Even at 70 years old, Nicky Koekemoer still wakes up before dawn every day to feed township pets as well as care for 70 rescue dogs. Now, this dedicated KZN animal hero needs help to keep her doors open.
Scottburgh, South Africa (29 October 2026) – Down along the KwaZulu-Natal South Coast resides a compassionate animal rescue angel and voice for the voiceless: Nicky Koekemoer. Nicky rescues dogs that have been abandoned, abused, and neglected, bringing them into her Scottburgh home, which doubles as an animal sanctuary locals have come to know as 4 Paws and a Tale Rescue.
Nicky steps into the darkest situations, taking in injured, starving, or mistreated pets, and gives them medical care, safety, and a second chance at life. Despite now being in her 70s, she also wakes up every morning at 3 am and ventures into the local townships, where she feeds and offers medical care to township dogs.
At the moment, she has 70 dogs in her care and uses about 40kg of dog food a day.
For the longest time, Nicky ran 4 Paws and a Tale Rescue with her husband, Johnny. However, tragedy struck about four years ago when Johnny fell ill with cancer and sadly passed away.
One of Nicky’s supporters and previous volunteers, who also helped with the opening of the Tale End Charity Shop, Candace, shared that the shop currently isn’t doing well and Nicky is now scrambling to raise funds to pay its rent.
Candace recently ran a fundraiser and managed to raise R1,600.
“But this isn’t even a drop in the ocean,” Candace says.
“One 40kg bag of food costs R1,000, and she goes through that in a single day!”
In hopes of helping a dedicated animal welfare hero who does so much with so little – often stretching her personal resources, time, and emotional energy to the limit – Candace is appealing to the greater public to consider donating toward 4 Paws and a Tale Rescue.
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The charity shop is situated at Thira Village, 142 Scott Street, Scottburgh, and monetary donations can be made using the banking details below. Alternatively, you can reach Nicky by emailing [email protected] or calling her directly on the contact number on her Facebook Page.
Banking details
- Name: 4 Paws and a Tale Rescue NPO
- Bank: FNB
- Branch code: 260225
- Account number: 63020490023
- International SWIFT Code: FIRNZAJJ
Sources: Candace
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