Supporter s Newsletter Registered Charity No. 205594 Spring 2016 Take your chances in our Spring Raffle ALL DETAILS ON PAGE 3 INSIDE! Looking for a home p4 New Supporter Tours p6 Rescue kittens p8 Your adoption stories p11 RESCUING AND RE-HOMING ANIMALS SINCE 1937
WELCOME RAFFLE CONTENTS WELCOME TO THE SPRING ISSUE It is full of stories about animals we have been able to re-home and those who have been happily adopted. We have lots of exciting events this summer for you to enjoy. If you have adopted a dog from us, then perhaps they can come along too!. Wag Walk 22nd May Fun Day & Dog Show 29th August For more details about the sponsored Wag Walk please see the back page of this newsletter. Our Fun Day returns bigger and better, and with our regular Fun Dog Show of course. More details will be online nearer the time www.bcdh.org.uk/funday We hope to see you this summer With best wishes Page 3 Entering our Spring Raffle saves lives, and you could win some great prizes! Pages 4-5 Take a look at some of our animals looking for a home PR 5 0 IZ E CAS 0 H 2ND PR IZE 200 CASH 3RD PRIZE 4TH PRIZE 100 PETS AT HOME VOUCHER 5 0 CASH ER RU N NI Z E : R P P U ONAL PE R S H BCD VISIT LY REP: T S FA DR AW10 X 10 OT S B O E RS CH VOU Page 6 New Supporter Tours now booking get an insider s view of the Home Page 7 The work we do how we take in dogs from puppy farms and stray pounds and give them a new life Pages 8-9 The first kittens of 2016 Pages 10-11 Your adoption stories Liz Oldroyd Liz Oldroyd Chairman of the Trustees 1ST Our cover star is Sam Independent Sam was with us for 7 months but happily recently adopted. Get in touch with us at: Bath Cats and Dogs Home Claverton Down, Bath BA2 7AZ 01225 787321 enquiries@bcdh.org.uk RCN: 205594 (RSPCA Bath & District Branch) Spring raffle What would you do with 500? Spending money for your holiday, treating yourself to a new gadget or a summer wardrobe essential? Take your chances in our spring raffle there s 15 fantastic prizes worth over 950 up for grabs. For every raffle ticket bought you will be helping an unwanted dog or cat in our care. Did you know that the price of a book of raffle tickets could provide essential vaccinations? As well as some amazing cash prizes, you could also win a unique experience at BCDH... Would you choose to spend it giving our cats or dogs some extra TLC? They can t wait to I feel really lucky to have won 1st prize! I am a great supporter of Bath Cats & Dogs Home as I got my cats from you meet you Dawn Whale, Chippenham We re so grateful to you for all 1st prize winner, Winter Raffle 2015 your support of BCDH and we hope the raffle might be a fun You way for you to give. If you d might win, like extra books for yourself or the cats & dogs to sell that would be amazing win every and also a great way to time! introduce new people to the work of Bath Cats and Dogs Home. Get your tickets Buy tickets from the Home, the charity shops in Oldfield Park and Frome, or call 01225 787334. All terms and conditions are available on www.bcdh.org.uk/raffle 2 www.bcdh.org.uk www.bcdh.org.uk 3
OUR ANIMALS OUR ANIMALS Looking for a home UPDATE ON THE ANIMALS FROM SPRING ISSUE: Found a home: Worzel, Blaze, Timmy, Bee. Still waiting: Bandit and Charm. Grayson Ziggy Stardust Anna Grayson is a friendly boy who could happily be a house rabbit. His number is BR29322. Ziggy is a handsome mastiff cross, a gentle and quiet lad who lives for his dinner times. He can be strong on the lead, sometimes stubborn, but responds well to training. His number is BD29187. Anna is a young miniature poodle. She is very nervous and has not lived in a house before, so will need an introduction to all household life and to learn how fun life can be. Her number is BD29290. Grayson Ziggy Stardust Dennis Dennis is a gentle and quiet cat, he likes to be indoors and will sit next to you for a short fuss. He will need a quiet home with older children and no other cats. His number is BC11590. Perrie Perrie is an affectionate girl who likes to be wrapped up in her blankets in bed! She needs to stay on a hypo-allergenic diet for a skin condition, and would like to be the only cat in the house. Her number is BC28928. Anna Dennis Sponsored by: Laurence Olivier Lorry is a german shepherd x lurcher looking for an active home. He has epilepsy which is controlled through regular medication. He is very loyal and loving, and can live with teenagers+. His number is BD29281. Thank you for continuing your support in 2016 so far we have helped re-home over 250 animals Perrie Laurence Olivier 4 www.bcdh.org.uk www.bcdh.org.uk 5
SUPPORTER VISITS TO THE HOME THE DIFFERENCE WE MAKE B rand new for this year we are offering our supporters an exclusive visit to the Home; you will have the chance to look behind the scenes including meeting our dedicated team, take a look at areas of the Home not usually open to the public including our vet suite, find out more about how we rehabilitate the animals in our care and there will of course be the chance to meet some of the animals we are currently helping. This is a great opportunity for you to see first-hand the impact we have together on unwanted and vulnerable animals and we would love for you to join us. Date: 25 June at 11am. To book your place please contact Rachel Jones on 01225 780259 or email racheljones@bcdh.org.uk LEGACY TOUR Are you considering leaving a gift in your Will to the Home? The Home wouldn t be here today without the amazing legacies that some supporters choose to leave us. In fact back in 1939 the original New for 2016 Behind the scenes visits to the Home building of the Home was completed thanks to a gift left in a Will. Since then much of our new animal accommodation has been funded through gifts in Wills and not only that, gifts such as these fund over half of the Home s annual costs, helping us care for over 1,300 animals each year. We literally wouldn t be here without them. If you would like to join us on a tour to find out more about how a gift in your Will could save animals lives then please join us. Date: 28 May at 11am. To book your place please contact Rachel Jones on 01225 780259 or email racheljones@bcdh.org.uk PS Both of these tours are aimed at adults only but if your kids would love to find out more about