ABOUT US
Our location
Colitas Con Canas is located in Ahunamarca, just above the town of Urubamba. Urubamba is the largest town in the Sacred Valley.
The Sacred Valley of the Incas (Spanish: Valle Sagrado de los Incas; Quechua: Willka Qhichwa) or the Urubamba Valley is a valley in the Andes of Peru, 20 kilometres (12 mi) at its closest north of the Inca capital of Cusco. The valley, generally running west to east, is understood to include everything along the Urubamba River between the town and Inca ruins at Písac westward to Machu Picchu, 100 kilometres (62 mi) distant.
Rescued dogs in our centre
Emily with two rescued dogs
Rescued dog in our centre
Our history and goals
Colitas Con Canas was created in 2023 in Urubamba, Peru, and translate as "gray tails" in English, which refers to our primary mission to rescue elderly dogs.
Colitas Con Canas is a specialized rescue centre focusing on elderly and special needs dogs and community outreach and education. We take in dogs that are unlikely to be adopted, dogs in recovery and sometimes hospice cases, and serve as a retirement home for abandoned elderly dogs.
We hope to inspire others to give a chance to the dogs that are often overlooked, but most importantly, that our dogs have a safe and loving place to live where they receive medical attention and any accommodations they may need physically and emotionally.
Another important goal for this project is reaching the community; through education and community involvement, we can achieve a positive change that would benefit not only all the dogs in the area but also the humans.
Local college students volunteering in our centre:
We aim to decrease the number of homeless dogs by increasing awareness and creating low-cost spay and neuter opportunities for local peoples' pets as well as focusing on teaching responsible pet ownership by helping families take care of their dogs when they need emergency help and by going to schools and talking to kids about how to be good caretakers for their dogs.
We believe fewer dogs on the street means fewer dogs suffering and less traffic danger. Studies have shown that towns with fewer street dogs have healthier people and fewer parasites found in children.
Colitas Con Canas is a project that does not receive any funding from the government, so the funds come exclusively from people interested in being part of this beautiful and challenging experience of helping defenceless dogs in the Sacred Valley.
We believe that by working together, we can make a difference!
The 3 founders
Emily (Project Director)
An American by birth, she arrived in Peru on vacation in 2007.
A short time she later founded Huaman Wasi, a refuge dedicated to rescuing, rehabilitating and releasing wild animals, victims of illegal trafficking in Urubamba, Cusco.
In 2023, Emily decided to open Colitas Con Canas, in collaboration with Nikki and Corinne.
Nikki (Volunteer Coordinator) and Corinne (Technology Top Dog)
While traveling through Peru back in 2018, we stayed in Urubamba where we had the opportunity to meet Fabrizio. He was the veterinarian who helped us in our attempt to rescue a street dog and take her back home with us to Canada. We felt a kindred bond with Fabrizio, and together with him, we co-founded Allqo Llaqta Rescue Centre for street dogs, which existed for 5 years.
Fabrizio has moved to the United States, and Allqo Llaqta is no longer in operation. We are now working with Emily in making Colitas Con Canas a successful rescue centre for street dogs in the Sacred Valley.