The Costa Rican Territorio de Zaguates was established by Lya Battle.It was heaven on earth for dogs and a no-kill shelter.Lya Saumet and Alvaro Saumet, her husband, began caring for stray dogs almost 13 years ago.
However, the benevolent couple gradually began to accept so many stray dogs that their totals soon exceeded 100, 200, and 300.These dogs were previously kept in their small backyard.
However, Lya quickly made the decision to relocate somewhere else because it posed a problem for the neighbors.She relocated to a property her grandfather owned.
The couple couldn’t leave those plightful stray dogs in their care.If Lya stopped taking care of the dogs, she was afraid that they might be killed in an accident by someone or a car.
But Lya says that a dog becomes bulletproof if it survives the first month alone on the streets. There were 2 million dogs roaming the streets of Costa Rica, but no one called the streets home.
The land that Lya’s grandfather owned covered 378 acres of tropical mountain terrain.Lya says that her grandfather loved animals as well, and opening the sanctuary on her grandfather’s land would be a way to respect the land.
Lya was of the opinion that people should learn to accept animals as members of the family rather than as objects.She was also of the opinion that people should be taught this way of thinking from a young age.
Lya never put dogs down at Territorio de Zaguates.However, there were dogs at the sanctuary who required therapy.
At the sanctuary, several dogs were hit by cars and needed therapy to move their damaged hind legs.
She revealed that dogs were extremely resilient and braver than humans.Small dogs had to make up for their size with their personalities at the same time.
Lya claimed that dogs had weak backs.Nevertheless, despite their physical limitations, they would always be content. The feeding of all the dogs was, according to Lya’s husband, the most challenging aspect.
The sanctuary housed more than 1,000 dogs.As a result, they designed the longest troughs and strategically placed the sacks to make feeding the dogs simple.
To ensure that all of the dogs could eat, staff members had to patrol behind them.The staff would collect the poop and load it into the sacks after the dog had finished eating.
Companies that specialize in composting dog poop manage these sacks.
