Tag Archive for 'charity'

Sally’s Story

Published on September 29, 2011 in Uncategorized. 3 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

Meet Sally, the beautiful greyhound who has spent the past fortnight with us:

Sally, 15/9/11

On 15th September, 13 year old Sally was handed into an Edinburgh vet to be put to sleep. Though underweight & with terrible dentition, Sally was otherwise in good health. The vet made a few phone calls to various charities, but to no avail – all were either too full or wouldn’t take her on because of her age. However, Scottish Greyhound Sanctuary came through for this old girl, & with their support we took Sally into our home & gave her the TLC that a mature lady like her deserves.

comfort at last

We don’t know too much about Sally’s history, only that she was raced briefly at Shawfield, before being homed by RGT in 2003, & that her elderly owner’s family were unable to cope with looking after her when he no longer could himself. But she is a lovely natured dog – the first thing she did when she arrived at our house was hop right up on the sofa & stretch out, as if to say “now, this is more like it!”

SGS arranged for Sally to have all her rotten teeth removed, & we looked after her here in our home whilst she recovered from her operation (not a small one by any means, given Sally’s age & weight) & got the old girl eating again & starting to put a bit of weight on.

before & after shots(!)

Sally really does amazingly well given her age. Not only does she like to follow you from room to room to check what you are up to, but she gets all excited when it’s time for walkies & keeps up a fair pace once you’re out there too!

out with friends at the park

keeping watch over us in the kitchen

Raring to go!  Sally up Blackford Hill

It didn’t take long before SGS found the special long term home that Sally needed, where she will be able to live out the rest of her days in comfort, without fear of neglect or abandonment. Sally’s new Mum, Jaclyn (another SGS volunteer), reports that she has settled well already & is enjoying the company of Jaclyn’s existing greyhound, Gem, as well as ‘eating like a horse’ & stealing the hearts of all who meet her!

Sally in her new home: Did you ever see a dog look for comfortable?

Sally in the sunshine

Although Sally was only with us here for a short time, she had a big effect on me & we really miss her now that she has gone. I am so thankful that I was in a position to help save this beautiful girl’s life by taking her in that day, & I’ll always remember her twinkly eyes & the way they seemed to say ‘thank you’ every single time she looked at me. I hope they go on twinkling for a long time to come…

those eyes…

Happy Families

Published on September 19, 2011 in Uncategorized. 4 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , .

I’m always happy when one of our foster greyhounds goes to their forever home, but was chuffed to bits when I found out where, or rather with whom, our Scottish Greyhound Sanctuary foster dog Kevin (/Kenny) was going to be living…

Mr K

The handsome Kevin was only with us for 3 weeks before a couple contacted SGS looking for a companion dog for their existing greyhound. & you’ll never guess who said existing dog was… None other than our previous foster girl, the beautiful Poppy!

Poppy Popstar

SGS & I felt that Kevin’s laid back attitude would be a nice calming influence on the more energetic Poppy, whereas Poppy’s playfulness would likely help to bring Kevin out of his shell. So, the adoption was all set to go ahead, providing the 2 dogs got on when they met up ‘in person’.

No issues there whatsoever – it was love at first sight for these guys & after sniffing each other over they were running around the park together like old friends. & it didn’t take long for Poppy’s playful side to rub off on Kevin, as he got to grips with playing with a ball for the first time!

Friends reunited: Poppy, me, Kenny & Martin

It was wonderful to see Poppy again – she has grown into a beautiful, sleek girl & is all toned & muscly now she is getting to run off lead regularly. It was fun to hear about her antics too, how she’s been stealing sausages at barbeques & making friends with spaniels at the park ;-)

Happy families: Poppy, Susan, Kevin & Kenny

Kevin & Poppy are very lucky to not only have each other, but a fantastic couple to look after them, & I wish them both a lifetime of happiness together in their forever home with Susan & Kenny. Endings don’t come much happier than this!

