Our Team
Zeba Masood, Founder
I've loved animals since I was born. It is so embedded in me. As an example, in my childhood years, and like many others, my parents were not in favor of keeping pets. Despite that, I would always find a way to keep and care for a rescued furry friend at home.
I moved to the USA after marriage, started a family and am the proud mother of 4 children and 4 grandchildren. Along the way, I have also started a few business ventures and published a magazine. But despite the hectic and busy life, keeping and having rescued animals at my home has always been a constant.
On my frequent trips to Pakistan to visit family, I would always notice the huge increases in animal population and the mistreatment and cruelty of animals that usually accompanied it. I always wanted to do something to protect animal rights and to end their suffering, but my visits were very short and I would return to my home in the USA, sad and depressed.
In 2017, I got my chance to make a difference, when I moved back to Pakistan to take care of my ailing parents. Pakistan faces a myriad of problems, and animal abuse is one of them. I knew it was bad, but I was shocked by the extent of what I now saw. As a human being, I just could not look the other way and ignore what was happening.
I started feeding street dogs and strays from my car. Soon after, we started to vaccinate as many dogs as we could, since rabies and dog-bite incidents were skyrocketing. One thing led to another, and Lucky Animal Protection Shelter (LAPS) and clinic came into being.
To put it mildly, in the short time since we started in very primitive and almost war-zone like conditions and environment it has been a wild, crazy but extremely satisfying adventure. We have vaccinated 1500+ and neutered and spayed over 450 animals thus far. What surprised me was when I realized that LAPS was the first and only animal shelter in a province of over 35 million people.
This is a great platform for us all to work together for the betterment of animal welfare.
Gandhi is often quoted as saying: “The greatness of a nation can be judged by the way its animals are treated.”
Sadly, Pakistan has a long way to go.
— Photo: The Qelem
Javed Khan
Javed Khan is a seasoned technology and marketing executive with decades of experience in a broad range of analytics, managerial, and entrepreneurial roles.
Javed has turned his focus in recent years to supporting the efforts of his wife Zeba to create LAPS and to help her execute on its mission of neutering and vaccinating stray dogs in their hometown of Peshawar, Pakistan.
Javed began his career in the US, where he held managerial and executive positions with a broad range of technology and healthcare companies including Amgen, Allergan, Hitachi, and Broadcom. He and Zeba have also launched an ecommerce company focused on quality fashion, jewelry, art, and home furnishings.
He holds a degree in mathematics from the University of Karachi.