Oldies Club is launching an urgent Winter Appeal. December is here and with it, the joy and stress of Christmas looms. Sadly, every year, as new pups are brought into homes, older dogs are kicked out. It’s unimaginable for many to comprehend, but it’s a concept rescues are very familiar with. Some people will contact a rescue and try to find a place for their dog of many years, but some will just abandon them on the streets, hoping that someone else will take them in.
Historically, the weeks just before and after Christmas sees an increase in people contacting Oldies Club, hoping that a foster space can be found. We will also be contacted by pounds and vets asking if there’s “room at the inn” for another in one of our foster homes.
At a time of ever-increasing costs, we are already concerned that we will not be able to help and we are now having to turn away dogs that previously we could have taken in. That doesn’t just affect the dogs and their families that we can’t help, it also affects our fabulous rehoming team, who are very sad and stressed at not being able to help.
We simply cannot take in more dogs without having the funds to care for them, as we pay for all the vet treatment our dogs need. This year, in just six months, our vet bills have been a staggering £91,886.66. One of our sponsor dogs alone, Lucy, has cost us just over £5,000 for her vet treatment (since February 22) – a huge amount for a small charity.
Perhaps you would consider Sponsoring an Oldie – this would make a great Christmas present for someone who loves dogs but cannot have one of their own. Details can be at: Sponsor an Oldie – Oldies Club
Our only source of income is from donations and fundraising – and we are receiving a lot fewer donations than ever before. The cost of vet treatments has increased, and adoptions have decreased as people realise that they cannot afford a dog in the current financial climate – this is also another reason why so many people are giving up their older dogs.
Oldies Club is run entirely by volunteers, so none of our income is spent on salaries – almost all of our income is used for vet treatment. However, this year, we have had to start paying for professional transporters to move dogs to their new foster home. Previously, we have depended on volunteers to do this, but due to less availability, especially for emergency transport, we have had to depend on professional companies. From April to October, we’ve spent £6,614.05 on transporting dogs – another huge but necessary expenditure.
We have to increase our income if we are to help more old dogs – hence our urgent Winter Appeal.
Every £1 helps!
We understand that times are hard and people have less disposable income, but even if you could donate £1 to our Winter Appeal, it helps. Every pound we receive helps us to pay our bills. It’s strange that people are reluctant to donate a very small amount. People apologise for it – “Sorry it can’t be more” – but honestly, we’d rather receive £1 than nothing. Every £1 helps and by donating any amount, you will have been part of helping an older dog. The more £1 donations we get, the more dogs we can save.
Not being able to afford to take in more dogs is deeply distressing to all of us at Oldies Club because we know that this could be the difference of a dog being saved or sadly being put to sleep. For the people who are genuinely trying to find a secure place for their much-loved old companion, this is truly heart-breaking.
If you cannot afford anything at all, perhaps you have some time on your hands? There are lots of ideas on our website: Fundraising – Oldies Club and we will give all the help and support that you need.
We also need to look at our future needs: can we carry on helping dogs if we don’t have sufficient income? One way to help us would be by leaving us something in your will – not a nice thing to think about, but it is important and a good way people can help us. We’ve provided lots of information here Leaving a legacy – will you think of Oldies Club? – Oldies Club.
During this hectic Christmas time, please take five minutes to look at the links above and view all of our website. As a dog lover, I’m sure you’ll appreciate all of the hard work our small charity does and hopefully you’ll be able to help us. We’d love to have some help with our Winter Appeal, so please have a look at our justgiving page:
https://www.justgiving.com/campaign/OCWinterAppeal
Thanks for reading about our amazing charity and we hope you have a wonderful Christmas.