Kevin & Poppy on sharing their forever sofa

Hello, Goodbye

Published on August 25, 2011 in Uncategorized. 2 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

Back in June I introduced you to our Scottish Greyhound Sanctuary foster dog, Poppy. Well, Poppy was with us for 2 fun-filled months whilst she waited for her forever home, during which time she made lots of friends,

with border terrier pal, Fidra

played with lots of toys,

with her favourite pink ball

& gave us lots of cuddles!

with foster dad, Martin

We will miss you big time Pops, but seeing you walk out that door with your new family, all waggy-tailed & full of smiles, I just knew you were going to the right place: SGS have found the perfect home for you!

beautiful Poppy

We managed to last a full 3 days with just the 2 dogs in the house after Poppy left, then along came our next foster dog, Kenny (formerly known as Kevin)!

new boy, Kenny

Kenny is a gorgeous brindle & white lad with a velvety smooth coat & a big thick cuddly neck. Despite his wise old face, he’s still a youngster really at 4 years.

isn’t he gorgeous?

He’s been with us for almost a week now & taken some time to settle into living in a house – everything is new to him.

Woah – what’s going on out there?!

He has adapted so quickly though & is already well on his way to becoming a chilled out sofa-hog just like the rest of them ;-)

Max & Molly have been showing Kenny the ropes

Yesterday he rolled over on his back & had a wee roach for the first time,

learning to relax

& today he tentatively started to play with a ball for the first time!

Kenny learns to play

Fostering can be pretty emotional. You inevitably become attached to these dogs & it can be hard to say goodbye when the time comes. But you know that they will  always remember your kindness, & the space that they leave means you can help  yet another dog on that special journey towards their forever home.

‘Hello, Goodbye‘: an Etsy Treasury depicting how I felt about letting Poppy go

Old Dogs, New TrEATs!

Published on July 16, 2011 in Uncategorized. 5 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

The Oldies Club rescues & rehomes older dogs (aged over 7 years) via a network of foster homes spread across the UK, as well as working with other rescues to publicise the plight of their older dogs. Dogs come into their care from a variety of situations, often because their elderly owner has had to go into sheltered accommodation where dogs are not allowed, their owner has died & there is no-one that can take care of their beloved dog, or their owner’s circumstances have changed & the owner simply can no longer give their dog the care it needs.

Last month I was contacted by a member of the Oldies Club who’d come across my Etsy shop enquiring if  they could purchase a bulk order of the little treats bags I print to sell at fundraising events for their dogs.

A few weeks, & many hours of printing later, I had their order of 200 treats pouches ready to post out to them!

The brightly coloured bags are made of 100% cotton & measure 10 x 13 cm. I have hand screened the text ‘treats’ onto one side & there is a drawstring closure to seal the bag & slip it over your wrist – Perfect for storing your dog’s favourite treats in when you are out for a walk!

The bags are available to purchase individually in both my Etsy & Folksy shops, priced £3 each (or 2 for £5). I also make custom treats pouches, personalised with your pet’s name on one side & ‘treats’ on the other in the colours of your choice. These cost an additional £3.

Adopting an older dog has lots of potential advantages: they often need less exercise, require a shorter time-frame of commitment, & generally do not need much guidance or training as compared with younger dogs . Despite this, these dogs still have so much to give, & reward their adopters with the knowledge that they have provided a noble, faithful animal with a loving home for the last few years of their life.

Older pets are the inspiration behind the above Treasury I have curated of Etsy artists’ work depicting the joy these animals can bring to our life, & us to theirs. I wish more people would choose to adopt older animals – Give me an old dog over a puppy any day!

& finally, as if to prove the point that old dogs are ‘still game’, my 9 year old greyhound, Max, after watching me carefully package up all the bags ready for posting, waited till my back was turned for a minute then chewed his way through the packing & started pulling the treats pouches out & flinging them around in the air! Naughty boy – he must have been convinced there were some actual treats in there! Luckily no harm was done & the package has now been resealed & is safely on it’s way down to the folks at Oldies Club ;-)

We’re at it again! (fostering greyhounds)

Published on June 30, 2011 in Uncategorized. 3 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , .

I always said I would like to foster again once our circumstances allowed, & now that ‘the event of the year’ (our wedding!) has passed, what better time to get back into it!

So, meet Poppy, the greyhound we are fostering for Scottish Greyhound Sanctuary. She’s been with us just over a week now & it’s lovely having 3 greys in the house again.

Poppy is a 4 year old female ex-racer, who is black with splashes of white on her chest, tail & tootsies. She is a gorgeous girl & very friendly & affectionate towards people. She also gets on well with our own 2 dogs, Max & Molly, who have welcomed her into the house & ‘showed her the ropes’ no questions asked.

