Issue 44 February 2016 RSPCA Little Valley Animal Shelter, Black

Issue 44 February 2016
RSPCA Little Valley Animal Shelter, Black Hat Lane, Bakers Hill, Exeter EX2 9TA
Tel: 01392 439898  www.rspca-littlevalley.org.uk
SHOPS
129 Reddenhill Rd, Babbacombe TQ1 3NT
Tel: 01803 323841
1 Market Street, Brixham TQ5 8EU
Tel: 01803 859695
46 High Street, Budleigh EX9 6LJ
Tel: 01395 442349
31 Cowick Street, Exeter EX4 1AL
Tel: 01392 213847
27 Paris Street, Exeter EX1 2JB
Tel: 01392 494759
91 South Street, Exeter EX1 1EN
Tel: 01392 494113
49 Courtenay St, Newton Abbot TQ12 2QN
Tel: 01626 330716
10 Torquay Road, Paignton TQ3 3AB
Tel: 01803 528118
Brutus Centre, Totnes TQ9 5RW
Tel: 01803 866597
LITTLE VALLEY ANIMAL SHELTER
RSPCA South, East & West Devon Branch
Black Hat Lane, Bakers Hill, Exeter, EX2 9TA
Registered Charity No: 205154
Telephone: 01392 439898
Email: info@rspca-littlevalley.org.uk
Website: rspca-littlevalley.org.uk
Facebook: facebook.com/rspcalittlevalley
Twitter: twitter.com/rspcaexeter
Instagram: rspcalittlevalleyexeter
Just Giving: justgiving.com/rspcaexeter
Shelter Opening Times
Open 6 days a week (closed Wednesdays)
11.00am-4.00pm (Last entry: 3.30pm)
24 hour Cruelty and Advice Line:
0300 1234 999
Shelter News
By Jo Evans, Shelter Manager
Where did 2015 go? It seemed to be over in the blink of an eye! Anyway, belated Happy
New Year to everyone and a huge thank you for all the festive donations for animals (and
staff!) that were kindly given. The rain hasn’t dampened our spirits, despite some flooding
on the Wednesday before New Year! Many thanks to Fay, our vet, who also helped out
(and got wet feet!) when the water level rose. Hopefully the dry, colder weather will be
here soon and walking the dogs won’t mean a bath afterwards for them or the dog team!
It’s been a disappointingly slow start to the New Year on the rehoming front, probably due
to the wet weather. I jumped for joy on our first day open when I heard the word ‘pig’
being spoken by a member of public, sadly only to find out it was for a guinea pig and not
one of our four larger pigs! Remember that all the current animals for rehoming can be
seen on our website—www.rspca-litttlevalley.org.uk.
Watch this space (and our website and Facebook page) for future event dates. I hope to
see lots of you at these, many of which will be held at the Shelter once again like the
successful Christmas Fair—more about that in this issue. The final total amount raised by
last year’s Big Walkies was an incredible £1,987.67—thank you to everyone who took part!
We are featuring ‘Staff Focus’ again as a few new faces have joined us after Robyn and
Jodie have sadly left the dog team. Our main focus this year will be the planning of
rebuilding the dog kennels. Hopefully more about this in next edition. We were
overwhelmed by a generous donation from The Rose Gerrick Trust which has kickstarted
the project. A big thank you to all involved with the Trust.
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Animals In Need
Many of the animals coming into the Shelter arrive with quite serious problems,
e.g. Pudding (see page 11). These are often the result of neglect and take the form
of health issues, frequently requiring extensive veterinary treatment, or behavioural issues which involve many hours of patient, one-to-one assessment and
training with the staff. The majority of these animals come via Inspectors, but
some are brought in by members of the public who are unable to cope.
One such example is Judy (pictured here),
a 3 year old Whippet cross, who came to
the Shelter with an old, untreated, injury
which had probably been causing her a
great deal of discomfort for some time. On
further investigation it was found that she
had a damaged cruciate ligament which
needed urgent surgery to correct. The
operation, which cost £500, took place in
December, and was wholly successful.