the Home and have some fun at the same time they can join our Paws & Claws Club which includes fun packed days for members in the school holidays! Find out more at www.bcdh.org.uk/ claverton Support for our animals We work closely with the Wiltshire and Bath councils to take in stray animals. If we can t trace their owner and nobody claims them in 7 days then they are signed over to us and we find them a new home. If we have space, we take in from other areas as well as sadly in areas where they don t have the resources we can offer, these animals are often put to sleep. You may have read about puppy farms in the press. Cute puppies are sold online or in local papers from temporary houses that look like their home whilst their mums and dads are kept miles away in A lifeline for dogs Did you know that we are often a vital lifeline for dogs in desperate situations? filthy cages with little human contact. Whilst the national RSPCA continue to fight for regulations and to shut them down, we are here on the frontline to care for the terrified breeding dogs and get them started on the path to a new life. They take a lot of gentle socialisation some have never been brushed or stroked, or seen the world outside of their cage. They ve never walked on a lead, seen a car or heard a washing machine it is a scary world for them. That they can sometimes blossom so quickly and start to enjoy real doggie things is one of our most rewarding jobs. Some of our stray pound dogs and puppy farm rescues of 2016 6 www.bcdh.org.uk www.bcdh.org.uk 7
OUR ANIMALS OUR ANIMALS 1 2 3 Ginger came as 1 part of a litter of unwanted kittens. Rey and Leia 1 were brought in with their mum cat. Muppet was 3 born at the Home in April. Bob and Glinda 4 Sometimes cats are foster parents too, Bob joined Glinda s family for his first few weeks. LOVE KITTENS BUT CAN T FOSTER? Then you can donate to help a kitten have a great start to life. Online www.bcdh.org.uk/donate By phone 01225 787334 By post Find our address on page 2. Rescue kittens Our first kittens of the year were born at the Home in early February, to Beauty. She was rescued by an RSPCA Inspector from a house full of cats, all neglected and scared. She was already pregnant and we set her up to safely give birth in our cattery. After a couple of weeks, Beauty and her 5 kittens went out to a foster home. Fostering is very important for kittens as it provides them with their first experience of a real home and some crucial socialisation. In this case, Beauty was in need of that socialisation and real home experience too. How you can help We need foster homes for kittens and their mums. Kitten Season is from April to September so this is when we are most likely to ask for help. The kittens will need to be fostered for a period of up to 9 weeks and then returned to us so they can be re-homed. This is a very rewarding experience and if you feel that you would be able to foster, please go to our website www.bcdh.org.uk/ volunteer or call our Volunteer Co-Ordinator Sue on 01225 787332. In 2015, your funding helped us care for 179 kittens 4 Emma By Jane Austen adapted by Jon Jory at 28 June - 2 July All profits going to For more details: www.bcdh.org.uk/emma or call 0333 666 3366 8 www.bcdh.org.uk www.bcdh.org.uk 9
YOUR ADOPTION STORIES YOUR ADOPTION STORIES Adopting a working breed We often have working breed dogs looking for experienced homes. Their history is similar bought for their looks or from a breeder-forprofit and new dog owners find themselves with a bored and frustrated handful. Working breeds include Siberian Husky, Alaskan Malamute, Pointer and Weimeraner. Behaviourist Rosie says For those with more time and an interest in training, a working breed can be a very rewarding dog to rescue. You can see the improvement in behaviour as you work with them, and that sense of achievement comes at every milestone. Jasper is a Belgian Malinois, a herding breed now often used in the forces. At 10 months old his family made the decision that they had taken on too much and could not give him the exercise and time he needed. He came into our care and was adopted in October. Now settling into a home with more time for him, he is shaking off his frustrated behaviours. He has the sweetest nature, and hardly ever barks. In fact he tends to bark most when he wants to play. He enjoyed the seaside and I suspect it was the first time he d seen the sea and, as ever, not even slightly nervous. The Gilbert family. For those with more time and an interest in training, a working breed can be a very rewarding dog to rescue Jasper enjoying the seaside Poppy Boo, Dex and Sherlock Poppy: Adopted at the beginning of 2016 Poppy was part of the worrying trend of selling dogs online, and when she didn t fit into the home she came to us. She s getting on well with Dylan our German Shepherd cross. She is such a little treasure. She s happy and always wagging her tail. The Aldridge family Elmore and Saul: Adopted nearly 2 years ago I think they were overlooked because of their age and colour and also Saul needs eye drops twice a day for the rest of his life, but we re really glad they waited for us to Elmoure & Saul Bruno Your Adoption Stories come along as we love them and they make our house a home! The Kelly family Enki: Adopted 5 years ago We got him from the Home when he was 2 and called Sammy. He has become a comfort to all our children and I would be lost without this cuddle monster. The McKeevey family Boo, Dex and Sherlock: All from Bath cats and Dogs home. They like to cause mayhem between them when they meet up together but are the best of friends. Thank you Bath Cats and Dogs home for completing 3 families over past Enki Milly few years with these 3 lovely pets. The Palmer family Bruno: Adopted January 2016 He is settling in very well. He loves his bed, knows the sound of the treat tin, has got used to coming down our steep stairs, sleeps for ever at night with little snuffling sounds and is just so well behaved. It s only his 4th day today but the house would seem quite empty without our furry friend. The Simpson family Milly: Adopted mid-december Beautiful Milly has brought a great deal laughter and smiles to our household. The Coombs family 10 www.bcdh.org.uk www.bcdh.org.uk 11