Located in Phuket, Thailand, the Gill Dalley sanctuary is a safe, loving place for animals who have suffered cruelty, neglect, injury or abandonment. It offers refuge to animals with disabilities, traumatised strays, and helpless puppies and kittens who wouldn’t survive alone on the streets. Here, they find care, comfort, and a second chance at life.
The sanctuary was renamed in 2017 in honour of Gill who sadly lost her battle with cancer. Gill was truly the heart and soul of our mission and, despite the incredible personal challenges she faced through her life, always put the needs of homeless animals above her own.
Spread over 12 acres, the sanctuary has over 1,800 dogs and cats under its care, with dedicated spaces designed to meet their needs. The sanctuary has large enclosures for dogs to move freely, a cosy cattery, and state-of-the-art dog and cat hospitals that cares for hundreds of dogs and cats at a time. There are treatment kennels, a sterilisation suite, multiple off lead areas to allow dogs to run freely, a hydrotherapy pool to help them recover from injuries, and even an outdoor swimming pool that provides not only enrichment but an assistive environment for our senior dogs to enjoy at their leisure. For animals with infectious diseases, special isolation rooms ensure they can heal safely.
The sanctuary is open to visitors and volunteers, offering an opportunity for people to connect with the animals and learn about the foundation’s work. Today, the sanctuary carries forward Gill’s vision, improving the welfare of homeless animals and inspiring humane treatment throughout Thailand and Southeast Asia.
We provide both physical rehabilitation through post-operative treatment, including laser treatment and hydrotherapy, and psychological rehabilitation through our team of experienced animal behaviourists, working with often traumatised stray animals to heal them from their emotional experiences and help prepare them for adoption.
Physical rehabilitation
After initial treatment for the wide variety of ailments and injuries our veterinary team witness comes the often-long road to complete recovery. It is not unusual for our team of veterinary nurses to spend weeks or months providing daily physical rehabilitation for a dog. Cases seen here in Thailand may differ from those seen in so-called western countries, and road traffic accidents are commonplace. In many instances, accidents cause severe mobility problems necessitating a range of treatments such as physio and hydrotherapy.
Psychological Rehabilitation
With almost 30 years of collective experience working exclusively with Thai street dogs under their belts, there’s not much that Soi Dog’s dedicated behaviour and enrichment team haven’t seen. Our positive reinforcement approach has enabled the dogs deemed least likely to find a home turn things around and become the most unique, compatible and loving family members.
Working with dogs that have suffered physical or psychological trauma presents it's own challenges, especially in a busy shelter environment. We identified a need to create a different living space for these dogs and have provided a number of enclosures designed to house a fewer number of dogs, allowing the shy and cautious ones time to grow in confidence whilst working alongside our patient behaviour team who help them develop their social skills.
Many street dogs have never known what it is like to feel safe, or to trust anyone. We make it our mission to change that.