Without
it, Judy would have continued to live in discomfort and pain and been unable to enjoy a
healthy, active life.
The aim of the Branch has always been to offer
every incoming animal the opportunity to find
the best possible home and lead a happy, active
life within the community.
Unfortunately the adoption fees only cover a
fraction of the costs involved in caring and rehabilitating such animals until they are ready for
rehoming. Expenditure of this nature, both in staff hours and veterinary fees, is
often very high and goes some way to explaining the ever increasing running costs
of the Shelter. The ethos of the Branch has always been, and remains, that animals
are only euthanized on veterinary advice or because of insurmountable behavioural problems.
Judy is a lovely, gentle girl who, like so many other animals, has benefitted from
her time at Little Valley which has enabled her to live a happy, comfortable life.
Any donations made directly to us goes towards benefitting such needy animals
here at the Shelter. Thank you for your continued support.
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We have three wishlists — one for dogs, one for cats and the other for
small animals. They list lots of items that our animals really like, such
as treats and toys. You will need an Amazon account to do this but it’s
really easy to set up and it’s free. Go to www.amazon.co.uk. Log into your Amazon account and
type into the search box “RSPCA Little Valley Wishlist” and our wishlists will come up! It’s a
great way to help us out and all the animals in our care will be very grateful! And don’t forget to
claim for your purchases using Easyfundraising, as we can raise even more money that way!
If you shop online, please use
Easyfundraising to help us raise even
more money. Lots of well known
retailers are on there and it’s free to
register. Sign up at:
www.easyfundraising.org.uk/causes/
rspcalittlevalley
Giveacar raises money for UK charities
by scrapping and selling old cars. They
provide a nationwide FREE service
which:
- Arranges the collection of the vehicle
from your home;
- Depending on its age and condition,
recycles it at an authorised facility or
sends it to auction.
To arrange donation of a car visit
www.giveacar.co.uk or call 020 7736
4242, quoting “RSPCA Little Valley
Animal Shelter” as your chosen charity.
Join the Pets at Home VIP Club to get great
discounts. Select your home store as Exeter,
Exmouth, Torquay or Newton Abbot and you
can opt for Little Valley as your chosen
charity so we can receive benefits as you
shop! Register at: http://vip.petsathome.com
Please consider sponsoring a dog kennel, cat
pen or rabbit run for as little as £3 a month
through our Safe Haven scheme. An application form can be found on our website.
A legacy to us will provide crucial funds. We
could not carry on our work without such generous support. Please visit our website to find out
more about leaving a legacy to us.
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Friends of Little Valley
By Jill Brush, Membership Secretary
A happy and healthy 2016 to all the Friends of the Shelter. As always, I would like to thank
you all very much for your support of the Christmas raffle. Your generosity defies adequate
words. We have been lucky not to have been subjected to the recent floods. While deploring the suffering of the people affected, I think we should also spare a thought for the
many little animals which will have surely lost their lives. There will be much to be achieved
at Little Valley again this year and it is comforting to know our supporters are with us.
Should you wish to contact me direct you are welcome to do so on 01392 661424 or at
phillandjillb@aol.com.
St David’s Vets
Little Valley Animal Shelter has had the animals in its
care looked after by St David’s Vets since the Shelter
first opened in 1991. Fay Gale is our regular vet who
comes in on a Wednesday (the only day we are
closed to the public) to health check the animals. We
thought it would be interesting to find out a bit more
about St David’s.
Since it first opened 75 years ago, generations of pets from Exeter and surrounding districts have been cared for by St David’s Vets. For 45 years they were the only veterinary
hospital in Exeter—rigorously inspected by the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons every
four years. They have a vet and a nurse on site 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
As well as the hospital at St David’s Station, they have two branches at Exminster and
Topsham.
All of the staff have chosen to work with companion animals and are passionate about the
care of their patients.
