news Archives - Bali Animal Welfare Association (BAWA)

Most days in July felt completely overwhelming. The calls for help just kept coming and coming, with each call seeming more desperate than the one before.

We never seem to have enough resources to reach every animal in need, answer every request for help, or get to every village that needs us.

Most days it feels like we’re getting further behind and never ahead.

But then we reflect on the wise advice from our friends …
“BAWA – you do so much. Stop panicking, take a breath (or two) and focus on all the great work you are doing, and all that you have done.”

DEEP BREATHS – Look back – Look at all the amazing work we have done – Pat ourselves and each other on the back.

None of this would have happened without you.

Rescue • Rehab • Rehome

BAWA works closely with communities, helping people and villages care for their own dogs and cats wherever possible. Our teams provide medication, veterinary assistance and practical support on site, while also delivering food to marginalised communities and families struggling to properly feed and care for their animals.

But some animals need more intensive treatment and must be brought into one of our animal centres, rehabilitation facilities or veterinary clinics.

In just the last two weeks of July, 25 puppies came into our care – and only two arrived with their mothers.

The remaining puppies had no mothers to feed or comfort them, so our teams stepped in with round-the-clock bottle feeding, with the help of lactating mother dogs wherever possible.

We are currently caring for 347 dogs and some cats in our rescue centres, with additional rescued animals in boarding facilities and others receiving urgent treatment at private veterinary clinics.

To keep them fed and healthy, our teams prepare around 800 nutritious meals every day.

This Is Why Prevention Is So Important

Rescue is essential, but prevention is how we create lasting change.

Rabies vaccination protects both animals and people, while sterilisation helps prevent unwanted litters, abandonment and future suffering.

So far this year, 4,909 animals have been vaccinated against rabies and 2,068 have been sterilised.

Every vaccination matters. Every sterilisation helps prevent future suffering. And every village reached brings us closer to a healthier, safer Bali.

Giving Animals a Second Chance

Every day, BAWA answers emergency calls for animals with nowhere else to turn.

In July alone, 468 animals received urgent treatment and care, bringing the total to 3,463 animals helped so far this year.

• Charlie – a four-year-old dog who was abandoned and left severely malnourished. Rescued in July, Charlie is still in a vet clinic under intensive care.

• Rucika – a once-loved pet, who was abandoned with a huge abscess, dislocated joint and other injuries. Rucika is also still at a vet clinic.

With your support, BAWA can continue answering emergency calls, providing urgent veterinary care and giving vulnerable animals the second chance they deserve.

Education Creates a Kinder Future

Prevention is vital, but education is just as important if we want to create a kinder and more compassionate future for animals.

In July alone, we reached 3,432 students, bringing the total so far this year to 20,622 students.

These lessons save lives. Children learn how to behave safely around dogs, what to do if they are bitten, and how responsible and compassionate animal care benefits the whole community.

Each student also receives an educational booklet to take home and share with their family, helping these important messages travel far beyond the classroom.

Every Rescue Deserves a Happy Ending

From an injured leg to a loving forever home, Poppet’s journey is a reminder that every rescued animal deserves hope and a second chance.

So far this year, 158 dogs and cats have found loving forever homes, and in July alone, 34 more dogs found their families.

These are the happy endings we want for every rescued animal.

Your donation helps provide shelter, nutritious food, veterinary treatment and daily care for rescued animals until their forever home is found.

Every day, animals across Bali need urgent help. They are abandoned, injured, neglected or left with nowhere else to turn.

The need is enormous. But so is the difference we can make together.

Thanks to you…

Halfway through 2026, we wanted to share what your support has already made possible for Bali’s animals so far this year. Every rescue, every vaccination, every sterilisation, every school visit, every emergency treatment, and every adoption begins with people who care enough to help… People like you.

Because of you, BAWA has already reached thousands of animals and children across Bali in 2026.

Your impact so far this year

So far in 2026:

1,866 animals sterilized: Preventing unwanted litters and reducing suffering before it begins.
4,103 animals vaccinated against rabies Including 2,434 animals vaccinated directly by BAWA, plus 1,669 more vaccinated together with government Animal Husbandry Departments during our One Health community days.
2,960 animals treated: From emergency wounds and infections to life-saving surgeries and clinic admissions.
17,190 students reached through education across 103 schools, helping the next generation learn compassion, responsible animal care, and rabies prevention.
124 animals adopted, including 118 dogs and 6 cats who now have the safety, love and families they always deserved.

