New wheels for a bigger Gang!
NEW WHEELS FOR A BIGGER GANG!
The Weetbix Gang was established in November 2018 by Alice and Zoe, the first to arrive at our sanctuary located in the Dandenong Ranges, Victoria (Australia)
Our mission is to provide sanctuary to animals in need and to touch human hearts through positive education.
By sharing the Gang’s stories and allowing people to follow their journey from rescue to recovery and beyond, we hope to create a kinder, more compassionate world for all.
Background
While the Gang enjoy their beautiful surroundings in the Dandenong Ranges, unfortunately it comes with the risk of bushfires during summer. We are located in an “extreme bushfire risk” area, which is the highest risk rating on the Victorian Bushfire Risk Register.
In addition to this, our property is completely surrounded by trees, so should a bushfire threaten our home, we would have no alternative other than to evacuate.
In May of last year we purchased a second-hand 6 x 4 caged trailer in preparation for summer, which commences in December in Australia. This trailer provided ample room for the Gang at the time, which only consisted of 4 individuals.
Since then we have taken in more Gang members, which has seen us double in size, and as such our current trailer is no longer adequate.
Our goal and the plan to get there
We have been in the process of looking at second-hand trailers and floats for some time, but unfortunately most of them are quite large and too heavy for our vehicle to tow.
Through our search, we found a company interstate who build custom floats. We discussed our needs with them, and they have quoted us for a customised small, lightweight float that will comfortably fit all of the Gang. The price of this float would be $7,100, and as the float will be manufactured interstate, there is also a freight charge of $1,600.
In an effort to raise the funds to buy the float, we are actively doing the following:
- selling mugs and calendars, and soon t-shirts and candles, with all profits going towards the float
- applying for any appropriate grants as they become available
- the human of Weetbix HQ is saving as much as she can of her wage for the float, with her minimum target being able to cover the freight charge ($1,600) which has not been included in the fundraiser target
In addition to the above, we have also created this fundraiser. The starting target is the total cost of the float (not including freight) and as we sell mugs, calendars, tees and candles we will reduce the target over time.
Ideally we would like to gift our current 6 x 4 trailer to another sanctuary, however depending on how things go, we may need to consider selling it to help purchase the new float.
Important
We would like to make it very clear that the safety of the Gang does not depend on the outcome of this fundraiser. If we are required to evacuate, we have somebody on standby with a float who can help us move.
The benefit of us having our own float on site here is that we can get the Gang accustomed to our float for easy / stress-free loading in an emergency, and we can evacuate much more swiftly if needed.
Having our own float will also provide us with a means of transport for other things like vet visits or assisting other rescues / sanctuaries when required.
Thank you!
Thank you so much to everyone who has donated to and shared our fundraiser.
We understand that this is a significant investment, and we will be actively working hard to contribute as much as we can to this purchase.
This fundraiser will be a long-game effortso we will share regular updates with youvia the gofundme platform in how things are progressing.
Want to know more about the Gang?
Watch this video to find out a little more about us: About The Weetbix Gang
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