*please watch the video*
ABOUT ME:
My name is Wendy, I work in TV and run my own business selling classic scooters. I live in the Midlands and own two large, beautiful, well pampered dogs!
WHAT I'M DOING:
I'm desperately trying to raise £1852 to complete the funding to rescue two dogs who have suffered greatly abroad. They were due to come to the UK where one would stay with me and one would find a forever home. However the project has hit a glitch- the airline have changed their pets policy. Now the only way to continue is to fly them as cargo- which is expensive.
I will be paying for as much of it as I can, so this isn't 100% fundraised, I just need help now due to the flight complication that has made this more expensive than planned.
THE SITUATION:
I recently visited a country outside of the EU and found a centre tucked away in the mountains holding hundreds of dogs. They have asked me not to go public so I have to be a little vague as to the location- apologies.
The reason they have these dogs is because in this particular country the dogs are killed routinely. Either by the government- who it is widely believed round them up and shoot them*, or by the locals - many of whom use barbaric and sadistic measures to kill a dog- it's become somewhat a sport and socially acceptable with come being hung or dragged behind vehicles.
Dogs who go to this centre are abandoned in a terrible state having being tortured, abandoned- sometimes by UK owners who have returned home, or have survived an extermination attempt.. like these two I'm about to introduce. I have spent 6 full days there in the last 6 months and every day more dogs come in, a few are healthy, most are in a terrible way and I've seen dead dogs arrive too.
As hard as it is to imagine even children can actually be seen beating these street dogs. Black dogs are considered particularly unlucky in this culture and so it's extra 'rewarding' to kill one that's black. Therefore the centre has a lot of black dogs.
These dogs are not predatory, they rely on local cafes and tourists for food and so are incredibly domesticated and friendly. In fact they're very clever, they know they need us to survive.
They trust over and over again until they trust the wrong person.
Dogs are also poisoned regularly, my friend lost her retriever after he ate a poisoned sausage on the beach, he was dead within 60 seconds, luckily her second dog survived as he didn't eat enough- but he was very sick for a long time. In the video you will see three pets who died together after eating poisoned meat.
Another friend who lives out there helped to save a beautiful Labrador (named Goldie) that she had been feeding; for weeks she'd leave food at the end of the lane for her, then one day she appeared at her door with a shotgun wound to her face. It was horrific, lots of little pellets in her eye, nose and mouth- they say it was fired at quite close range. Such a beautiful Golden Lab- who could do that!? Some of these dogs are pedigree dogs that UK owners pay good money for, there are hundreds here being abused for sport and killed because of cultural belief.
You will see more examples in my video.
So that's why the dogs are in this centre. It's run by a British person who is very keen that I don't name them or do anything to identify them, as they are at the mercy of the local government who are understandably keen to keep this away from tourist knowledge.
*Any professional (including the centre themselves) will tell you the military DO NOT round up the dogs and kill them, but I know people and have relatives who have seen men in uniform take numerous dogs and throw them into the back of a lorry- they never return to the patch they've lived all their life and are never seen again...so you decide.
WHY?
I recently visited with my son who has Apergers. The plan was to walk as many as possible. That was going to be the start and end of our contribution. I had no intention of rehoming a dog, let alone bringing two to the UK.
However... where kids are involved nothing ever goes to plan!
My son connected with a dog. If you know what autistic children can be like it's rare to see one go quiet and emotional. The dogs had gone quiet, my son was missing, we were worried. I found him leaning against a fence sobbing. The other side was the dog in the photo- Patrick Dempsey (Dempsey for short). He had his head against my son's, eyes closed, just taking in the moment. My son turned to me and said 'It just feels so unfair'.
The next day I returned, having done some research and found a budget airline who could take the dog (and me) a very long winded but cheap way back into Europe, I decided it was a mission I had to take.
It also became clear that taking a 2nd dog wouldn't cost much more. I asked the centre who they had that needed it most.
They took me to the very back of the cages to a tiny space in the corner. There were lots of dogs but one stood out, he was in the corner looking terrible. They said he was bullied by the others. They picked him up and gave him to me, he licked my face. They put a collar and lead on him. I tried to walk him but he wouldnt budge, he would let me carry him though, so off we went into the hills for some 'us' time, I carried him on my shoulders the entire time. This is the dog I name Bruce (Springsteen).
ABOUT THE DOGS:
Patrick 'Dempsey' used to live by the bank in the town centre, he has a very long body and short legs. The centre named him 'Dumpy' which I hated. He has the personality of a Labrador, very silly, very loving, he is the one in the photo above. He looks like a Beagle crossed with a Labrador personality and huge head and has Alsation colours. He's very tactile and loves to have contact with people. They say he is two but if you ask them about every dog they say that, it's because they're not allowed to take dogs in who are over two years old. I actually think he's more like 5, maybe 6. Once he's here (if we succeed) I'll get a vet to assess.
Dempsey was run over in what I've been told was a deliberate attempt to kill him. He had a broken leg and internal injuries. He underwent surgeries without any real facilities and didn't turn hostile once- it's amazing how forgiving a dog can be. I've never heard him bark, considering the dogs go beserk when a visitor arrives, he just stands on his hinds legs and watches through the fence in silence.
(Bruce) Springsteen is some kind of a scruffy black terrier, he looks a lot like a Beddlington, he's medium sized, very thin and light to carry (as I'd know well!). He has a huge black and grey beard. He's very quiet, quite lacking in confidence. Bruce was found washed up on a beach. Nobody knows how he got there. I've never heard him bark either. He seems to want company and doesn't want to be put back in the cage.
WHAT WE HAVE DONE SO FAR:
My son had fundraised at school and Scouts and raised a whopping £360.. I'm so proud of him, we then had another £250 in donations from friends and family. I was ready to personally pay for the flights but when I called to book was told the terrible news.
WHAT NEXT:
The only way for the dogs to get out and to the UK now is to ship them as CARGO. This requires an agent in both countries and is not cheap. It's too late to pull out, we've come too far and I couldn't live with the guilt. The dogs are 'flight ready', they are so close to having a life. We must raise an extra £1852 to be able to acheive this. This doesn't include crate costs, customs, agent fees, I will pay those- they are another £650. So I'm funding a lot of this myself, I dont want anybody to think I'm begging. We've come so far. I just need some great people to support me now!
If you have any fundraising ideas please also get in touch, if your company wants to sponsor dog harnesses with a logo, anything like that it's all arrangeable. I'm totally open minded to how we can acheive this.
Together we can save Patrick Dempsey and Bruce Springsteen!
Please do watch the video, it does however contain images of deceased dogs.
