About
Galgos del Sol
In 2007, Tina Solera, her husband and two young children moved to Spain to escape the infamous British weather. Little did Tina realize, upon moving to Spain, that she would make the decision that would change her life forever. In addition, she changed the lives of thousands of dogs desperately in need of help.
Always an animal lover, Tina could not tolerate the treatment of the Spanish galgos, a traditional hunting dog breed, and decided to devote herself to their rescue, rehabilitation and rehoming. The galgos with their indomitable spirits, needle-noses and spider-legs, completely captured her heart. One galgo rescued, gave way to another and another until it became clear that the Solera household was vastly undersized for the number of dogs that needed help. There were nights that Tina slept in her car with a newly rescued galgo simply because there wasn’t any more room.
With no prior experience in running a non-profit organization, Tina taught herself Spanish language and established Galgos del Sol (GDS), a legal, licensed Spanish charity. With the generous offer of the use of their property, the home of Gaynor and Les Davies become the first site of GDS. Les built the kennels and Gaynor provided care for the dogs. Without their initial help, Tina acknowledges that GDS would not be where it is today. Murcia, the area in which the Soleras reside, is a prolific hunting ground making the demands on GDS relentless. Because of Tina and Team GDS, thousands have been rescued, rehabilitated and rehomed.
