where she is not only as happy as can be but also a productive member of the family.   If everybody that can donates a little bit I am sure we can raise this money in a reasonable amount of time.   Surely there is still a reason to have faith in humanity, and like I said before I would have done this alone like I have my whole life but this time the situation has kicked my ass quite a bit.   As much as I hate to admit it, I need help.

   Let's show the world how much of a difference we can make, lets kick life in the balls and forge a new destiny for Ursa, a new life bound together by the safety tested adhesives of your kindness and generosity. Without YOU this isn't going to happen for this sweet baby.  Without YOU, I am going to look like a serious dumbass as well for biting off more than I can chew.   The commitment has been made on my end, but I need a little bit of generosity from all of you to make it happen.  In a few weeks it will be too late, this has to happen now. Thank you all for anything you can do for her, trust me she is worth every penny.   Now that you know her fate you can share in the excitement of knowing she will get a new life and know that without you it would never have happened.  It's not too late for her yet. 


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Donations 

  • Anonymous
    • $50 
    • 8 yrs
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Organizer

Mike Stigar
Organizer
Hamilton, OH

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