Issue 42 July 2015

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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Shelter News By Jo Evans, Shelter Manager

It was lovely to see so many supporters past and present come to Shelter Day last month. After the morning rain, the weather turned out just right for the rest of the day and lots of dogs stayed all day. Well done to Joe, our Fundraiser, and all the volunteers who helped make the day a success. I will leave Joe to update you on the total raised elsewhere in this issue. If you didn’t make it this year you missed a good day, so watch out for the date early next year and pop it in your diary! It is with great sadness that I have to tell you of the passing of a dedicated cat volunteer Jacky Silverthorn. She will be much missed by us all—helping in the cattery plus carrying out home visits. Adam was unable to sky dive on 21 June due to weather conditions, but it has been rebooked for September so he’s not getting away with it! Our building projects are taking shape with the rabbit compounds now having had the turf laid, as well as the wooden fence forming a divide between them and the dog path. Rachel is still working on the dog sensory garden project and it is coming together nicely—there are a few photos on the next page. We are all now gearing up for the Big Walkies on 27 September and hope many dog owners, plus former Little Valley dogs, will join us on the walk at Ludwell Valley Park, Exeter to help raise some more vital funds.

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 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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Friends of Little Valley By Jill Brush, Membership Secretary

Hello again faithful and generous Friends of Little Valley. Thank you so much for supporting our Summer draw. It exceeded all expectations at £2,478 prior to the day and another £590 on the day itself. 'Thank you' sounds inadequate but you all know how much we value our Friends. Since I added my email address and tele-phone number to my note I have been contacted by many of you, some merely for a chat, and I look forward to hearing from many more of you. Kind regards to you all and enjoy the rest of the summer. Email phillandjillb@aol.com or telephone on 01392 661424.

Splash For Cash In May Olivia, Nancy and Mia decided to swim a mile to raise money for the animals currently living at Little Val-ley Animal Shelter. With an impressive time of less than 1 hour, the girls raised nearly £200! Thank you from all the animals. We hope you enjoyed your tour of the Shelter. If you would like to volunteer at future events or raise money for us, then please contact Joe the Fundraiser via email on jcurrey@rspca-littlevalley.org.uk or sign up to our mailing list via our Facebook page at: www.facebook.com/rspcalittlevalley.

Rabbit Compounds & Dog Sensory Garden These projects are continuing. Here are some photos showing progress so far—rabbit compounds (left) and dog sensory garden (centre and right) :

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University of Exeter Animal Welfare Society We are extremely proud to have been working with the University of Exeter Animal Welfare Society for the past year or so. They have been to the Shelter and volunteered with us as well as organising fundraising events to raise much-needed funds. In the last year alone they have raised a whopping £1,750.98—well done everyone and thank you! We look forward to continuing to work with the Animal Welfare Society next year. Pictured with the University Animal Welfare Society are Carol Allan (Branch Chair), Maria Koutsoumanis (Branch Administrator) and Jo Evans (Shelter Manager).

Young Fundraisers Hattie Nash (aged 9) and Mary Guilbert (aged 8) decided to fundraise for the RSPCA following school work on this subject, so Mary wrote to us at Little Valley Animal Shelter asking if someone could come to their school in Tipton St John and give a talk about what we do. Mr Tuckett, the Head Teacher, gave his consent and Trustee Jackie Williams visited the school. On Friday 30 June, Mary and Hattie organised for all pupils to dress in mufti for a 50p donation and at first break they sold ice pops and homemade cakes in the playground as well as holding other competitions throughout the day. After school they sold books, toys, bric a brac etc. The final total raised was £202.21, a wonderful result for all their hard work. Thank you very much to Mary and Hattie, their helpers, and to Mr Tuckett for encouraging and allowing the girls and pupils to take part in this excellent fundraising day.

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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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Shelter Day 2015 By Joe Currey, Fundraiser

I hope you all enjoyed the day and the activities available. We were so lucky with the weather, despite the rain in the morning the sun shone for the rest of the day. So far the day has raised an amazing £7,471.30. We had an increase in visitors this year, so many thanks to everyone who dis-played posters and spread the word via social media and word of mouth. We had 196 entries for the dog show which has to be a record! We couldn’t run Shelter Say without the fantastic volunteers who gave up their time on the day to help run the stalls, serve the food plus man the gates and games. Also the gazebo team and sandwich makers that came in on Saturday. A massive thank you for your hard work. Special thanks must go to Lacetown Archery for proving that even I can have a go at archery! Also thank you to the companies who once again supported us—Hot Rock Print & Design for donating the posters and Shauls Bakery for donating the bread. And thank you to the following for donating raffle prizes: Exeter City Football Club Sainsbury’s Morrisons Waitrose Jeff Goodwin Hair Soap Daze Marks & Spencer We already have some ideas about Shelter day 2016 so watch this space! Our next large event at the Shelter will be the Christmas Fair on Saturday 28 November from 11am until 4pm. More details elsewhere in this issue and in the next issue.

