Animal Shelter Project - Mongolia

Rob Gudenkauf is organizing this fundraiser.

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All funds raised in this campaign will support animal welfare projects in Ulaanbaaar, Mongolia. Primarily, these funds will assist two local animal shelters - Хөөрхөн Зулзага (Cute Baby Animals) and UB Shelter. Each of these shelters are run by registered NGOs with no government assistance, surviving on donations of money and food, and each provides sanctuary to more than 100 rescued dogs and cats.

Without the shelters, these animals would face a grim fate -- many strays suffer and freeze to death during the long, harsh winter of the coldest capital city on Earth, where temperatures routinely reach -30 degrees Fahrenheit. Those that survive face government-contracted hunters during regular purges of street animals; each year, these purges kill tens of thousands of dogs and cats across Mongolia.

Established approximately two years ago, Хөөрхөн Зулзага relies on donations to supplement the financial contributions of its founders. The shelter uses these funds to employ on-site caretakers and provide animals with food, water, shelter, and veterinary services. Approximately 80 dogs live outdoors in fenced enclosures, and 60 cats live in a combined indoor and outdoor space.

UB Shelter, Mongolia's first animal shelter, began operations in 2017 and registered as Compassion for Animals NGO in 2019. The founder lives at the shelter among his 90 dogs and 10 cats with no running water or electricity - a life completely devoted to caring for animals in need. UB Shelter does not own land and has been forced to move from rented or borrowed property seven times in the past four years.

In March of 2022, the founder of this fundraising page and a small group of Americans living in Ulaanbaatar formed a group to help animals in need. They began working with Хөөрхөн Зулзага to provide services and operational upgrades. To date, the group has:

Purchased sessions with a local animal trainer to socialize the dogs and allow more of them to live off-chain together. Here is a video of the trainer in action from the shelter's Facebook page.
Designed and constructed an insulated dog house large enough to protect three medium-sized dogs from wind and freezing temperatures. Here is a video of the shelter receiving the first dog house and putting it in one of the fenced enclosures. By the end of that winter, the group had modified the design and provided a total of 46 insulated houses.
Purchased rabies vaccines and health passport books for 86 of the shelter's dogs. Here is a sped-up video of the first round of vaccinations.
Installed a water well on the shelter compound. Previously, the shelter staff traveled 5 km to a service station to fill jugs with water, a cumbersome chore that was even more challenging when the shelter's truck was out of service. Now, they have ready access to water on site. You can see photos of the well project in our Go Fund Me updates section.
Created a logo for the NGO that owns the shelter, so they can sell merchandise and raise funds.
Completed additional infrastructure projects such as additional fencing for dog runs, improved cleaning supplies, repairs for the shelter’s vehicle, and a residence for the shelter's caretaker.
Found homes, both in Mongolia and abroad, for several of the animals at the shelter.

As these projects progressed, the group expanded. More than 75 people - Americans, Mongolians, and others - have joined the effort and donated pet food, money, and labor to the cause. The group's mission also expanded, and they began working with UB Shelter in the late summer of 2022. In addition to cleaning projects and socializing animals during volunteer trips, the group has:

Sent two of UB Shelter's dogs to new homes in the United States and adopted a third in Mongolia.
Funded two transportable trailer-like shelters to house animals during the winter.

The work continues. The current top priority is to find new land for UB Shelter, a place where they can settle permanently and establish infrastructure such as a well, electricity, and permanent structures. The estimated cost for this project is more than 30,000 USD, and the volunteer group is actively seeking grants from international animal welfare organizations.

Funds raised via this GoFundMe page will go towards that project and others, such as:

Routine veterinary services for the shelter’s animals, including vaccines, examinations, emergency care, microchips, and health passport books. For reference, the cost for vaccines, an examination, and a health passport for one animal is approximately 24 USD.
Spays and neuters for new shelter animals.
Additional insulated dog houses to help the dogs survive winter.

The NGOs running these shelters are pioneers in compassion for animals. They put every dollar raised towards care for their dogs and cats, and they're helping change public opinion on animal welfare in Mongolia. We have several project ideas and people on the ground to execute those plans. Funds permitting, we can truly transform these shelters and make an incredible difference in the lives of these animals.

All money from this GoFundMe fundraising effort will go to Хөөрхөн Зулзага and UB Shelter via the project group leader. If you prefer to donate directly to the shelters and can send money to a Mongolian bank account, please click the banner on each shelter's Facebook page (Хөөрхөн Зулзага, UB Shelter) to see their donation account information.

If you live in Mongolia and are interested in contributing your time and labor to these projects -- or want to adopt one of the animals! -- please use the contact function on this page to reach the project organizer.

And stay tuned - we are also brainstorming ideas for creating an animal welfare public awareness campaign, organizing a spay and neuter program in Ulaanbaatar, and linking these NGOs with partner organizations overseas.