Abbreviation | GOSAC |
---|---|
Established | 2013 |
Founder | Dean Morris |
Founded at | Western Australia |
Legal status | Registered charity |
Purpose | Raising awareness and donations for animal shelters and animal rescue groups |
Location |
|
Region | Australia |
Director, CEO | Dean Morris |
Website | www |
Give Our Strays A Chance (GOSAC) is an organisation founded in 2013 by a Western Australian 10-year-old boy Dean Morris, [1] for the purpose of raising awareness of animal rescue and raising donations for animal shelters and pounds. [2]
Getting Australian and international businesses on board together with local communities and the media, GOSAC has saved many stray animals and raised hundreds of thousands of dollars in donations. [3] [4]
Over holiday seasons, GOSAC assists the homeless feed and care for their pets [5]
During bush fire seasons, including the 2021 Wooroloo Bushfire in Western Australia, GOSAC collected and delivered surgical and medical supplies to wildlife animal rescues. GOSAC also provided over 2 tonnes of wildlife food for the animals returning to the fire grounds. [6]
Through COVID-19, GOSAC has partnered with ARC (Animal Rescue Cooperative) and Petbarn Foundation to work on the Act Of Kindness project, helping struggling Australian families feed their pets. As local borders closed within Western Australia, GOSAC delivered donations to remote animal rescues who were stranded without supplies. [7] It was named "Operation Narrogin".
In 2013 Dean Morris rescued his dog "Hooch" from a country pound. Wanting to donate all his savings, Dean made his way to the pound where he encountered the confronting reality of stray animals. [8] Every year over 250,000 cats and dogs are euthanised in Australia, [9] Dean was determined to do something about it. As part of his school project at the Gifted and Talented program, Dean created GOSAC - Give Our Strays A Chance.
A regular GOSAC fundraising event at shopping centres such as Forest Lakes Shopping Centre and Halls Head Central [10] in Western Australia, where the community comes together to raise awareness and donations for the strays., [11] [12]
GOSAC has been participating in the University of Western Australia's bi-annual De Stress day, where university students have the chance to adopt the strays, donate or volunteer to foster cats and dogs.
The West Australian Kelmscott Show invited GOSAC to take part in their 2017 and 2018 events. All strays were adopted and hundreds of dollars were donated on the day. [13]
In 2021 Morris published a non-fiction book about his experiences and the importance of animal rescue efforts, titled Saving The World - One Stray At A Time. [14]
What started as a school project quickly snowballed into an award-winning, [15] statewide success story. [16] The community's support grew and with it Dean's ability to save more animals from euthanasia and drastically improve the conditions stray animals were kept at the animal shelters. [17] Within 7 years GOSAC raised hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash and item donations while saving many stray animals' lives. [18] [4]
Following the success of GOSAC, schools around the world are drawing inspiration from the young boy's success, teaching students that even kids can make a difference. [19] [20] In recognition of Dean's GOSAC work and his substantial contribution to animal welfare in Western Australia, he was appointed as an RSPCA WA Youth Ambassador. [21] Subsequently, Dean has also won the first RSPCA WA Youth State Award for 2018,. [22] [15] Dean was a finalist for Channel 7 Young Achiever Award for Community Service and Volunteering as well as Leadership. [23] He was also named a finalist for WA Youth Award. [24] In September 2020, Dean won Matt Keogh's Burt Award for his contribution to Animal Welfare as well as his work in the local and wider community [5] Dean received the Australia Day Young Citizen of the Year Award for 2021 [25] and became an Australia Day ambassador, [26] encouraging communities to come together to "Reflect, Respect and Celebrate" the Australian spirit and diversity.
An animal shelter or pound is a place where stray, lost, abandoned or surrendered animals – mostly dogs and cats – are housed. The word "pound" has its origins in the animal pounds of agricultural communities, where stray livestock would be penned or impounded until they were claimed by their owners.
A humane society is a group that aims to stop cruelty to animals. In many countries, the term is used mostly for societies for the prevention of cruelty to animals (SPCA). In the United Kingdom, and historically in the United States, such societies provide waterway rescue, prevention and recovery services, or may give awards for saving human life.
The Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) is a charity operating in England and Wales which promotes animal welfare.
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The Mandurah line is a commuter railway and service on the Transperth network in Western Australia that runs from Perth south to the state's second largest city Mandurah. The service is operated by Transperth Train Operations, a division of the Public Transport Authority. The line is 70.1 kilometres (43.6 mi) long and has 12 stations. At its northern end, the line begins as a continuation of the Joondalup line at Perth Underground, and ends as a continuation of the Joondalup line at Elizabeth Quay. The first 1.3 kilometres (0.81 mi) of the line is underground, passing under the Perth central business district. The line surfaces and enters the median of the Kwinana Freeway just north of the Swan River. It continues south down the freeway's median for 30 kilometres (19 mi), before veering south-west towards Rockingham. The final stretch of the line goes south from Rockingham to Mandurah.
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Council rangers are officers employed by local government areas in Australia to enforce the by-laws of those local governments and a limited range of state laws relating to such matters as litter control, animal control, dog laws, cat laws, bush fire control, off-road vehicles, emergency management, and parking. A Council Ranger is also referred to as Local Laws Officers in some of Australia's eastern states.
The Beazley Medals are two annual awards awarded by the School Curriculum and Standards Authority. From 2001 onwards, two medals have been awarded each year — one to the top TEE student and one to the top vocational education and training (VET) student.
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RSPCA Australia is an Australian peak organisation established in 1981 to promote animal welfare. Each state and territory of Australia has an RSPCA organisation that predates and is affiliated with RSPCA Australia.
Railways in Perth, the capital city of Western Australia, have existed since 1881, when the Eastern Railway was opened between Fremantle and Guildford. Today, Perth has seven Transperth commuter rail lines and 75 stations.
Transperth is the public transport system for Perth and surrounding areas in Western Australia. It is managed by the Public Transport Authority (PTA), a state government organisation, and consists of train, bus and ferry services. Bus operations are contracted out to Swan Transit, Path Transit and Transdev. Ferry operations are contracted out to Captain Cook Cruises. Train operations are done by the PTA through their Transperth Train Operations division.
The Singapore Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals is a registered animal welfare charity in Singapore.
Thornlie Senior High School is an independent public co-educational high day school in the City of Gosnells, located off Ovens Road in the Perth suburb of Thornlie, Western Australia.
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The South Metropolitan TAFE is a Technical and Further Education (TAFE) institution with campuses in Armadale, Bentley, Carlisle, Fremantle, Jandakot, Kwinana, Mandurah, Munster, Murdoch, Naval Base, Rockingham and Thornlie in Western Australia.
RSPCA NSW is a not-for-profit charity operating in New South Wales, Australia that promotes animal welfare.
This article is about the treatment of and laws concerning non-human animals in Australia. Australia has moderate animal protections by international standards.
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