Animals rescued from fires still under treatment

İZMİR

The animals that were rescued from the forest fires last summer in the Marmaris, Bodrum and Milas districts of the western province of Muğla are still undergoing treatment at the İzmir Rescued Farm Animals Shelter.

Stating that 470 animals were brought to the farm during the fires, the shelter manager Sibel Çakır said, “Among them, we lost one cow. All the others are alive. Their treatment has been going on for a year. Our love is like a shield in front of their traumas. We never give up on them. The screams we heard in the forest fires are still ringing in our ears.”

Established under the leadership of the Anatolian People and Peace Platform (AHBAP) president and musician Haluk Levent, the Rescued Farm Animals Shelter in İzmir’s Kemalpaşa district is home to more than 2,700 disabled and rescued animals and ones that have been subjected to violence.

Animals injured in forest fires in Muğla’s Marmaris, Bodrum and Milas districts last year are also treated and cared for at the shelter. Çakır explained that she worked day and night to save all animals during the forest fires.

“In this process, we rescued hundreds of animals. Many of them had very severe burns. Some still do not have full skin on their bodies. Their treatment has been continuing since then. As a nation, we cried blood in the forest fires of 2021. The screams of the animals are still ringing in our ears. We destroy the life in the forest. Please throw what you drink and eat in trash cans,” she said.

Çakır stated that there are currently more than 2,700 animals on the farm, and continued: “There are 130 different species such as poultry, equidae, bunodonta, cats, dogs, wild animals and even mice. These species are divided into about 50 different species among themselves. This is Turkey’s largest and most comprehensive rescued animal farm. Our struggle is to explain to everyone that all animals are equal and all of them should be protected. Many animals are brought to this place, including the ones that have suffered human violence, traffic accidents, victims of harassment, disabled ones and weakened ones. We have people who come to the farm to work voluntarily.”

Stating that the most famous animal on the farm is Ferdinand, which escaped from İğdere in the Feast of Sacrifice and hundreds of people ran after him. “He was finally caught in Trabzon. It was a calf then, now it is a huge bull. Quite healthy and nutty. If we let it, I am sure it will jump into the sea from İzmir and who knows where we will find him,” she added.