As of Monday the 13th April 2015, the build for the Cotswolds Dogs & Cats Home is underway.
Click here for the video as Lady Bathurst and Lisa Maxwell “break ground”.
Dennis makes a guest appearance and, once again, makes his adoration of Lisa very obvious; one star struck boy.
We opened a new furniture emporium in Tetbury (between the Tesco Store and its petrol station) on the 10th July and were fortunate enough to have Lady Bathurst to officially open the shop. Support from members of the public have been outstanding both as donators of furniture and household items and as patrons of the shop. We have been so blessed that we almost ram out of stock after just a few days and have been calling on everyone to bring in donations or telephone to make arrangements for our marvellous van drivers to pop by and pick up.
Missing Pets From 1 December 2013 anyone who wishes to report their pet missing to the RSPCA National Call Centre (0300 1234 999) needs, instead, to register it online with Pets Located at petslocated.com. Although the National Call Centre will no longer accept such calls, our branch staff will still accept reports of missing pets in case anyone who finds a missing pet telephones us. It will be helpful to put up posters (photograph and brief description) in the locale where you believe your pet went missing, plus vets, pubs, supermarkets - it seems they are one of the most effective ways of getting your pet back. There are a number of web sites that offer assistance, e.g. DogLost and Lurcher Search UK. Spend a few minutes searching the web and contact those organisations you think can help the most. There is great advice and guidance on what to do but please remember to do it quickly.
Found animals are free for anyone to log with Pets Located. Please note there is a £10 plus VAT fee for logging lost animals with Pets Located. As Pets Located is a web based only system there is no phone number for people to call if they've lost an animal.
Two of our shops really went to town over the Chinese new year - here is a little information about the Chinese new year and some stunning pictures of the two shops in Nailsworth and Cirencester. Click the pictures for more information.
The 15-day celebration of Chinese new year started on Friday 31st January 2014, with the first new moon of the calendar year. The day marks the end of the year of the water snake and welcomes the start of the year of the wooden horse. To bring you luck this new year, we've listed eight (a lucky number in China) things you possibly didn't know about the year ahead.
The Chinese zodiac – or Shēngxiào – is a calendar system originating in the Han dynasty (206-220BC), which names each of the years in its 12-year cycle after an animal: the rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, goat, monkey, rooster, dog and pig, in that order. According to the system, the universe is made up of five elements – earth, water, fire, wood and metal – which interact with the 12 animals, resulting in the specific character of the year ahead.
Our Nailsworth Shop has won first prize in the local Christmas window competition and it is very easy to see why - well done Kathryn, Mary and the team. There is a fabulous article about the competition in the Stroud News and Journal and the prize money will go towards our capital appeal to build the Cotswolds Dogs and Cats Home. If you are looking for an unusual gift then why not pop in and see what is on offer. Our shop stock changes every day so you need to keep up...
See the chair of the Branch being interviewed by Cotswold TV on the opening day of the Cirencester shop in Ashcroft Road. You can see the shop and hear about the work the Branch already does and its goal to provide the Cotswolds with the facilities it needs to rescue hundreds of domestic animals each year...
A new TV series called ‘The Dog Rescuers’ starts Tuesday 8th October on Channel 5 at 7.30pm, running for 10 weeks.
It will be an interesting programme - Tune In and Support Animal Welfare.
The Government is planning a badger cull in west Somerset and Gloucestershire on the 1st June. We already have 180,000 signatures on the No 10 online petition to stop the cull. With your help we want to hit the 250,000 mark. This would make it the biggest No 10 petition to the Government - ever!
You can sign the petition here to deliver 250,000 voices against the badger cull via the Number 10 petition then badger your friends and family to sign! These wild animals need your help to survive.
And you can copy and paste this link bit.ly/StoptheCull onto your Facebook and Twitter pages. Don't forget to use the #StoptheCull hashtag.
We are also putting forward, as an alternative, a programme to vaccinate badgers in the cull area, with help of volunteer vets and other volunteers. This is being done under the umbrella of Team Badger, the consortium of 14 organisations. It is a real challenge to get the finance together for this. But if we are able to show that badger vaccination is a viable alternative, we hope this will stop the cull happening.
If you are on low income related benefits and need financial assistance to neuter your Bull Breed dog then call June on 01453 755 587 or email june.edgar@rspcastroud.org.uk. We will provide a neutering voucher at a cost of £20 per dog. To qualify, you must provide proof that you receive low income related benefits and own an un-neutered Bull Breed dog.
We love to get up-dates on our adopted animals. Here's Hannah on her recent holiday in Cornwall with a few words from her mum Janet.
We rented a holiday cottage in Cornwall last week and Hannah, our newly adopted girl, came with us. She loved the sea and is now running around off the lead and enjoying her freedom. She is walking on the lead much better, and is a much loved pet by our 10 year old granddaughter who spends all of the time when she is here with us, playing with Hannah.
As an independent charity, not only do we raise all our own funds locally but we are also governed by a committee of Trustees based in the South Cotswolds region.
This year we are recruiting new Trustees at the branch to help guide us through the changes and developments, new and ongoing, that we look forward to facing in our fiftieth year and beyond. Being a Trustee is a big commitment but can be massively rewarding to someone with the right drive, expertise, time to give and appetite for a challenge!
If you are interested in becoming an RSPCA Trustee and would like to find out more about the opportunity, please contact us at volunteer@rspcastroud.org.uk.
We are now on Facebook and Twitter! Keep up to date with all the latest animal news in your local area. Join us!
In the excitement of preparing for a holiday or weekend away, don't forget to make arrangements for your pets. It can take time to sort out their care, so you should always do this well in advance.
Consideration should always be given to your pet's welfare. Whether you are at home or on holiday with your pet, under the Animal Welfare Act you have a legal responsibility to ensure their welfare and to provide for your pet's needs. You should carefully consider taking your pets on holiday with you, especially taking them on holiday abroad.
More information can be found on taking your pet on holiday here, including resource guides and a holiday factsheet.