Animal Rescue with Marion Garnett

Dedicated animal expert Marion Garnett, founder of the Ealing Animal Charities Fair, continues her column

AND so the lockdown goes on. At the moment, we’re in the medium tier but, by the time you read this, we’ll be in the high (at least). I’m sure we’ve all missed different things in the past months.

One of the things I’m missing, are the fabulous days out organised by our local animal charities, including Mayhew. No Open Day, no street party, no Temptation Alley on Hampstead Heath this year.

All normal fixtures in the Mayhew calendar. But still their work continues – in this country and abroad.

In London, they’ve recently been called on to rescue a kitten from Wembley. A pregnant cat had come across what she thought was an abandoned property and gave birth there.

What she didn’t realise was that the property wasn’t abandoned but was being renovated. One day, when the noise of a shrill drill started, she became so frightened she ran away, abandoning her kitten. Fortunately, a member of the public spotted the tiny kitten lying on some rubbish and, after waiting 24 hours to see if the mother returned, called Mayhew for help. Their Animal Welfare Officers went straight out to retrieve the kitten and bring her back to Mayhew. They also asked the finder to keep a look out for Mum. The kitten (now named Little Bean) isn’t ready for homing yet but, if you’re interested, keep a look out on Mayhew’s rehoming website.

One animal that’s already on the website is Bowie, a Staffy Crossbreed who finds herself without a home, due to her owner’s ill health. Bowie’s intelligent and chatty with plenty of energy. She can sometimes be reactive with other dogs so is looking for an experienced owner who can manage her interactions with other dogs.

Her foster carer says that, despite her size (24kgs), Bowie thinks she’s a lapdog and will curl as much of herself on you as she can.

Most of the time she doesn’t show her age (12 years) and has been out with her foster carer for 8-9 mile walks on consecutive days without becoming weary. If you’re interested in homing Bowie, see details at themayhew.org.

As well as working in this country, Mayhew also do crucial animal welfare work abroad, particularly in Afghanistan, Georgia and India.

To tell us what’s been happening recently in their international section, they’ve organised an online evening with discussion plus a live question and answer session.

It takes place on November 12 at 6.50pm. For details and a ticket, £10 donation, see themayhew.org.