They offer a high standard of care in clean, modern, well-equipped and friendly surgeries.
St David’s Vets are proud of their contribution to Shelter medicine, providing on-site
veterinary care at RSPCA Little Valley Animal Shelter and Axhayes Cats Protection, as well
as to members of the public.
Telephone advice is freely available, and qualified nurses offer nurse clinics for minor
procedures, weight management, behavioural clinics, dental checks and puppy parties.
Little Valley Animal Shelter is very grateful to St David’s Vets for the high level of care it
provides for the animals that come into the Shelter and would like to extend a huge thank
you to them from all the animals and staff at Little Valley.
St David’s Veterinary Hospital, St David’s Station, Exeter EX4 4NT. Tel: 01392 271221.
www.stdavidsveterinarygroup.co.uk
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New Homes Required!
Most of the animals from our last edition have successfully found new homes.
Florence, the cat, is in a foster home, but they hope to keep her if she can settle
with their other cat. Rabbits Liquorice & Cinnamon are sadly still here. Rehoming
rabbits is very tricky when there is the temptation to buy them on a whim from a
pet shop! All the latest animals for adoption are on our website:
www.rspca-littlevalley.org.uk.
Logan & Darcey
Kiddo
Badger
Drexl
Teddy
Gogo
Piglet
Peggy, Dottie &
Miriam
Rocco
Rye
Marmite
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Twilight
Reuben
Happy Endings!
Buffy
Bea with new friend Shumba
Liberty
Annabelle
Millie
Pompidou
Rose
Edgar
Moog
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Xmas Fair at the Shelter 2015
For the first time this year we held our Christmas Fair at the Shelter – and it was a
huge success! We had a couple of marquees outside the catteries full of stalls,
further stalls in various animal buildings, a very busy Refreshments area and our
Reception full of bargain pet accessories! Overall, including the Christmas Draw,
we managed to raise a magnificent £4,172.80. Thank you everyone for your
support. Enjoy photos from the event on the next few pages.
Xmas Draw Winners 2015
A big thank you to all those people who bought Draw tickets at the Xmas Fair. The
successful winners are listed below:
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
6th
7th
8th
9th
Ms M Prowse, Torquay
Miss B Wand, Exmouth
Mrs K Thomas, Exmouth
Mr D Friend, Longdown
Mrs E Holley, Tiverton
Mrs J Morrant, Exeter
Mrs Evans, Dunsford
Dave Harding
Ms S Hatton, Newton Abbot
10th
11th
12th
13th
14th
15th
16th
17th
18th
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Mrs J Elliot, Exmouth
Brodie Lunt
Chris Fewins, Exeter
Mrs Lehni, Belstone
Mrs A Garland, Chard
Mr/Mrs Hope-Milne, Exmouth
Mrs E Balding, Exeter
Mrs A Dixon, Exeter
Mr/Mrs G Roberts, Exmouth
Xmas Fair at the Shelter 2015
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Xmas Fair at the Shelter 2015
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Hamster Horde!
We were a little overrun with Syrian hamsters just before Christmas when Animal Welfare
Officer, Steve Powell, was called out to an unusual abandonment—14 hamsters in four
cages outside a block of flats on King Street, Exeter—thankfully
spotted and reported by a vigilant member of the public.
RSPCA animal welfare officer Steve Powell said: “It was rather wet
that day and yet someone had left this large family of Syrian hamsters out in their cages in the cold to fend for themselves. It looked
as though they had been looked after generally as they were in a
reasonable condition, the cages were clean, and they had food, but
this does not take away the fact that this was a rather callous act to just leave them outside like this to brave the elements. The reality is that, had they
not been found, this could have been a very different and
potentially sadder story. A few of the hamsters also had injuries,
probably due to fighting, as Syrian hamsters are solitary animals,
so the fact that so many were being kept like this, together, in
four cages was irresponsible.”
Thankfully, all the hamsters have now been rehomed.
