With limited funding but unwavering dedication, one man’s vision is transforming animal rescue in the Algarve, providing shelter, medical care, and hope whilst setting a new standard for responsible pet adoption with ARA
British businessman Sid Richardson chose to make the Algarve his home, and it is here that he dedicates his time to a cause he supports wholeheartedly.
ARA – Animal Rescue Algarve is a non-profit organisation based in Loulé that reflects his love of cats and dogs.
Growing up, he always had dogs, so his affection and empathy for animals came naturally. “I remember being little and sitting on my grandparents’ dog’s back.
Dogs were my best friends,” he recalls, adding that he believes this love for animals is something we are born with.
Born and raised in England, he helped out at a local shelter that took in all kinds of animals, which allowed him to understand the needs of the facility and the funding required for a project like this. “When you grow up in a country where there is an abundance of infrastructure and monetary aid, you tend to take that as the norm,” explains Sid Richardson, a native of Essex County.
However, when he visited shelters in the Algarve, he realised there were few such facilities and many offered inadequate conditions. His finance background in London – where he opened a Lloyd’s insurance brokers office – combined with his desire to help animals inspired him to create the shelter he is so proud of today.
“My success in business has enabled me to donate to animal shelters in England and it couldn’t be any different here,” he says. Sid Richardson travelled regularly to Portugal and, around 40 years ago, bought a holiday home in Vale do Lobo. A decade later, the country’s culture, climate and his passion for golf, fuelled by the incredible courses in the region, prompted him to permanently swap the UK for the Algarve.
ARA – Animal Rescue Algarve Team
Before buying his home, he used to stay at the Penina Hotel & Golf Resort and, in this area, he would come across abandoned dogs who always received his attention and sparked his desire to help. So, after he retired and settled down in the Algarve, he had no doubts about adopting a dog. He went to the Goldra Animal Sanctuary in Loulé and met Daisy, a seven-year-old Labrador Retriever. “I have always had a genuine bond with my dogs, but this one in particular became my best friend. She was very special,” he reflects.
In 2018, he looked at the free time he had on his hands and his financial capabilities and founded ARA, a shelter that can accommodate up to 100 dogs and 50 cats. The association’s growth is backed by an existing team of 12 employees and 21 volunteers recruited from the Workaway volunteering platform.
These volunteers, who have totalled more than 2,000 over the last six years, are mainly European, coming from countries such as Germany, the UK, France, Spain and the Netherlands, and are aged between 18 and 70. However, they also come from the United States of America, Canada and Brazil.
The only requirement is a minimum stay of two weeks, which means that around 40% repeat the experience and end up extending their stay on the following visits.
Receiving around 20 adoption enquiries per day, responsible adoption is one of ARA’s biggest concerns, so they take great care in raising awareness and helping people understand what pets need.
Sterilisation is a top priority for the association and part of its policy of rescuing and rehabilitating dogs and cats prior to finding them a forever family. Sterilisation is also a priority for the association, which aims to rescue and rehabilitate dogs and cats so that they can find a family.
“We spend around €300,000 a year on veterinary care and, if we’re lucky, we manage to raise around €20,000 to cover the costs,” says Sid Richardson, noting that their three Wooff charity shops (in Almancil, Loulé and Troto) are a major contribution.
Due to the low level of monetary donations, over the years, ARA has organised events in locations such as Quinta do Lago and Vale do Lobo to raise funds for animal supplies and food, as well as clothes and furniture that will later be sold in the shelter’s charity shops.
To date, the association has invested around €6 million, double the initial capital, with annual costs of around €700,000.
© Carlos Filipe
The work of photographer Carlos Filipe has also been crucial to the success of this project.
“It’s a privilege to have him working with us and to share all the achievements with him,” Sid Richardson emphasised. The Lagoa-based photographer has been collaborating with ARA since 2019 and has built “an increasingly strong bond with the association, with those who work there and, above all, with those who have found a safe harbour there”.
© Carlos Filipe
Through his work, Carlos Filipe aims to “show the true essence and beauty” of animals, an assignment that bears “tremendous responsibility”.
“With each photograph, I try to show their eyes, the shine of their fur and their expressions so that everyone can see beyond the sadness, the pity and the drama. I want people to really see the eyes of those who have never lost their hope and have never given up,” Carlos Filipe emphasises.
BERNARDO © Carlos Filipe
“Photography is a very important tool for publicising these heroes and encouraging more people to help in different ways beyond adoption.”
Working with animals is a learning experience, a constant challenge and “an opportunity to experience love in its purest form”, says the photographer. “I have never felt so alive because every story with a happy ending is the best way to celebrate life. Before I met and worked with animals, I just existed. Today, I am truly living,” states Carlos Filipe, who also describes working with Sid Richardson as one of the greatest experiences of his life. He has learnt from the businessman that “it’s possible to bring your dream to life, create a mission and change the world”.
The ARA shelter has 48 spacious, eco-friendly kennels and 14 outdoor areas for animals to socialise. To prevent conflict, no more than two dogs are kept in the same kennel, unless they are from the same family.
Dogs are walked twice a day, and a trainer visits the shelter two to three times a week, not only to train the animals but also to share knowledge with the volunteers.
ARA has also developed projects with private and public schools to address issues such as animal welfare and to raise awareness about local charities, their work and future ambitions. The aim is to teach young people to treat animals with respect and kindness.
“Back in the day, it was normal to have dogs chained up, but today children see them as best friends,” says the founder of ARA, emphasising that he wants to change mentalities and believes that young people are on the right track.
Despite the lack of support from the government and red tape putting a damper on expansion plans at the shelter, Sid Richardson looks back on the past few years with optimism.
‘’It wasn’t easy starting out, but we have the support of a great team who love and are dedicated to the animals, as well as lots of volunteers. We have created a great family here.”
Since 2018, the association has facilitated more than 1,750 adoptions, exceeding 200 in 2024 alone.
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