On October 5, 2024, Charlene of Monaco participated in the first march against the abandonment of animals, around the Fontvieille marquee. Accompanied by her brother Garett Wittstock, Princess Naomi of Orléans (ambassador of the Rokéthon association created by Sylvia Sermenghi), Prince Albert’s wife also came with her chihuahua, comfortably seated in her arms. The Rokethon Monaco is a race for dog owners and their canine companions, aimed at encouraging the adoption and responsible ownership of pets.
This solidarity race aims to promote adoption but also to raise public awareness about abandonment and the protection of animals. 30% of the money collected during this day will be donated to the Brigitte Bardot Foundation, 30% to the Monegasque SPA and the Rokethon association. This non-profit association works in Monaco and its surroundings to promote respect and attention to pets by leading or supporting projects aimed at improving their conditions, their education, their health, their lives and, above all, their adoption. Participants walked (or ran) a marked 1,200 meter route around the Chapiteau de Fontvieille, accompanied by their dogs.
“Abandonment is considered an act of mistreatment, punishable by law, which affects thousands of pets each year (…) The fight against this scourge and its causes is at the heart of the French and Monegasque strategy to animal welfare“, we can read on the official website of the association.
Charlene of Monaco’s “best friends”
Very committed to animal welfare, she is the president of the Monaco Animal Protection Society. Princess Charlene has already had several pets in the past. Particularly attached to her dogs, whom she considers as members of her family, she confided that she was “inconsolable” after the death of one of his dogs, Carlo, run over by a car. “They were each other’s best friends, and they were my best friends too.”declared in the past the mother of twins Jacques and Gabriella about her companions Carlo and Monte (one of her chihuahuas).