Poor Pudding
We had a sad case come into the Shelter on Christmas Eve, via
Inspector Sarah Morris. Pudding, as we’ve now called him, was
found tied up in the cold and rain on Rendle Street, Plymouth and
was spotted by a member of the public on their way to work at
6.30am. They took Pudding in out of the rain and called the RSPCA.
“The state Pudding was in when I first saw him was so sad, but it also
made me so angry that someone had neglected him so much
already, just to dump him on Christmas Eve,” said Inspector Sarah
Morris. “Pudding’s coat was so matted around his legs and face that he couldn’t see out of
his right eye. His nails were overgrown and he was covered in fleas. I
took him straight to a vet who gave him a body score of 3½ out of
10, so he was very thin. It brought a tear to my eye when I was
taking him to the animal centre. He must have been terrified, hungry
and so uncomfortable, just left out in the dark, wind and rain.”
Pudding has been very popular with Shelter staff and has been
pampered over Christmas. We believe Pudding is a Shihtzu cross and
possibly as much as 15 years old! Sadly, he has a number of medical
problems which are still being assessed. Since becoming a local
media star, Pudding has had lots of offers of a new home, so it is
hoped he will be rehomed soon.
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Happy Retirement for Colin!
As this Newsletter goes to print an important chapter closes for the Branch with
the retirement of Colin Strong, our Branch Support Specialist. Colin’s role as a
representative of the National Society has been to support the RSPCA branches in
the South West and offer specialist advice and support to Trustees.
For many years Colin’s wise
counsel, based on a sympathetic
understanding of the many
challenges faced by branches and
backed by his indefatigable good
humour,
has
been
much
appreciated by Trustees, staff and
volunteers at Little Valley. From
attending Committee Meetings
while on annual leave to
encouraging closer ties between
branches, and offering help at
Branch Open Days and events, he
has always been keen to offer
support.
Colin’s career with the RSPCA began
39 years ago when, at 21, he
became the youngest Inspector in
the Society. He then worked with
the Inspectorate in Essex until 2003
when he transferred to Branch
Support and moved with his family to the South West. Subsequently he has built
close relationships with the branches in his care based on a recognition by all that
his animal welfare credentials, which are second to none, reflect his genuine love
and respect for animals. His particular interest is farm animal welfare and,
following his retirement, he plans to become more involved with efforts to
improve the lives of all farm animals.
We will all miss Colin greatly and everyone at Little Valley wishes him and his wife
a long and very happy retirement with their family and animals—and his
motorbike!
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Easter Egg Hunt
We will be having an Easter event at the Shelter this year. In order to give the children
prizes for their Easter Egg Hunt we will need lots of donations of chocolate Easter eggs—can
you help? If you can, please drop your Easter eggs into the Shelter, thank you. Also, if
anyone is around to help, then please get in touch—we need lots of volunteers on the day!
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Staff Focus
My name is Kerry Dustan and I am an Animal Care Assistant on the dog team. I have been
here for just over a year and I really love my job. I started my career in rescue working for a
dog and cats home in Plymouth, where I worked for 6 years. I really
enjoyed working with the more nervous dogs—giving them the
time, patience and love they need to help them find new homes. I
am pictured with Carly, who is our longest staying dog here at the
Shelter at the moment. She was quite nervous when she same in to
us, but we have helped her build up her confidence and she is now
a firm favourite for the dog walkers. Carly is easily won over by a
treat and her favourite time of the day is dinner time! I look
forward to spending many more years at Little Valley and helping dogs like Carly find their
forever home.