These numbers are not just statistics. Behind every one is an animal who was suffering, a family who needed help, a child learning kindness, or a community becoming safer for both people and animals.Thank you for making this work possible.

June Highlights

Working together for humane solutions

On 10^th June 2026, BAWA was proud to co-host the Dog and Cat Coalition Regional Event 2026 with Asia for Animals.

The event brought together animal welfare NGOs, national and provincial government representatives, veterinarians, academics, and experts to focus on humane, practical responses to dog and cat population challenges.

Among the many wonderful speakers was BAWA’s Drh. Made Karang Agustina, from Udayana University who presented real-life cases from Bali and highlighted a message we see every day in the field: rescue is essential, but rescue alone cannot solve the root causes of suffering.

To protect animals and communities, we need prevention, education, humane population management, rabies control, responsible ownership, and strong collaboration between government, veterinary professionals, NGOs and local communities.

BAWA was honored to help create space for this important conversation — because lasting change means not only saving animals in crisis, but transforming the systems that put animals and people at risk in the first place.

Working together for humane solutions

On 10^th June 2026, BAWA was proud to co-host the Dog and Cat Coalition Regional Event 2026 with Asia for Animals.

One-Health in action in Kintamani

High in the hills above Mount Batur, our One-Health work continues to reach animals and families in remote communities.

Together with FOUR PAWS International, the Bangli Animal Husbandry Department and PDHI Bangli, BAWA teams travel long distances to provide rabies vaccinations, sterilisation services, and community education on responsible animal care.

It is always moving to see children and families arriving with their dogs and cats, waiting patiently for care and wanting to do the right thing for their animals.

So far this year through this program, 755 animals have been sterilized and 2,372 animals vaccinated against rabies.

This is what prevention looks like: healthier animals, safer communities, fewer unwanted litters, and a stronger future for Bali’s dogs and cats.

Thank you to our partners, field teams and supporters for helping us reach places where animals often have no other access to care.

Children are the future for Bali’s animals

We can rescue animals today, but by teaching children kindness and respect for animals, we can help prevent suffering and protect countless more in the future. So far this year, BAWA has reached 17,190 students across 103 schools, teaching compassion and why animals deserve protection. In every classroom, we see hope: children listening, asking questions, talking about their own dogs and cats, and learning that they can be part of the solution.

Just $30 can educate an entire classroom – helping build a safer, kinder future for Bali’s animals.

From suffering to safety: Anita’s new life

We have seen so many wonderful transformations this year – animals rescued from pain, fear, neglect and uncertainty, and given the chance to heal. Among the many rescues that have stayed with us, Anita’s story is one that really sticks with us.

Anita came to BAWA in March with an open fracture on her front paw and a broken femur. She endured two surgeries, a bone plate, and eventually an amputation.

But Anita never gave up.

Today, she is thriving in a wonderful new home with a family who loves her exactly as she is.

Three legs, infinite love, one perfect home.

Stories like Anita’s are why emergency rescue and veterinary treatment matter so much. When an animal is given the chance to heal, their whole life can change.

We are also happy to share that alongside Anita, there are 37 other animals found their forever homes in June.

Every adoption means one more animal safe, one more life changed, one more space opened for another animal in desperate need.

To everyone who adopts, fosters, shares, donates, or helps an animal find a home – thank you.

Rescue is never easy… But every life is worth it.

BAWA’s Emergency Response Team faces many extraordinary rescue situations every single week.

In June, our team responded to many animals trapped in frightening and dangerous places – including a mother dog and her puppies stuck underground beneath a busy road, and puppies stranded 60 meters down a steep ravine.

These rescues are physically difficult, emotionally intense, and often a race against time. But when an animal is fighting for their life, every challenge is worth it.

You can watch some of these recent rescues here:

Every emergency call we answer is only possible because of people like you.

Your donations pay for veterinary treatment, surgery, vaccines, sterilisation, food, medicine, education and the dedicated teams who never give up on animals in need.