The work of a County Durham dog rescue centre that has saved over 5,000 animals has been boosted by a donation from a local employer.
The Deerness Boarding Kennels & Cattery in Langley Moor runs a separate block of kennels for rescue dogs under the name Stray Action for Dogs, and aims to provide a safe haven for the dogs it receives from across County Durham until a new home can be found for them.
The Kennels’ work is supported by funding from the charity Supporters of Stray and Abandoned Dogs (SoSad), which helps to meet vets’ fees and other expenses, and a £100 donation has now been added to the cause by property and energy firm The Banks Group.
Stray Action for Dogs operates a non-destruction policy, and in advance of dogs being put up for rehoming, they are given a full health check by a vet, and de-fleaed, wormed, microchipped, vaccinated and neutered as required. Four weeks’ free pet insurance is also provided for all rehomed dogs.
It has also recently set up an adoption service which aims to prevent animals from becoming homeless in the first place by working with people who know they will soon need to give up their dog for whatever reason and finding it a new place to live before it has to go into the kennel.
Christine Hogarth, who works for the Meadowfield-headquartered Banks Group and is a regular volunteer at the Deerness kennels, says: “The dogs come into the kennels for a range of reasons, from changes in family circumstances or their former owner’s ill health through to being abandoned or abused, and we do our best to find new homes for them all as quickly as we can.
“The kennels are a great place for individuals and families to find the new dog that they’re looking for, and it’s always great to see an animal going to a new home, especially if they’ve been with us a while.”
Since being set up in 2008, Stray Action for Dogs has saved over 5,000 dogs from destruction, but it still receives up to 40 new animals every month and currently has ten dogs looking for a ‘forever’ home.
Simon Donnelly, chair of Supporters of Stray and Abandoned Dogs, adds: “The dogs we take in come to us in a wide range of conditions, and many need quite a lot of attention before they’re ready to be rehomed, but we’ve been successful in finding new places to live for a very large number of dogs.
“The adoption service we’ve recently set up aims to remove as much stress from the rehoming process as possible, both for the dog and its owner, and we’ve found that taking this sort of proactive approach can make a big difference to an animal’s prospects of being rehomed quickly.
“There are a lot of costs associated with the services we provides, but we’re lucky to get a lot of support from the local community and other wellwishers, and the donations that we receive like this one from The Banks Group all add up to make a big difference to what we’re able to do.”
Visit www.deernesskennels.co.uk/ rehoming for more information on the work done by Stray Action for Dogs.