Growing up in Bogotá, Colombia, Heydi Acuña didn’t have much. But her mother Liliana, instilled a very important lesson: give to those who are less fortunate.
“For example, if we came across a stray dog on the street, we would give him some food,” said Acuña. “Stray dogs were a common sight in Bogotá.”
Growing up, Acuña knew that she wanted to be a veterinarian. Her father brought her to Tampa at the age of 17, with her first semester in college at Hillsborough Community College.
While studying, she worked at a local preschool while also volunteering at the Humane Society and at a shelter.
When Hurricane Maria hit Puerto Rico in 2017, she volunteered for the animal rescue group Compassion Kind. She helped rescue stranded pets from the island in the aftermath of the disaster. This moment changed her life.
The Mercy Full Project
After that experience, Acuña founded the Mercy Full Project, a nonprofit that rescues animals In Tampa Bay. Her husband, Nash Bandayan, gave Acuña a car to help her get the venture of the ground.
Heydi Acuña, the founder of the Mercy Full Project. Credit: Myriam Silva-Warren/Centro Tampa
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Acuña initially worked out of her garage. But soon she realised that wasn’t enough.
“We installed AC units and had about 20 dogs,” said Acuña
But when the Covid pandemic hit, she saw more and more abandoned animals every passing day.
“It was crazy,” she said. “So many dogs lost their owners to Covid. While their owners were dying in hospitals, the animals died of hunger at home.”
The Mercy Full Project rescued over 300 dogs in just their first year of operation. In total, they have rescued over 1000 dogs to date, with most of the rescued dogs finding new homes.
Acuna playing with a dog outside at the Mercy Full Project. Credit: Alese Underwood/Spectrum News.
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During the Covid-19 pandemic, nearly all of Florida’s animal shelters saw a dramatic increase in abandoned animals according to a University of Florida study.
The study found that the number of animals arriving at the shelter increased by 11%, which is an increase of 36,000 animals compared to 2021. Alarmingly, the number of cats euthanised increased for the first time since the UF College of Veterinary Medicine began reporting such figures in 2013.
Another animal rescue organisation which saw an increase in their pet rescues is the Human Society of Tampa Bay. In 2020, they took in 10,420 animals. But that figure increased by 27% in 2021.
Economic Situation May Be To Blame
Acuña says economic inflation has contributed to the worrying trend of increasing abandoned animals.
“The number of pets abandoned continues to rise,” Acuña says. “Owners throw their dogs away, skin and bones. Some of the dogs have their snouts tied, and cats thrown from car windows.”
“When the going gets tough, the household pet is usually the first one to go,” says Acuña. “After all, we cant just throw away a sick relative.”
Heydi Acuña and her husband Nash Bandayan. Credit: WFTS.
More than 20 volunteers help run the Mercy Full project alongside Acuña. They are responsible for fostering pets that have the potential to be adopted, cleaning the shelter, and helping run adoption events,
With the increasing number of pets that need to be rescued, Acuña has begun looking into getting a van to transport the rescued animals.
“The Mercy Full Project is not a shelter,” she stressed. “This is a passageway, so I am against keeping pets in cages.”
Rules For New Dog Parents
Acuña has also developed a ‘foster-to-adopt’ program that sets out the rules that new owners must follow.
“The foster-to-adopt program is used to determine if the new parents are responsible,” Acuña says. “The owners send in photos so I know how the animals are doing. 99% of the time, everything goes well.”
Ami Gohil is one of the volunteers at the Mercy Full Project. She first met Acuña when she decided to adopt her very first dog. She ended up adopting a beautiful chihuahua and dachshund mix named Pepita.
“She’s perfect,” Gohil said. “She had a bad case of heartworms when we first got her, and it’s getting better. She is only four and a half years olds, too young to die.”
Or more information on Acuña or the Mercy Full Project, visit Mercyfullprojects.org. They are also running a fundraiser on October 15 in Tampa at 12pm. For more information about the event, click here.
