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Conversation with Siavash Khoramgah

The Instagram page for free adoption of domestic animals (chinchila_cinere) has over 51 thousand followers. This page has caught our attention due to its uniqueness compared to other similar pages on social networks, regarding the support for animals. This page, while simple in action and tools, has been successful in effectively helping abandoned animals and promoting a culture and discourse of proper behavior towards animals; to the extent that some recent cases of animal abuse on social media have been identified with the help of this page’s followers. Based on this, the peace line has approached Vafa Gark Yaraq, the organizer of the page. We asked Ms. Gark Yaraq, who is based in Isfahan, about her activities on this page and how she receives various news related to injured and needy animals, her motivations, goals, and other related matters.

As the first question, please tell us how long ago you started the animal aid page and what was your initial motivation for working in this field?

I started this page about two years ago. At first, it was just like any other personal page, but gradually I decided to make my activities more purposeful. In fact, I have been taking care of cats for about ten years. I started my supportive activities with a sick cat; I treated and saved its life, and afterwards, I felt that blessings entered my life and good things happened to me that were surprising. Along this path, people really supported me and showed me a lot of kindness, which led to the growth of the page. With widespread awareness, we were able to provide help for many cats, dogs, and other animals in need.

For this reason, fortunately, both our conscience is at ease and we are confident that we are engaging in purposeful social activities. Our life has also become full of joy and peace. Currently, I am taking care of 24 cats at my home. All of my cats were initially sick, but they have been treated.

Does this work have personal or financial benefits for you?

Good, I have never had any financial gain and all my friends who know me can testify to that. We even had a Persian cat that was offered a high price for purchase, but I refused to sell it. The important issue here is that we are completely against buying and selling animals and we believe that if instead of buying and selling, we give them away, it will also prevent theft. We also believe that no one should put a price on a living being. All living creatures have great value in the natural cycle and our human lives are also dependent on them; therefore, pricing and buying and selling have no meaning.

As a result, this page has never benefited me or its supporters in any way, shape or form. We truly sacrifice our own living expenses. My spouse is buried in Zahrā-ye Tehrān Paradise and for about three years, every time I want to go there, I tell myself it’s not right and it’s better to spend that amount – which could be around two hundred thousand tomans – on the medical expenses of a dog that got into an accident. You may not believe it, but I always tell myself that instead of buying an extra coat – and spending a hundred thousand tomans – I should use that money to buy these food packages so they don’t go hungry or freeze in the streets during the winter. If you pay attention to this page, sometimes I update it until two or three in the morning. Of course, this is the concern of all supporters. In fact, we sacrifice our extra expenses, as well as our sleep, leisure, and travel

What are your activities on that page and what goals are you pursuing?

As I mentioned, providing assistance and saving the lives of injured animals is one of our main goals. We also rehome a large number of domestic animals; for example, there are many people who become unable to care for their cats after giving birth and don’t know what to do with the kittens, so they end up wandering the streets. We have tried to place these cats in homes instead of them being homeless and on the streets. We have also found people with large homes who needed guard dogs and have helped reduce the number of stray dogs on the streets.

In addition to our page on Instagram, we have launched various rescue and relief channels and groups on Telegram. For example, the Jandarmery channel in Isfahan, which I myself manage and is active in promoting culture. Some news related to wildlife, environment, or dog slaughter that cannot be shared on Instagram, I publish on this channel. We have many supporters, estimated to be around five thousand, who all work independently and actively. Those who work with us do not receive financial support from any organization, and in fact, all expenses for the treatment of injured animals are covered by our supporters and with empty hands. Sometimes, friends become generous and share news about the need for financial help, and people are kind enough to donate, but I have never shared such news myself. We provide food ourselves. For example, I am working in two places, and I have dedicated the salary from one of them entirely to this work. We also have a veterinarian in Isfahan who is very

How do you gather such a large amount of information every day about injured and needy animals?

See, there are many channels on Telegram such as environmental channels, animal abuse channels, and information and adoption channels. But most of the news I post on Instagram is related to cases reported by people themselves. In fact, my followers constantly send me reports about things like a dog getting hit by a car in a certain place, a cat with a collar found (indicating it had an owner), or a slaughter taking place somewhere. People have become their own reporters, they report and film, and they do it in the best way possible. Sometimes, there are so many reports coming in that I don’t even have time to eat lunch.

It may be a bit cliché, but allow us to ask: wouldn’t it have been better to use this energy to help humans? Why do you choose to help animals instead of using this potential for humans?

To be honest, I always get asked this question; some of my friends mock me or leave me messages asking why I don’t help people. I have to say that we actually do think about people and I have posted some photos on my page about children who were missing, in hopes that their families would find them. Someone who helps animals also cares about their own kind and needy humans… But in any case, this page is specifically for animals and has a specific goal (helping animals) and we can’t talk much about human problems there.

What is your opinion on the cultural attitude towards animals in our society?

In this regard, I can say it is very bad due to the neglect towards animals. Let me give an example. The people who live in my neighborhood have been very unkind to me. Apart from poisoning several of my cats, they even took me to court twice for feeding stray cats. My accusation was that I was leaving garbage out of schedule in the alley; in fact, they had labeled the food I prepare for the local cats as garbage out of schedule.

I passed by my neighbors and I hope that I can change their view. But the supporters are very upset. For example, they say that during feeding, people disrespect them, or take away the food. Unfortunately, some people consider the supporters as crazy or idle and indulgent people who are definitely happy to feed animals! They don’t know how difficult and exhausting this work is for us. We are not crazy or mentally deficient, we are just kind and we love animals. We have seen things from animals that others may not have seen in their lives.

