Success Stories of 2012

As we are now reaching the end of 2012, I wanted to look forward to the New Year by ending with some of our success stories from this year. Unfortunately, we sometimes do have animals brought in to us that we cannot save. Thankfully, these are the minority and, as the stories below show, the majority of the time we are left with heart-warming success stories. It makes everything we do worth-while.

Dusty



Handsome Dusty at the Centre

Dusty was brought into us by a refuse collector who thankfully heard his cries from inside a dustbin. Just in the nick of time as well, as a few seconds later poor Dusty would have been crushed. Luckily he was uninjured and seemed to be none the worse for wear. Shortly after he was rescued, a wonderful lady rang the Centre, wanting to adopt two cats. She came down to us and met Dusty and Storm. It was love at first sight and she took them home to live with her, her family and her other rescue cats, where they have quickly settled in. Dusty’s new owner called her a couple of days after she took him home, thanking us for him as he had become ‘her little shadow’. What a happy ending for this chap!

Hachi



Tiny Hachi being bottle-fed



Hachi and his five brothers and sisters were brought into us when they were only a few days old. They needed round the clock care and so they were taken in by one of our brilliant foster families. They hand-raised them, feeding them at all hours (many sleepless nights!) and doing everything their mother would normally do for them. Against the odds, four of the six puppies survived and when they were nine weeks old they came back to the Centre to find new homes. They were quickly snapped up and have now happily settled in with their new families! Below is a picture of Hachi all grown up in his new home.



Big Boy Hachi in his new home!

Poppy


Poppy was in a horrendous condition



Poppy was one of our high-profile stories from this year. She was found abandoned at night, by the side of a country road. Thankfully, a lovely lady spotted Poppy’s eyes shining in her headlights and, at risk to herself, stopped to investigate. It was Poppy’s lucky day as if she had been left in the ditch much longer she would certainly have died. She was severely emaciated, her fur was patchy and she had sores on her joints. Her rescuer called National RSPCA, who arranged for her to stay at the Vets we use overnight. The next morning our volunteer driver, Dean, brought Poppy in to us from the Vets. Straight away Dean bonded with Poppy. It’s not hard to see why, despite all she had been through Poppy was still so trusting and just wanted love. Once she began on the road to recovery, Dean took her home on foster, to live with him and his other dog, Soda. With regular meals, love and exercise, Poppy slowly began to recover and now she is a different dog! Looking at her, you would never guess the trauma she has had in her past. Dean and Soda couldn’t bear to be parted from Poppy after all they had been through with her, and he has now adopted her.



All recovered, she looks like a new dog!

Sasha


The gorgeous Sasha enjoying a fuss



Sasha is a beautiful Collie X Akita, who for some reason everybody passed by. She was loved by all the staff and volunteers, but members of the public never seemed to stop at her kennel. She had a reserve which unfortunately was taken off, and it seemed as though it would never be her turn to leave! Being part Collie, Sasha is very clever – she picked up commands with ease and quickly adapted to clicker training. Combined with her beautiful face, and her easy temperament, she would make a perfect dog. Finally, a family of three came to look around the Centre on the off-chance there would be a suitable dog here. The teenage daughter spotted Sasha and absolutely fell in love. They never looked back and Sasha is now well settled with her loving, new family who said they couldn’t believe their luck.

Rapunzel & Cinderella

Rapunzel & Cinderella were part of the ‘Disney Kitten’ litter! They came into the Centre when they were 8 weeks old and suffering from cat flu. They recovered and were placed up for adoption and their brother found his new home quickly. However Rapunzel, Cinderella and their sister Mulan were not so lucky. The fact that they were slightly larger than some of the other kittens we had in, combined with them being plain black, meant they were with us for quite some time. Although they were slightly more timid than some of the kittens and cats we had in, after a few minutes of bringing them round they were like different cats, and were very affectionate. At the start of December, Rapunzel & Cinderella were spotted by a couple who had come to look around the Centre. They were soon happily settling in to their new home. Rapunzel has now been renamed ‘Pumpkin’ and Cinderella is affectionately known as ‘Cinders’. Their new owners have given us an update: “Pumpkin is the most curious of the two, whilst Cinders was a little timid to start with. They have settled in now and have found their voices at dinner time! They like to run up our curtains and watch our indoor fish tank. They have a cosy basket and like to snuggle up together and clean each other. Both now have matching blingy collars! They are lovely personable cats who just needed a warm, loving home. Thank you for letting us have them.”

Happily snoozing in their new home

Sunrise



Posing at the Centre




Sunrise the rabbit unfortunately had a long stay with us, despite the fact that she had a stunning coat and was a friendly girl. Eventually, months after she came into us, she was rehomed earlier this year. Now she can get the love, attention and space and that she desperately needed.




Squirrel


Beautiful Squirrel is still waiting for a home



Squirrel is a little different from the other success stories, as she is still waiting for a home. However, we still count her as a success due to her dramatic rescue! The RSPCA had a phone call from a worried member of the public who spotted Squirrel and her three kittens high up in a tree – it seemed like she thought that would be a good place to give birth! One of our Inspectors was sent out and she called in the Fire Brigade to help with the rescue. Luckily all four were brought safely back to the ground and they were sent off to a foster home. When the kittens (aptly named Conker, Ash & Willow) were old enough, the little family was brought back to the Centre to be rehomed. The three kittens were quickly snapped up, now it’s just Squirrel searching for a home where she will be safe and loved for the rest of her days.

Goodbye, Patch

This blog post is all about Patch the Spaniel, who was a beloved dog at the Centre. For those of you who weren't following us a few years ago, he came into us in August 2009 with a flea allergy. He was in a bad way and in desperate need of some TLC.

Unfortunately, Patch was 14 when he came in to us, so the chance of him being rehomed was reduced. He lived behind Reception for a year and bonded with the staff, particularly with Malcolm. Everywhere Malcolm went, Patch wanted to go too.

In 2010 Mark & Lisa came into the Centre to view the dogs and spotted Patch. It was love and they decided to take him home to live with them and their existing dog.

For two years Patch was given the love and attention he deserved with a wonderful family. He bonded with the other dogs in his new family and had a new lease of life. Sadly, early this year Patch passed away. We are so happy that he had those lovely last years and he will always be fondly remembered by the staff.