RSPCA Little Valley Animal Shelter, Black Hat Lane, Bakers Hill, Exeter EX2 9TA

Tel: 01392 439898 www.rspca-littlevalley.org.uk

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! Issue 46 August 2016

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Shelter News By Jo Evans, Shelter Manager

Shelter Day has been and gone—a lovely day was had by all and the weather just about held out till later in the day. Sadly, fewer dogs joined us on the day but it was still nice to see the old faces who ventured out for the dog show. A big thank you to all the supporters for coming, but especially the volunteers who helped us organise the day—we can’t do it without you! No major updates on the rebuilding of the dog kennels—we have completed a site survey so hopefully there will be more news in the next edition. Big Walkies will take place on 18 September at Ludwell Valley Park, Exeter. It is a lovely location where the city touches the countryside. Hopefully next year we will look at a new location—maybe in the South Devon region of our branch area. So let’s make this one the best yet! It’s a great few hours where lots of dogs meet and walk with owners and everyone can relax after with some refreshments! There will also be our usual bargain pet accessories on sale. Hope to see you all there. The kitten boom has hit us later than normal so we are now bursting with cats! A plea to everyone to spread the message about being responsible cat owners and getting cats neutered and microchipped. Even house cats can escape, so should be chipped and neutered. And remember, go to a rescue centre and adopt!

LITTLE VALLEY ANIMAL SHELTER RSPCA South, East & West Devon Branch Black Hat Lane, Bakers Hill, Exeter, EX2 9TA Registered Charity No: 205154 Telephone: 01392 439898 Email: info@rspca-littlevalley.org.uk Website: rspca-littlevalley.org.uk Facebook: facebook.com/rspcalittlevalley Twitter: twitter.com/rspcaexeter Instagram: rspcalittlevalleyexeter Just Giving: justgiving.com/rspcaexeter Shelter Opening Times Open 6 days a week (closed Wednesdays) 11.00am-4.00pm (Last entry: 3.30pm) 24 hour Cruelty and Advice Line: 0300 1234 999

SHOPS 129 Reddenhill Rd, Babbacombe TQ1 3NT Tel: 01803 323841 1 Market Street, Brixham TQ5 8EU Tel: 01803 859695 46 High Street, Budleigh EX9 6LJ Tel: 01395 442349 31 Cowick Street, Exeter EX4 1AL Tel: 01392 213847 27 Paris Street, Exeter EX1 2JB Tel: 01392 494759 91 South Street, Exeter EX1 1EN Tel: 01392 494113 49 Courtenay St, Newton Abbot TQ12 2QN Tel: 01626 330716 10 Torquay Road, Paignton TQ3 3AB Tel: 01803 528118 Brutus Centre, Totnes TQ9 5RW Tel: 01803 866597

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We want to say a huge thank you to LV (Liverpool Victoria) in Exeter for being so kind and generous with donations of items from our Amazon Wishlist to the animals in our care. Back in May they came along with lots of things for our dogs, and then in July it was the turn of the cats to be spoilt! Small animals aren’t being missed off—they will be next! Here are some lovely photos of some of the staff from LV with their donations and some of the lucky recipients. Thank you so much! We are truly grateful and it has been a pleasure to meet you all and get to show you round the Shelter.

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More Cheque Presentations! The Shelter has been so lucky lately to be the recipient of a few community cheques from different organisations. We received £300 from Waitrose Community Matters and another £300 from the Chelsea Building Society Community Programme. A huge thank you from us to both these organisations and to the supporters of Little Valley who nominated us in the first place.

Friends of Little Valley By Jill Brush, Membership Secretary

Hello all our Friends of Little Valley. Thank you one and all for another fantastic response to the Summer Draw and also the appeal for the Dog Kennels. Shelter Day was a huge success and thoroughly enjoyed by all, including all the wonderful dogs who attended. The Christmas Fair will also take place at the Shelter in November, so make a note in your diaries now for a great day out celebrating—with the animals themselves as the star attraction! Don’t forget that if you are not a Friend of Little Valley and you are interested in joining, please don’t hesitate to contact myself or the Shelter for an application form. The funds raised from this membership is a vital contribution towards the running costs of the Shelter. Have a lovely rest of the summer and many thanks again for your continued support from all of us at Little Valley. Jill Brush 01392 661424 or phillandjillb@aol.com

Receiving a cheque from Chelsea Building Society

Receiving a cheque from Waitrose with

other community and charity recipients

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Shelter Day 2016 Despite the threatening rain clouds, we had a nice day for Shelter Day again this year with only a shower as the day drew to a close. A huge thank you to everyone who came along and supported us—we also celebrated 25 years of the Shelter! We managed to raise a fan-tastic £6,500—amazing, thank you! Enjoy some of the great photos from the day and don’t forget to join us at our next big event—the Big Walkies, Sunday 18 September at Ludwell Valley Park, Exeter. Details on the poster on the back of this newsletter.