She likes to play, & the first thing she did when she arrived at our house was empty the toy box & transfer all the toys one by one to her bed! Over the past week I have gradually introduced her to my dog walking ‘tribe’, & she has behaved very politely towards everyone & seems to be enoying the company of all the other dogs. She got on particularly well with my friends’ lurcher, Clyde, who was staying with us last weekend ;-)

She walks beautifully on the lead, has been 100% clean in the house, & we really haven’t found anything bad to say about her at all! She’s a very endearing dog, & has all sorts of cute little habits like burrowing under our bed at night instead of going to her own one…

Poppy is going to make an absolutely wonderful pet for someone out there, but until then I am more than happy to hold onto her while she waits for that lucky person to come along.

Poppy is one of 14 dogs, currently being looked after by Scottish Greyhound Sanctuary whilst awaiting their forever homes. SGS is devoted to rescuing & rehoming greyhounds & lurchers in need across Scotland. Along with the wonderful online community & many volunteers, SGS are passionate about the welfare of greyhounds & are committed to raising awareness of the plight of these beautiful animals.

Amazing Greys: fun greyhound facts

Published on May 17, 2011 in Uncategorized. 5 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

When you think about it, greyhounds are pretty amazing…

  • Greyhounds are the fastest breed of dog & one of the fastest animals on earth, reaching speeds of up to 45 mph within just a few steps.
  • Greyhounds have been bred for function rather than appearance so come in many different colours: black, brindle, red, blue, tan, fawn & almost every possible combination of the above!

Greyhound coat colours

I think Max’s coat is Dark Brindle & Molly’s is Black & White. I’m a real sucker for the Brindles myself, but they are all beautiful (though not sure I’ve ever seen a Dark Red in real life)!

  • Don’t be fooled by their athletic appearance! Greyhounds are notorious couch potatoes & actually require less exercise than many other dogs. They are sprinters rather than endurance runners, & don’t like to waste energy.
  • Greyhounds’ ears have often been tattooed: on the right if bred in England & on both if bred in Ireland. The combination of letters & numbers in the tattoo(s) can be used to trace a dog’s birth date, litter mates & racing history .

I used Greyhound-Data to trace Max & Mollys’ histories. Max, or should I say ‘Bannside Maginty‘ as he was then known, ran 171 races during his 4 year ‘career’ & won a fair few! I even found a video clip of him racing (he’s in trap 4). Molly (‘Monicas Girl‘) was only raced for 1 year, but through the website I have been able to trace of one of her litter-mates (‘Clean the Boots’) who was rehomed by Shawfield RGT just last year. The staff at Shawfield have very kindly agreed to put me in touch with Oscar’s owners, so that hopefully we can arrange for Molly & her brother to be reunited!

  • When running in full stride, greyhounds run with a double suspension gallop (i.e. like a cheetah, not a horse), spending most of the time with all four feet off the ground at once!

Max in full stride

  • Greyhounds have stereoscopic vision, meaning they are best suited to seeing moving rather than stationary objects. They can see things which are far away (up to half a mile!) better than up close.
  • Greyhounds can produce gas that stinks like no other! Prone to sensitive tummies, these dogs are capable of waking you from sleep with their foul-smelling farts!
  • Greyhounds appear in Greek & Roman mythology, are an exception to the widely held Islamic belief that dogs are ‘unclean’, & are the only canine to be mentioned by name in the Bible.
  • Warning! Greyhounds are highly addictive & adopting one can often lead to adopting another! Hence the saying, “If you can see the floor, there’s room for one more…”

a floor-full of hounds: Ben, Charlotte, Danny, Molly & Max

I compiled this list of fun greyhound facts for the photo-book which Gracehounds have just launched, ‘Gracehounds: Four years of greyhound rehoming‘. The full colour 100-page book tells the story of the charity’s first four years, with written contributions from volunteers & adopters, as well as lots & lots of greyhound pics, many taken by the talented (& very patient) Martin.

My drawing is featured on the book’s cover

The books are now available to purchase priced £12.50 each, with 100% of the proceeds going to Gracehounds to help with further greyhound rehoming. To order your copy, download & fill out an order form or email gracehounds@googlemail.com.

