The “grandfather” of homeless animals has been awarded for his volunteering efforts looking after stray dogs—graduating from a veterinary medicine program in his seventies, he now travels hundreds of miles a week to care for them.
Retiring from his career as a biology teacher after serving his community of 42 years, Turkey’s Fevzi Uyar has been dedicating his time to animals in need for the past five years.
He has cared for many stray dogs—including building over 80 plywood animal shelters to house them during the winter months. To each one, he adds carpets, rugs, and blankets for insulation and comfort.
Uyar also travels more than 90 miles every two days to provide homeless dogs with food and water. With the help of other animal lovers, he supplies eight to ten tons of dog food and meal to strays each month. Up to 1,000 dogs now recognize his van and follow it along the path of food stops he has established.
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Often encountering animals in need of medical attention, Uyar incurred several thousands of dollars in debts to the local veterinarian. To continue providing care, he enrolled in a veterinary medicine program despite being past retirement age. Recently graduating, the 71-year-old now vaccinates, treats, and dresses any wounds.
For his efforts to provide stray animals with a better life, Uyar has been awarded the first Gladiator Award from The Babbitt Family Foundation. They say, “We hope Mr. Uyar’s story will inspire you to discover how ‘a single individual can contribute to changing the world and benefitting all humanity’.”
If there’s someone you’d like to nominate for a Gladiator Award, you can head here.
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What an amazing thing to do at his age, graduating from a veterinary program, traveling to feed homeless animals and making homes for them.
Hats off to Mr. Uyar.
BRAVO Fevzi Uyar 👏👏👏❣ You are my HERO❣ Thank you SO much for turning your compassion into action to help innocent animals; if only the world had more humans such as yourself 💖🙌🙏