Cape Town - An inspired swimmer is preparing to swim from Robben Island to Big Bay to raise funds for an animal sterilisation programme.
Rob Armstrong, a wine producer and custodian at Haut Espoir in Franschhoek, was inspired by another local, Peter Leul, who did the same swim two years ago and raised much-needed funds for the Watershed
animal organisation.
Watershed is a non-profit organisation that has a sterilisation outreach programme to assist as many animals by getting them spayed.
Armstrong said: “I’m hitting the training miles and getting this big unit used to the cold water to swim from Robben Island to Big Bay and face my biggest fear, which is sharks.”
He also hopes to raise awareness about the suffering of neglected
animals across the province.
This swim is expected to take place about April 17, 18 and 19, dependent on the weather.
Armstrong said he was passionate about this initiative and would like to raise funds for the Watershed because the organisation had done great animal rehabilitation work in the townships. The volunteers at the organisation sterilise about 40 animals a day without any charge to owners.
“They aim to prevent more unwanted animals ending up on the streets and becoming neglected,” he said.
The founder of the Watershed Animal Rescue and Rehabilitation, Stephne Jackson, said overpopulation and breeding of animals was a major
concern and it was becoming a
struggle to continue with sterilisation due to funding.
“The past two years we’ve been concentrating on the Napier/Bredasdorp areas to try to get this area under control. This is only possible when one works with committed local volunteers in the area and good inspectors from local welfare,” said Jackson.
Jackson said they had sterilised more than 3000 animals in the
Western Cape.
She said they hoped that Armstrong’s initiative would make a difference to the organisation’s work.
* For those that would like to support this initiative, visit www.backabuddy.co.za/champion/project/bigrobs-robben-island-crossing-for-watersh