Mission

Why Toolbee exists

I created Toolbee so I can build sanctuaries, rescue teams and free veterinary clinics for homeless animals. Currently Toolbee is still small, but this is the big picture for the future.

We will start here in Israel where we have 2+ million cats and dogs on the street, many of them urgently needing medical care, food and a safe living space.

Money / salaries

Toolbee is registered as a for-profit business because this was the fastest way to get started, but after the product launch I will hire a lawyer and see what the best options are for taxes, etc.

I currently take minimum wage for my personal uses because I don’t need any more. I may take a larger wage in the future if it’s needed, but I have no desire to fill up my bank account or waste money on fancy cars/houses/vacations/etc.

Just a few of my cats.

Rescue operations

By my estimation there are 3-5 million deaths of stray animals here every year, mostly kittens and puppies under a few weeks old – because of the huge amounts of births on the streets. The ones that make it to adulthood then only average a very short lifespan because of injuries, illnesses and nasty humans. (if you want to get a feel for the problem, you can look at any one of the Facebook groups here dedicated to animal rescue/donations/adoptions – be warned, it is very grim to view and I honestly don’t recommend it – for example here is a public one.) As far as I understand, the population at the end of each breeding period goes back down to around 2 million survivors. The situation is grim in every city – and even in the more well-funded cities like Tel Aviv there are cats surrounding basically every single building – many injured in one way or another.

One of the first steps is hiring veterinary staff for a large scale neutering program (this means doing surgeries to prevent the animals from procreating). Without this, any effort we put into food and medical care will only magnify the problem for the next year.

Based on data from a program in Florida I have estimated we will need around $7 million to spay and neuter all 2 million street animals here within 2 years. This will take the strain off the animal rescuers and allow us to provide care for the animals that exist.

Our vets will then be able to help the thousands of injured and sick animals found every day, as well as help in other countries.

One of the later steps of the plan is to fund small sanctuaries in private gardens or other land belonging to people who already work in animal rescue or who really want to get involved but don’t have the budget for it. Having lots of tiny sanctuaries has several benefits over having fewer larger ones.

• No need to pay for land, so more funds can go to other uses.
• Much easier for volunteers and rescuers to reach a nearby location.
• Lower risk of illnesses spreading.
• Easier separation for special needs animals.
• Less problematic in lockdowns, as each micro sanctuary already has at least one person living at the location.

The goal is to take in as many animals as possible from high-risk areas, as well as take in any that need help due to injury or illness. Some others are best left where they live if the area is fairly safe and they are already being fed. For those animals we’ll just focus on providing medical care if needed.