Linda’s licence to raise the woof for abandoned dogs
Eurovision legend f irst to be awarded council contract to run shelter
EUROVISION legend and animal welfare campaigner Linda Martin has been awarded a contract to run a dog shelter on behalf of Dublin City Council, the Irish Mail on Sunday can reveal.
Linda and her team of workers at the Dublin Dog Hub are preparing to welcome 16 pooches to her fivestar heated kennels at Meakstown on the northside of the capital within weeks.
It is the first time a person with a proven record in animal welfare and advocacy has been chosen to run a dog pound on behalf of the council.
The Dog Hub is located at the site of the Dog’s Aid Animal Sanctuary, a charity which Linda is a patron of.
The Eurovision winner, who shares her north Dublin home with 13 rescue dogs of her own, said her dream of running a shelter to properly care for abandoned and abused dogs on behalf of a local authority has finally been realised.
She told the MoS: ‘I am absolutely delighted. It was a long road, but all along the way I have been supported by a fantastic group of people.
‘They are close friends from inside and outside the world of show business and ordinary dog lovers who want to see these dogs properly cared for.’
‘These dogs will be treated with love’
Linda said that, despite there being ‘a few twists and turns on the way’, she ‘never lost sight of what I was trying to do’ and paid tribute to ‘so many people who helped in so many ways’.
These include her close friend Orla Kearney, who is also closely involved in the project, and will be among the team of people working alongside Linda and qualified canine personnel.
Linda said that, from the moment animals come through her door, ‘these dogs will be treated with love and kindness – they will have the best of food and veterinary care and exercise facilities for however long they are here.’
From her long years of campaigning for better animal welfare, Linda has extensive links to animals sanctuaries across the country.
She said she intends to use these contacts ‘from the word go’ to seek to have dogs rehomed once they are deemed suitable for rehoming.
‘I won’t sit back, I intend to be very proactive on this.’
She also paid tribute to the officials in Dublin City Council and councillors on the local authority animal welfare committee, who she said combined ‘professionalism with great compassion for dogs’ throughout the year-long process.
The decision to grant the contract to Linda and her team has been warmly welcomed by animal welfare workers, with one describing it as ‘a new, very welcome departure that reflects well on Dublin City Council’. They added: ‘Hopefully we can look forward to more of this in future where the welfare of the dogs is paramount.’
Linda secured the initial six month contract through the VEAT tender process, a transparent legal process used to choose a supplier through a restricted tender which allows for challenges to the decision. Linda and council officials signed the contract at the Dog Hub on Tuesday after the 30 day notice period had elapsed without challenge.
The entertainer and campaigner is taking control of the dog shelter at a time of unprecedented crisis for animal welfare in this country.
Rescue shelters say they are unable to cope with the hundreds of animals surrendered to their care, or dumped on roadsides and parks.
The crisis is chiefly blamed on the lucrative online sale of dogs bred in puppy farms.
Linda has been a vocal critic of puppy famers and the lack of enforcement by the Department of Agriculture in policing online sales of ‘designer’ breeds.
Meanwhile, the singer has just completed a successful run in the Rapunzel panto at Dublin’s Liberty Hall Theatre.
But despite her hectic schedule, she has no plans to swop her stage clothes for overalls and wellie boots for good just yet.
‘Not entirely’ she laughs. ‘The Dog Hub is my priority but I will still be performing on and off, so I won’t be hanging up the mic for good just yet!’