Folksy Friday: String ‘Em Up!

Published on April 15, 2011 in Uncategorized. 7 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

I’ve been in love with bunting for a while now. To me, nothing says summer celebration quite like a string of colourful bunting,  & if it’s handmade then so much the better ;-) Perhaps it’s ‘Royal Wedding fever’, but us Brits can’t see to get enough of the stuff at the moment! Don’t feel you have to be restricted to stringing it up in your garden though – here are just a handful of the creative ways in which Folksy sellers are incorporating this trend into their work:

Blue glass bunting by Red Brick Glass, Bunting 8×8″ print by Cassia Beck Photography,  Pink heart mosaic bunting by Good Afternoon Agatha, Birdie bunting by Hannah Madden, Cotton bunting tote bag by Bubs Bears, Oh happy day necklace by Stripey Monkey

In preparation for our own wedding, I’ve been trying my hand at making some bunting too. A while back, while rummaging through the clothes rails in some local charity shops, I unearthed some old shirts made from patterned fabrics that appealed  to me.

Using a cardboard template & a fabric marker, I sectioned each piece of fabric into triangles, which I then cut out with pinking shears.

Next I ironed a crease in a length of white bias binding, & inserted the fabric triangles in at intervals along this, pinning to secure.

I’m afraid my sewing skills do not amount to much, but even I managed to figure out how to use the mini sewing machine which a friend had kindly given me to stitch the whole thing together with relative ease – which just goes to show how easy it is to make your own bunting!

As it turns out, I didn’t need to use all the fabric I had acquired to make the amount of bunting needed (& I made lots!), but by this time I’d gotten quite attached to the strangely mismatched yet complimentary assortment of patterns I was working with. So, I have had parts of the same material incorporated into my wedding dress, as well as working it into several other handmade accessories we plan to use at our wedding! But you’ll have to wait until after the Big Day to see photographs of these ;-)

Molly: A Day in the Life

Published on February 16, 2011 in Uncategorized. 1 Comment Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

So what do retired greyhounds do all day anyway…?

Every morning after our alarm clock goes off, Molly will echo it with a few pathetic sounding winges until we acknowledge that she’s awake. This done, these will descend into a low pitched ‘grunt’, indicating she’s ready to come & say good morning as soon as we give the word!  Then, it’s up onto the bed, face licks all round, then she burrows under the duvet between us & settles there until we whisk the cover away & get up for the day…

Molly & me: sleeping beauties!

At breakfast time she will sit  patiently in the kitchen, waiting for the kettle to boil whilst I portion out her & Maxs’ kibble & stir in some warm water to make a gravy (mustn’t forget the gravy – Molly will not eat kibble without gravy!). It barely takes her a minute to lick the bowl clean, & she never fails to check Max’s bowl just in case he has any leftovers (he never does!).


Is it ready yet?

All the excitement of mealtime over, Molly retreats to the lounge to sprawl out on one of the sofas & go back to sleep. She won’t toilet if let outside at this time in the morning, but take your eye off her for one minute & she’ll have left a little ‘present’ behind the sofa for you to clean up – that’s our Molly!

Rejuvenated after her morning nap, Molly’s ready for a day out walking. She’s always beside herself with excitement when she’s having her collar, lead & coat put on, & will even try & put her head through Max’s coat once her own one is already on!! She’ll leap up into the back of the van & then we’re off for the day…

Do we really need the snood Mum?

As we pick up each of my clients‘ dogs, she will always welcome them into the van with a face lick & a tail wag, & she’s the one who keeps the peace in the back of the van whilst I’m driving (grumpy Max gets to sit in the front with me in his ‘doggie belt’!).

Out on our walks, Molly’s recall has yet to be perfected, despite years of practice. She rarely does anything really naughty, but if there’s a big open field you can blink & she’ll be racing off into it, & if there’s anything dirty & smelly on the ground you can guarantee she’ll be rolling in it!

playing on the beach

She certainly tires herself out on her walks & once we get home she’s flat out on the sofa again to recover from all that running. Like most greyhounds, she does assume the funniest poses when she’s sleeping!

Molly’s ‘Jaws’ pose: Just when you thought it was safe to get back on the sofa..!