Hi, my name is Julie Thomas and I joined the team here at Little Valley in November last
year. I had been a volunteer at the Shelter for just over a year and when I heard they were
looking for a full time receptionist, I applied and luckily I got the job! My background was in
sales, administration and customer service so I felt I was well
equipped for my new role. The main thing about this job is that
every day is different and you are never quite sure who or what
is going to walk through the door! It’s great to work with such a
dedicated team of people and I have to say that it is the most
rewarding job I have ever had. Finally, the most enjoyable part
has to be getting to spend time with the animals. I usually have
company in Reception—before Christmas I had Kaiser, a 3
legged Staffie who went to his forever home just in time for Christmas. Rocco, the
handsome chap in the photo is now keeping me company until his new owners come
through the door and I have a feeling it won’t be long until this wonderful dog finds his
new home too!
My name is Lisa Headon-Cooke and I’m a member of the cat team. I have been working at
Little Valley for just over a year. Before working here I was an office administrator for
another charity, so have made a big change into animal care. I love working with the cats,
especially the more timid and frightened felines—it’s so rewarding when they finally enjoy
having a fuss and eventually find a loving new home. Mr Pink is
one of my favourites at the moment, he was very nervous and
we couldn’t even touch him when he first came in but he now
enjoys a cuddle and can even be held! Black cats are often
picked last and I’m hoping to show people how special and
loving they are. I have two cats of my own so haven’t been able
to take any from the Shelter yet, but seeing the cats’ progress
once they have left the Shelter from the new owner’s feedback is just as rewarding. I also
hope to learn lots about the other types of animals at the Shelter over my career.
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Great West Run 2015
Paul Madge, a landscape gardener who has previously carried
out a bit of work at the Shelter, is a regular runner and has often
competed in the Great West Run. For the 2015 Great West Run,
Paul decided to run for
Little
Valley.
Paul
regularly
runs
in
costume, usually made
by his wife, and this year
he ran as a Minion! Paul
raised just over £800 for
the Shelter. Thank you
Paul! These photos show
Paul at the start of the
race with runner Jo
Pavey and then later on during the run. Paul
attracted lots of attention as he ran round the
course—and was a hit with the kids!
THE FAMILY MASSAGE CENTRE
Established 1994
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Deep tissue massage, sports injury therapy, Hopi ear candle treatment,
aromatherapy
1 hour to 3 hour treatments from £30 to £70
Available 7 days a week (9.30am to 5.30pm) by appointment only
Gift vouchers available for cash or cheque only
7 Piazza Terracina (river basin), Haven Road, Exeter EX2 8GT
Tel: 01392 203182 (answerphone) | Email: annie.samuels@yahoo.co.uk
Canine Remedial Massage
A complementary therapy which uses the manipulation of
soft tissue to promote the physiological and psychological
well-being of dogs — regardless of age, size or breed.
Veterinary consent is required prior to treatment.
For further information or to request a consent form, contact Linda Rogers ITEC Dip ICAT
Tel: 07732 688383. Email: linda@handsandhounds.co.uk
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Events 2015
Full details of events for 2016 coming soon—check out our website and also our Facebook
page at www.facebook.com/rspcalittlevalley.
Monday 28 March 2016
Easter Egg Hunt at the Shelter from 1pm to 4pm
Saturday 4 June 2016
Bumper Sale—Budleigh Salterton Public Hall
Monday 6 — Sunday 12 June 2016
RSPCA Week—details to follow
Saturday 11 June 2016
Exmouth Flag Day—details to follow
Sunday 26 June 2016
Shelter Day—details to follow
September 2016
Big Walkies—details to follow
Sunday 2 October 2016
Exmouth Sponsored Dog Walk—details to follow
Please support our events—they are vital for raising funds for the Shelter. We are always
looking for volunteers to help at events, if you are interested please email us on
info@rspca-littlevalley.org.uk.
Budleigh Shop Volunteers Needed!
Our Budleigh Community Shop, which is run entirely by volunteers, is urgently seeking
more help. Could you spare 3 hours per week, either morning or afternoon, to become a
valued member of our happy band of volunteers and help raise funds for Little Valley?
Please contact Beryl Gooding (Manager) on 01395 271940 or Wendy Brookes (Branch
Secretary) on 01392 875036. Or email info@rspca-littlevalley.org.uk.
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