Former Millionaire Sells Golden Buddha Frame to Feed 1,700 Stray Dogs

The 'Angel of Stray Dogs' decided to sell her golden Buddha frame as a final option to support over 1,700 stray dogs and cats, with monthly costs approaching one million baht. She disclosed that she was previously a multimillionaire but lost her entire fortune to employee fraud, which became widely publicized.

Kramjao Winidtaopatham and her son traveled from Mueang District in Saraburi, bringing the golden Buddha frame to sell to Namo Banchangtong after redeeming it from a pawn shop, where it had been mortgaged for 100,000 baht due to inability to pay interest. She explained that she currently supports only 1,700 dogs in shelters, down from the previous number, and still pays staff to prepare food for the stray animals, resulting in substantial expenses.

She attributed the need to sell the Buddha frame to lack of funds for caring for the animals. Previously, she possessed hundreds of millions of baht in the form of two concrete mixer truck companies with 280 vehicles total, but lost everything to employee fraud over five years with nothing remaining.

She has cared for stray dogs and cats since 2002, spanning 24 years. Previously, she spent 600,000-700,000 baht monthly with over 2,000 animals. When funds were available, she didn't worry as the companies generated approximately 20 million baht monthly, allocating 1.2 million baht for animal care including medical treatment and spaying. Currently, the royal household assists with 100,000 baht monthly against expenses of 600,000-700,000 baht.

The golden Buddha frame, previously housed at Wat Rakhang, was sold for 3 million baht to a renowned Buddha amulet collector. Additionally, she holds numerous pawn tickets which she abandoned as she couldn't pay interest. Namo Banchangtong promised to help settle the pawn tickets and assist with remaining funds. The Buddha frame ultimately sold for 122,938 baht after being melted down.