As her internal clock starts to tick towards ‘dinner’ o’clock she will wake up & this is  the time of day when she’s at her most playful. Molly seldom engages in games which involve any human participation, but she certainly seems to have fun in whatever little world it is she goes off to during her solo play!

Next up it’s dinner time & the whole routine from breakfast is repeated over again. Afterwards, she is always overjoyed to see her darling ‘Daddy’ return home from work & leaps straight up on his knee for a big cuddle! She loves to spend the evening snuggled up on the sofa with the two of us, drifting in & out of dreams.

Molly & Martin

It’s been a full two years since we adopted our pretty little Molly from our local greyhound rehoming charity, Gracehounds, & we don’t regret a single day of it. Happy Mollyversary my gorgeous girl! ;-)

sweet dreams after a hard day’s work!

Stepping into 2011 in Style

Published on January 18, 2011 in Uncategorized. 5 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

As usual, this Christmas was an excuse to spoil my dogs rotten! In addition to the usual plethora of treats & toys, & of course lots of cuddles & walks, Max & Molly were the recipients of some very stylish doggy accessories, which they wanted to share with you…

Don’t they look stylish in their new martingale collars?

Their collars were handmade by the lovely Hande of Silly Buddy (named after her beloved, but silly, dog, Buddy). Hande creates unique, one of a kind dog collars (& leashes), which are not only beautiful, but safe & durable to boot. It was a tough job choosing just one collar each for Max & Molly, as Hande has so many fabulous designs, but in the end we went for Elf Owl collars in complimentary collars: teal for Molly & mustard for Max. Hande went to extra trouble to create these martingale style collars, which are just perfect for greyhounds’ long necks & slender heads (& guarantee that the neighbourhood cat will remain safe from any of Max & Mollys’ advances!).

Handsome boy Max in his mustard Elf Owl collar

Molly looks pretty as ever in her teal Elf Owl collar

To go with their new collars, Max & Molly were also treated to some new leads, which were handmade by Kyra of The Mod Dog. Kyra custom designs dog accessories,  & I was attracted to her store because of the sheer variety of lead colours available – no more boring red, blue or black for us! After some contemplation, I chose a teal lead to go with Molly’s collar, & a chocolate brown one for with Max’s. It’s great to know that Kyra donates 10% of every sale to her local Georgia rescue, Atlanta Weimaraner Club Rescue. Both Kyra & Hande are fellow members of EFA (Etsy For Animals), a group of 600+ Etsy sellers who combine their efforts to provide charitable relief to animals.

Molly: “We’re at the park now Mum, can I get my lead off?”

Max’s brindle coat is complimented perfectly by his new collar & lead

Their new collars & leads are a fantastic addition to the previous year’s Christmas presents, which were a pair of all-weather coats handmade by fellow retired greyhound Mum, Terri of Acme Couture. These waterproof, wind-proof coats ensure my dogs can be tempted out for a walk even on the coldest & wettest of days & have been a great investment. Molly’s has suffered a few little rips here & there, on account of her tearing through the woods in it, but these have been mended with careful placement of a few girly flower patches! ;-)

Molly & Max looking cool in all their apparel

So I think we can safely say that Max & Molly will be maintaining their status as the most stylish greyhounds in Edinburgh in the year 2011! Happy New Year!

Folksy Friday: Sweet Charity

Published on November 12, 2010 in Uncategorized. 2 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

This Friday I’m sharing some beautiful handmade Christmas cards which I found on Folksy. These cards are extra special because for each card sold, a donation is being made to the artists’ chosen charity.

Artists (clockwise from top left):

♥ Pop-up Zoo Greeting Cards (charity: Sands stillbirth and neonatal death charity)

♥ Rhiannon Thomas (charity:  Hue Help Vietnamese childrens charity)

♥ Ruby Wren Designs charity: RSPCA Woodside Animal Sanctuary in Leicester)

♥ Miss Baclart Designs (charity: Macmillan Cancer Care)

Sales of my own handmade Christmas cards, which are also available to purchase of Folksy, support my local greyhound rehoming charity, Gracehounds.

The cards feature a black & white photograph of  my rescue greyhound, Max, looking comical in a pair of reindeer antlers. (Lots of turkey titbits were supplied!) Glitter has been carefully applied to give a shiny red nose & glistening silver antlers! The greeting inside reads, “Have a Greyt Xmas!”