PUPPY GLOVE
What a save! Caring for a special breed Dog-mad Coventry keeper Moore is on a canine charity crusade
SIMON MOORE has been enjoying a new leash of life at Coventry City.
While the Sky Blues are snapping away at the heels of the Championship pacesetters on the pitch, the 31-year-old keeper has been sniffing out opportunity away from it.
And, it’s come in the shape of a tie-up with Schnauzerfest – a dog charity that looks after the welfare of the intelligent German breed.
Moore has a Schnauzer of his own – called Bali – and his family has set up their own charity offshoot from his parents’ home on the Isle of Wight.
The former Cardiff City and Sheffield United shotstopper has been auctioning off shirts to raise cash to lessen the “despicable” impact of puppy farming.
He said: “As a boy, I was scared of dogs. We had an Alsatian next door – it used to jump up the fence – so I’ve got no idea where the motivation came from to have a dog.
“But when I was down at Cardiff City, I ended up getting a Schnauzer. I think I liked the beard.
“I had her for three years in Wales. But when I moved to Sheffield United, I couldn’t look after her – I was on my own – so my mum Bev and dad Phil took her on at our family home on the Isle of Wight.
Spoiled
“She’s now spoiled rotten. That dog is treated like a queen.
“When I started to research the background of the breed, I found there was a lady called Janetta Harvey who had set up a charity called Schnauzerfest it’s a group where people with Schnauzers meet up and take their dogs for walks together.
“My mum said, ‘Why don’t we do that on the Isle of Wight?’ That was three or four years ago
now. There’s not a huge Schnauzer community. But 25 people still met up and I decided to do something in my own small way to help the charity.
“I read it was raising money to help dogs who had fallen victim to puppy farming.
“For people who don’t know, these are dogs that are used specifically for breeding. If they can’t breed, for whatever reason, they’re simply chucked out – sometimes after being mistreated.
“The practice is horrendous – despicable – how anyone can do that to a defenceless animal is beyond me.
“But I told Janetta via social media that I’d like to get involved.
“So before Christmas I auctioned off a Sheffield United shirt from my Premier League days. Then I thought that was unfair that it could only go to the highest bidder, so I raffled a signed Coventry City one.
“I put all the tickets into a big bowl and threw a treat in there for Bali. The winning ticket stuck to her nose.” He added: “I couldn’t ask for her back now,
She would be well looked after – but I still couldn’t give her the life my parents do.
“It’s difficult to think of a more pampered pooch. She goes everywhere with them and is living the best life.”
Punch
Moore isn’t doing too badly himself. He will be in the running for the player-of-the-season award at Coventry who continue to punch above their weight under canny boss Mark Robins.
The keeper added: “I had five great years at Sheffield United but it was the right time to leave. I had Dean Henderson, one of the best keepers I’ve ever worked with, in front of me.
“Then, when he went back to Manchester United, Aaron Ramsdale came in and he’s now tearing it up at Arsenal.
“I’ve been unlucky to have two England keepers as competition – I hope I played a small part in their development. But I needed to play again, week in, week out, keeping clean sheets and winning games of football.
“I’m loving Coventry. We’ve got a squad that doesn’t know how good it is.
“Our football is excellent and there’s still plenty left to play for this season, so who knows?”