Great news!

Regular readers will know that at various point over the last couple of months we have tried to help OAP Dee stay together with her two dogs Rosie and Milo. She had ended up homeless and had been placed in a council emergency halfway house shelter in London, but it didn't allow her to have her dogs with her. Hence she had taken to sleeping in her car with her dogs.
This obviously couldn't continue and somehow we got to hear about it via a kindly vet and dog walker.
Via Twitter and facebook and blogs we launched an appeal to find a foster home for both dogs. There were many twists and turns as Rosie turned out not to much like being around other dogs and poor Milo needed to be near to the PDSA vets to get to his appointments as he had a fast growing lump on his leg.
But somehow, just in the nick of time, solutions were found and Rosie and Milo settled into loving foster homes with incredible people (Lorna had Rosie for most of the time, Kia and Tim had Milo and Bernice had Rosie for a week and Caroline and Mercedes were the ones who discovered Rosie was better alone!). Via ancient charity Tailwaggers Club Trust (of which I am Chairman by the way!) we launched an appeal for an emergency fund to pay for dog sitters or kennels etc to make sure dogs and owner didn't have to face a night in the car again. You were all very generous and we did need it a few times.
Last night I got the great news from Lorna that Dee is being housed on Friday and Milo and Rosie can rejoin her.
These dogs are Dee's life and it is just fantastic that her life is now back on track and her doggie family is being restored to her. When she had asked for help alone she was told to sign them over to a rescue for rehoming - something we all knew she'd never do.
I know that Rosie and Milo will be very much missed by their foster homes, but what they did for those dogs is the greatest act of love imaginable. And what they did for Dee... I've spoken to her several times over the last few months and being homeless at her age is very upsetting, but knowing that total strangers will offer to help you is life changing.
This whole episode encouraged us to write an article on fostering which will be in the September issue. That and @missyredboots Judith Broug's gentle nagging us to do something on fostering! (Judith designed the Don't Cook Your Dog campaign stickers and website... so lots of good ideas!).
So watch out for the September edition of Dogs Today - out August 11th.

Can you help put Scooby back together again?

At the beginning of June, Denise Nicholson received a call from a vet surgery in Worthing to say they were treating her son’s cat, Scooby. The tabby had been hit by at least two cars and was 20 miles away from his home in Burgess Hill. It is not known how he made the long journey. Vets were able to identify Scooby and contact Denise because he is microchipped.

Denise said, “I can’t recommend microchipping enough. My son's previous cat, Tommy, was killed by a car and we were both devastated, so Scooby was a replacement for my son. I had to make the decision whether to put him to sleep but I decided against it and told the vets to try and do everything they could to save him.”

The five-year-old boy has undergone extensive surgery – costing just shy of £4000 – to help him to walk again. Scooby’s rear right leg sustained multiple injuries and now has synthetic joins and ligaments, his pelvis had been displaced on one side, his kidney detached, he developed peritonitis from the blunt trauma and his left foreleg sustained a horrendous injury, leaving him with an open wound which requires ongoing treatment and a possible skin graft. He also required hours in an oxygen tent when he was first brought in to the Worthing vets as he had respiratory problems.
Denise is on a low income and is been a single mother to her teenage son, whose father passed away in 2006. She has contributed £500 toward the bill so far. Tailwaggers, Paws and Claws, and the RSPCA has given £1,100 between them. Since the initial bill, Scooby has had to have the x-fix on his leg removed, and may require a skin graft. This has added another £1,000 to the bill. It is also costing between £50 and £100 per week for check-ups with Scooby’s registered vets in Burgess Hill.
Denise would be incredibly grateful for any help to cover the cost of Scooby’s bill. She said, “I really appreciate the help and sympathy that everyone has shown both Scooby and myself.”
 

In the unlikely event that we raise more money that is needed to put Scooby back together we will use the funds on other deserving Tailwaggers cases. Click here for a link to Scooby's JustGiving appeal.