SPCA Animal Emergency Ambulance for Canterbury - Urgent!

We urgently need your help to raise the final $5,000 we need to be able to buy a replacement Emergency Animal Ambulance! We’ve been fundraising for this project but are still just short of our overall goal!

Our current vehicle has travelled over 200,000 kms and while it has been well maintained, a number of costly mechanical issues are arising so we need to replace the vehicle as soon as possible.

The SPCA Animal Emergency Ambulance operates 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, all over Christchurch City, as well as surrounding rural areas across Canterbury, in all weathers and on all roads in response to emergencies involving all kinds of animals – from rescuing ducklings to transporting injured strays.

Last year, the ambulance attended 324 animal emergency incidents, a 40% increase on the previous year.

The SPCA Animal Emergency Ambulance is manned by fully qualified and experienced Auxiliary Officers who are trained to manage diverse situations; from road accidents to rescue of trapped animals. Past emergencies have included the rescue of animals stuck on cliffs, in trees, in restricted spaces (under a house or in between office buildings). Just like ‘human ambulance personnel’, our Auxiliary Officers often act as a first responder in an animal emergency and, they have the clinical skills to assess and tend to injured animals in need of immediate first aid. Animals are then transported by ambulance to the nearest veterinary clinic for further treatment.

Without the ambulance service we provide, many animals would not arrive with a Vet for vital emergency treatment. Often, we find that members of the public are afraid of or unwilling to touch an injured animal, for fear of causing further distress or injury. It is so rewarding to hear feedback from people commending us on the work that we do; in particular, owners who discover their pet has been in an accident or has been rescued from a certain predicament and has been cared for by our ambulance staff.

We are committed to working with and alongside the public in encouraging a humane and caring community for all and hope you can help us to continue to do this.