Animal Rescue with Marion Garnett
Dedicated animal expert Marion Garnett, founder of the Ealing Animal Charities Fair, continues her column
TWO months ago, a 12 year old boy left his puppy outside an animal shelter in Mexico. With the puppy, the boy left a note saying that he and his Mum had decided to leave the dog at the shelter to hide it from his Dad who was thinking of selling it. The note said his father mistreated and kicked the puppy.
For anyone who has worked in a capacity in which they are privy to people’s secrets, it will come as no surprise that during this coronavirus lockdown, the UK’s largest domestic abuse charity, Refuge, has reported a 700% increase in calls to its helpline in a single day.
Although we don’t know what the situation was in the Mexican case, research shows there is a strong link between animal abuse and domestic abuse with perpetrators often threatening or harming a pet in order to intimidate and control their partner. Many definitions of domestic abuse now include abuse of pets.
The government acknowledges that the coronavirus lockdown is likely to be particularly difficult for victims of domestic abuse and highlights that the household isolation instruction does not apply if you need to leave your home to escape domestic abuse.
But many victims won’t leave their home unless they can take their pet with them. And, often, they can’t be taken with the victim into a refuge. This is where charities like Dogs Trust come in. The Freedom Project, organised by Dogs Trust, is a free fostering service for dogs who belong to people fleeing from domestic abuse. Under the scheme, dogs can be fostered for up to 6 months. It is a confidential service which is still running during the lockdown. Details of the Freedom Project can be found at moretodogstrust.org.uk. You can contact them at freedomproject@dogstrust.org.uk or call 0800 298 9199.
Cats Protection run a similar service, called Paws Protect, which helps cats of families experiencing domestic abuse. For details call 0345 260 1280 or see pawsprotect@cats.org.uk.
Now back to Dogs Trust where
Herbie, the Lurcher, is waiting, at their Harefield centre, for a home. Herbie derives confidence from being with other dogs and, in his new home, he must live with another dog. Dogs Trust are currently not rehoming animals but, if you are interested in homing Herbie, when rehoming restarts, his details are at dogstrust.org.uk.
Meanwhile, don’t forget, if you want information on pet care and coronavirus, have a look, for example, at rspca.org.uk and bluecross.org.uk.