Shelter Day Grand Draw Prizewinners 2016 A big thank you to all those people who bought Draw Tickets and supported Little Valley’s Shelter Day held on 26 June 2016. Thank you too to Mr and Mrs Stoneham who kindly donated their prize back to the Shelter. The successful winners were: 1st Sue Gorfin, Budleigh Salterton 12th M Lampard, Torquay 2nd Mrs June Evans, Dunsford 13th Nicola Weaver Laird, Exeter 3rd Tegan Harvey, Exeter 14th Sue Smith 4th Mrs M Stoneham, Dunkeswell 15th Michael Weaver, Exeter 5th Sue Harrington, Budleigh Shop 16th H Richardson, Kenton 6th Mrs P Hoare, Exeter 17th Kay Northcott 7th Amanda John, Exeter 18th Joan, Birmingham 8th Sara Hicks, Okehampton 19th Carol Bartin, Crediton 9th Mollie Tresamble, Frogmore 20th M L Boden, Exminster 10th Shirley Snell, Budleigh Salterton 21st Muriel Newton, Dartmough 11th Sue Seward, Broadhembury

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Shelter Day 2016

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Shelter Day 2016

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RSPCA Horse Crisis The RSPCA has been struggling with an equine crisis for the last few years, with an unprec-edented number of investigations and prosecutions involving horses, resulting in large numbers of animals requiring our care. Felledge Equine Centre is one of only three RSPCA Centres devoted solely to horses and ponies and was established near Chester-le-Street in Co Durham in January 2000. The purpose of the Centre is the rehabilitation and rehoming of equines following a successful prosecution case. The Centre can accommodate up to 45 horses at any one time, and rehomes between 60–90 equines a year. The horses and ponies that come to us have all been subject to some form of cruelty or neglect that has been investigated by the Inspectorate. Many will have been starved, in some cases to half their normal weight. Starvation is often accompanied by lack of basic attention to worming, external parasite control and foot care. These horses have chronic worm infestations, skin conditions and overgrown and split hooves. Other incidents of cruelty are untreated injuries, especially from tethering, accidents, e.g. in barbed wire, and diseases and conditions such as laminitis, strangles, salmonella, ragwort poisoning and rain scald which the owner has not taken action to have treated. At the end of the investigation and after they have been brought back to health, equines that are suitable for rehoming are transferred to an Equine Centre. Felledge has excellent facilities for hacking and schooling, so horses of a suitable age and temperament are trained to be ridden and schooled by the Centre staff. This enables them to lead a useful and fulfilling life. All homes are visited before and after adoption to ensure that prospec-tive owners have the necessary understanding and experience, as well as suitable facilities, to care for a rescued horse.

Cracker Jack, 14 year old piebald gelding, was found inappropri-ately tethered in a sunken area of thorny shrubs trees and rub-bish leading directly onto a very busy main road where heavy traffic passes at speed. He was entangled in his tether chain which had pulled tight in 3 areas around the base of the shrubs. Because he was so entangled he was unable to move anywhere and the immediate area was churned up and muddy from his attempts to get free. There was no evidence of adequate grazing, supplementary feed or water. When Cracker Jack was examined by a Vet he was found to have a heavy worm bur-

den and his feet were in poor condition. After rehabilitation Cracker Jack was successfully rehomed from Felledge in 2014, and went on to achieve great things with his new owner.

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Brilliant Budleigh Buddies! Recently, there was a Summer Tea Party for the Budleigh Shop volunteers hosted by Ann Bidmead in her lovely garden. It was an opportunity to thank all the loyal helpers who give their time and effort to help in the shop and was greatly enjoyed by everyone—even the volunteer who took a wrong turning, missed the drive and ended up a field of sheep, some of which had horns! A huge thank you to all the team.

Wedding Donation When Darren and Tiné Beaven recently got married, instead of wedding presents they asked friends and family to make a donation to Little Valley. Thanks to their generosity, they were able to present us with an amazing £335! Thank you so much to Darren and Tiné and many congratulations on your recent marriage and many best wishes for the future. Here they are at the Shelter meeting one of our dogs, Mella.

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New Homes Required! We have had another very successful few months of rehoming since our last edition. Here are a few more animals looking for their forever homes! All animals for adoption are on our website: www.rspca-littlevalley.org.uk.

Pierre

Rex

Camarley

Boo

Jack

Billy & Smokey

Pumba

Mella

Frieda Buzz

Lewis

Pez

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Happy Endings! Barnaby

Kenda Trouble & Chewy

Orinoco Freya

Jade

Martha

Mel

Squidgy

Lola

Poppy

Patch

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Cowick Street Shop Extension After a few years of working in cramped, damp, disorganized conditions, the team in our Cowick Street shop have been treated to a brand spanking new shop and stockroom extension. The new extension has given the shop a third more space on the shop floor and five times the old space they had in the stockroom. There is also a nice area for the team to have a break at the back of the shop. With rain coming into the old stockroom whenever there was a downpour, it is a great relief for the team to have such salubrious surroundings to work and rest in. We now have more space to accept your donations in store, so feel free to drop in any unwanted items you have. We are always looking for bric-a-brac, ladies and men’s clothing, kids clothing, jewellery, DVDs and CDs. We will also take your electrical items if they are in working condition. With all this extra space, we can now even take in small pieces of furniture! If you are a tax payer you could Gift Aid your donations which then allows Little Valley to claim an extra 25p in the £ for every item sold that is Gift Aided. Just call into our brand new shop and speak with any of the team who will be only too pleased to help.