On the other hand, I am encouraged by seeing daily reports from people, for example, about taking care of a sick cat in their alley or finding a stray dog. I see that our efforts have not gone to waste. However, in terms of cultural development, we still have a long way to go. For instance, a few weeks ago, I took two healthy kitten to a daycare center for children to play with. The children were happy to see them from behind the glass, but the caregivers were unkind and did not let me enter the center. Their excuse was that if these children get sick, what answer can we give to their families? My opinion is that for cultural development, we need to start with the children themselves. If conditions are created in schools and daycare centers for children to befriend animals through sponsors, a large part of society will become supporters of animals in the future.

Of course, I even believe that middle-aged or elderly people who have more free time can be good supporters for these animals. At that age, when a person finds such an activity, they become happy and have more hope for their life. We must not forget the positive psychological effects that animals can have on humans. For example, a few weeks ago, a family adopted a cat with only one hand for their child who had become severely depressed due to losing one of their hands. When this child sees that the cat can do everything like other cats despite having only one hand, they find hope in life.

Contrary to traditional animal rights groups, you do not have access to special facilities such as executive facilities or even a website, and you only use social networks. Did you consciously choose this simplicity in your activities or do you simply operate in this manner due to a lack of resources?

The reality is that I am working in this way due to a lack of resources. I am a single woman with a child. My husband passed away nine years ago due to cancer and I am the sole breadwinner of the household. I work outside of the house until 7pm and only have extra time to dedicate to this work. The cost of having a website is high. On the other hand, tools like Instagram and Telegram are always accessible. For example, I may be at the bank and waiting for my turn when I receive news about a rescue that I can easily share through my mobile phone. Or during meals, I usually share news about emergency situations. I always have to be online, otherwise it may be a missed opportunity to help a dog in the cold or connect a supporter who is in the nearest location. In any case, working with a website requires me to constantly be on a computer or laptop, which is not possible for me given my life circumstances.

This is a simple yet effective method. For example, we have a 10-year-old supporter who always says, “I want to be like you when I grow up!” Although I think he is already like me! He always has a mobile phone with all the features and has asked me to repost the news I post on Instagram, which I happily agreed to. As a result, everyone can be active in this way; not just in the field of animals, but also in the areas of environmental activists, water and natural resources, and other fields. The question that always bothers me is why, in a situation where people can easily engage in such activities, they do not target their Instagram pages? What is the reason for only posting personal photos on this network, which can also cause inconvenience for them? Truly, there needs to be more education on the proper use of the internet. I do this because I love animals; others must also be interested in issues that they can actively engage in.

What was your sweetest or most instructive memory during these years that you have been working with animals?

One day, I found a beautiful kitten who had lost her mother. The kitten was depressed and wouldn’t eat anything. No matter how hard I tried and gave her vitamins to stimulate her appetite, it didn’t work and she wouldn’t eat. I could see sadness in her eyes and I knew she missed her mother. After a few days, one night I put her under my shirt and licked her head. My intention was to make her feel like I was her mother, so I played this role for her. Fortunately, it worked and she started to eat and slowly her sad and gloomy face turned into a happy one. This was the sweetest memory for me, although it may bother some people to hear it, but I did it and had no problem with it.

Unfortunately, there are false beliefs that cat hair causes problems for humans and can even lead to infertility, which is not true. Unless in rare cases where there is a cycle that needs to be completed, toxoplasmosis is not only from cats, it can also occur from eating unwashed fruits or vegetables. But the issue is not that simple and these false beliefs need to be eliminated. Cats are very clean creatures and, as you know, they are so meticulous that they even urinate in their designated litter box or garden. Or they say that dogs are unclean; how can such innocent creatures be unclean? Believe me, no animal is unclean… Of course, I am not talking about animal feces, which if it is so, it is also unclean for humans. But does this justify humans discriminating against each other!?

How can people help you and the expansion of your activities?

The ways of help are always open. In fact, the information we provide is usually accompanied by a phone number and address. Sometimes people ask us questions that we gladly answer. For example, we are often asked how to feed a found kitten. I have always made time and guided those who were interested, because I believe that many of these individuals may become supporters in the future. People can also copy our page’s content and share it on their own pages, so that these innocent creatures can find homes or receive help as soon as possible. I always write that copying is allowed and anyone can republish the content.

We have recently launched a group on Telegram called “Animal Adapt” which currently has about one hundred members. Anyone who is interested in working in this field can be active in this group. Of course, there are really a lot of support groups and if anyone is interested, they can message me on Instagram so I can guide them better and send them links to groups and pages related to different cities with pleasure.

Regarding financial assistance, I want to emphasize that anyone who wants to help should know the name of the clinic, the relevant doctor, and the phone number or address beforehand. Unfortunately, I cannot investigate each of these cases individually, but having this information available makes it easier for people who want to help to follow up on the situation. Again, I urge you to make sure of the help you are providing; be sure to contact the clinic and ask if the animal in question is really there for us to help. Also, the transfer should not be easy. It should be accompanied by a form and a visit to the location. These recommendations are made because unfortunately, anyone can have access to our pages and some may want to take advantage of the situation. Of course, these are rare cases, but for example, we have encountered people who would accept the transfer but then sell the animals!

And finally, if you have anything specific to say, please do so.

I have hope for the future and I believe that these activities and information sharing will ultimately be effective in encouraging people to have better behavior towards nature and animals and to respect them. Even this conversation can be effective. I hope to one day see no news of any animal abuse reaching us. The same goes for nature; for example, there are those who burn trees to make a fire. Well, that tree is alive and produces oxygen; something no other living being can do.

I believe that we should first love ourselves and our surroundings in order to be able to respect others. Those who harm nature, animals, or people, do not love themselves first and foremost…

Thank you for the opportunity you have given us.

I’m sorry, I don’t understand.

متاسفم، من نمی‌فهمم.