Run by West Wales Army veteran Claire Steele, Paws Crossed Survivors is a dog rescue charity finding loving homes for Egyptian street dogs.

From her home in Ceredigion, Claire and her loyal band of volunteers co-ordinate the rescue, care and re-homing of shelter dogs in Egypt and across the UK and Canada.

Claire’s journey began when she saw a Facebook post by the owner of the Paws Crossed shelter in Cairo. His appeal for help in treating an injured dog prompted her to pay for the initial medical care and start fundraising. An eye-opening visit to the shelter just a few months later made her realise just how much help was needed to improve conditions and ensure the city’s street dogs had a chance at a better life.

While Claire managed to raise funds to build a treatment area and isolation facility, she wanted to do more. Even getting just a few dogs out of there would help, as many of them needed specialist veterinary care not available locally. After raising £5000 within 4 months, Claire arranged for the first eight dogs to travel to new homes in the UK.

Sadly, the shelter owner then abandoned the project. Never one to buckle in a crisis, Claire’s emergency rescue plan was to rescue all 74 dogs from the Paws Crossed Shelter and team up with ‘Chance Shelter’ to relocate them to a safe place – and Paws Crossed Survivors Egypt was founded.

Since its inception, Claire and her supporters have raised thousands of pounds to establish new kennels, provide medical care and start re-homing procedures in the UK and Canada. Almost all of the dogs that were rescued have now been happily re-homed.

Seeing how much she has changed the lives of these dogs has motivated Claire to continue to both re-home and support more dogs in Egypt. PCSE is currently fundraising for a wing for disabled dogs, with a small garden for the animals who will never leave Cairo. They also want to build an isolation facility to help segregate and treat ill dogs within the shelter.

Claire’s appreciation for her volunteers and passion for helping her dogs live a better life is clear:

“I’m immensely proud of the team of volunteers and all our supporters. Remotely and with limited resources, British people are making such a difference to the lives of these unfortunate souls in Cairo, against all odds. These dogs all deserve peace and to be loved. Saving one dog might not change the world, but for that one dog, their life is changed for the better forever. When we see the pictures of the dogs looking happy and healthy in loving new homes, it’s worth all the hard work!”

Paws Crossed would love to hear from anyone who may be able to foster or adopt dogs here in West Wales, sponsor a dog, volunteer or help with fundraising.

You can find out more about what they do on the Paws Crossed website, join their Facebook Group, visit the Paw’s Parlour Facebook page to see what’s up for auction or follow the dogs’ progress on their Instagram page. To message Claire, email Pawscrosseduk@gmail.com.