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Events 2016 Our events are listed on our website and also our Facebook page: www.facebook.com/rspcalittlevalley

Saturday 17 September 2016—Budleigh Salterton Flag Day Please get in touch with Budleigh Shop for further details

Sunday 18 September 2016—Big Walkies Time: 12pm to 3pm Venue: Ludwell Valley Park, Exeter EX2 6NF Sign up via www.rspca.org.uk/bigwalkies

Sunday 9 October 2016—Open Afternoon Time: 2pm to 4pm Venue: Little Valley Animal Shelter Donation on Entry

Saturday 19 November 2016—Exmouth Christmas Fair Time: 10am to 12pm Venue: All Saints Church Hall, Exeter Road, Exmouth EX8 1RZ Please get in touch with Budleigh Shop for further details

Saturday 26 November 2016—Christmas Fair at the Shelter Time: 11am to 4pm Venue: Little Valley Animal Shelter, Black Hat Lane, Bakers Hill, Exeter EX2 9TA Please get in touch with the Shelter for further details

Please support our events—they are vital for raising funds for the Shelter. We are always looking for volunteers to help at events, if you are interested please email us on info@rspca-littlevalley.org.uk.

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Giveacar raises money for UK charities by scrapping and selling old cars. They provide a nationwide FREE service which: - Arranges the collection of the vehicle from your home; - Depending on its age and condition, recycles it at an authorised facility or sends it to auction. To arrange donation of a car visit www.giveacar.co.uk or call 020 7736 4242, quoting “RSPCA Little Valley Animal Shelter” as your chosen charity.

Please consider sponsoring a dog kennel, cat pen or rabbit run for as little as £3 a month through our Safe Haven scheme. An applica-tion form can be found on our website.

If you shop online, please use Easyfundraising to help us raise even more money. Lots of well known retailers are on there and it’s free to register. Sign up at: www.easyfundraising.org.uk/causes/rspcalittlevalley Join the Pets at Home VIP Club to get great

discounts. Select your home store as Exeter, Exmouth, Torquay or Newton Abbot and you can opt for Little Valley as your chosen charity so we can receive benefits as you shop! Register at: http://vip.petsathome.com

A legacy to us will provide crucial funds. We could not carry on our work without such gener-ous support. Please visit our website to find out more about leaving a legacy to us.

We have three wishlists — one for dogs, one for cats and the other for small animals. They list lots of items that our animals really like, such as treats and toys. You will need an Amazon account to do this but it’s

really easy to set up and it’s free. Go to www.amazon.co.uk. Log into your Amazon account and type into the search box “RSPCA Little Valley Wishlist” and our wishlists will come up! It’s a great way to help us out and all the animals in our care will be very grateful! And don’t forget to claim for your purchases using Easyfundraising, as we can raise even more money that way!

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Canine Remedial Massage A complementary therapy which uses the manipulation of

soft tissue to promote the physiological and psychological

well-being of dogs — regardless of age, size or breed.

Veterinary consent is required prior to treatment.

For further information or to request a consent form, contact Linda Rogers ITEC Dip ICAT Tel: 07732 688383. Email: linda@handsandhounds.co.uk

THE FAMILY MASSAGE CENTRE Established 1994

Annie Samuels (Hons)a holistic approach to health care and diet Deep tissue massage, sports injury therapy, Hopi ear candle treatment, aromatherapy 1 hour to 3 hour treatments from £30 to £70 Available 7 days a week (9.30am to 5.30pm) by appointment only Gift vouchers available for cash or cheque only 7 Piazza Terracina (river basin), Haven Road, Exeter EX2 8GT Tel: 01392 203182 (answerphone) | Email: annie.samuels@yahoo.co.uk

St Davids Station Exeter EX4 4NT Tel: 01392 271221 hospital@stdavidsvets.com referrals@stdavidsvets.com

St David's Veterinary Hospital is a modern, well equipped veterinary hospital in the city of Exeter. As a Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS) certified Veterinary Hospital our outstanding facilities include digital X-ray and ultrasonography, a fully equipped laboratory, air-conditioned kennels and operating theatres, along with 24 hour on-site vet and nursing care. All of this ensures your pet will receive first class modern treatment.

Volunteer Shop Driver Needed! To move stock around our 9 shops in the Exeter and South Devon area, use of an RSPCA van, 2/3 days a week, full clean driving licence required. Pleasant disposition and must enjoy working with people. Please call 07961 986103 for further details.

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Starting at 12 noon—Sunday 18 September