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Grand Draw Prizewinners Thank you very much to all those people who kindly bought and sold Draw Tickets for Little Valley’s Shelter Day held on the 28 June 2015. Special thanks also to those people who kindly donated their prizes back to the Shelter for future fund-raising events. The draw raised an incredible £3,068. The successful winners are listed below: 1st Misha, Exeter 2nd Mr J Copland, Exeter 3rd Mr M Judge, Torquay 4th Mrs G Taylor, Exeter 5th Mr C Slade, Tiverton 6th Mr A Phillips , Ivybridge 7th Mr H K Coplesion, Rewe, Exeter 8th Miss E McPhail, Torquay 9th Ms Nancy Celli, Torquay 10th Mrs B Lye, Loddiswell, Kingsbridge 11th Mrs D Carrington, Dorchester (Donated back) 12th Mrs J Clapp, Sidmouth (Donated back) 13th Mrs Haswell, Budleigh Salterton (Donated back) 14th Mr A Furlong, Torquay 15th Mr M Whittle, Torquay 16th Jenny (Paris Street), Exeter 17th Mrs M Sangwin, Exeter 18th Mrs J Mander, Brixham Shop 19th Rita Porter, Torquay 20th Miss Sue Reynolds, Exeter

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Shelter Day 2015

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Shelter Day 2015

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Shelter Day Dog Show Prize Winners!

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Shelter Day Dog Show Prize Winners!

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Doggy Visitors to Shelter Day 2015

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Golden Oldie Cats Older cats often struggle to find new homes in Shelters—overlooked for younger, cuter cattery residents. Here are two heartwarming stories of two older white cats who landed on their paws when they came into Little Valley in the twilight of their years. Cleo came to the Shelter after her owner sadly passed away—she was around 14 years of age, deaf and her back legs were very stiff. However, Belinda and Martin fell in love with this old lady, despite her advancing years and her little problems, and she now has a fantastic new home in Plymouth where she is thriving. Her movement has got better with exercise and stimulation to keep her old joints moving and she is happy pottering around the garden in her retirement.

Cilla (below) was handed into the Shelter as a stray—she was apparently 19 years old! Her teeth were very bad and it was decided that what teeth she had left would have to be removed. Other than that—despite her great age—her health was actually very good. But the rehoming prospects for a cat of that age were not good so our Branch Administrator, Maria, decided to take Cilla home with her. She thoroughly enjoyed the garden and ruling the roost at home and settled down to a pampered retirement. A few years later, Cilla developed a facial carcinoma that looked like it could spell the end, but somehow it stopped advancing and she continued to live another 12 months with no nose! She died recently from heart failure—at the grand old age of 23—having lived a very happy and pampered retirement!

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New Homes Required! Buster, the Saluki featured in our last issue, and the pigs from the issue before have all found new homes—hurrah! Most of the dogs we had from a long-running case have also been rehomed and their new families have said they are all doing well. Some of the ones that are left are featured here—they all deserve a fresh new start to put their sad past behind them. All the latest animals for adoption are on our website: www.rspca-littlevalley.org.uk.

Banjo—2 year old

male

Ermintrude & Zebedee—4 year old

male & female

Pompom–female Degu

Capt America & Ant-Man—male ferrets

Clementine—8-9 year old Poodle

cross

Constance— 7-8 year old Poodle cross

Tubbs—7 year old male

Acorn—5 year old Rough Collie

cross

Willow—8 year old Poodle cross

6-7 year old Sharpei

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Parsnip

Happy Endings!

Buster now Bentley

Hank now Teddy

Jack

Sophie Chiquita now Coco

Elmo now Rollo

Trio

Wellington

Bernie

Anastasia

Sally

Dino

Casper & Mutley

Henrietta with new friend Richard

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Baby Fox

Unusual Creatures We get a wide variety of wildlife and exotic pets coming our way. Here are a few more before heading off to the Wildlife Centre at West Hatch, Taunton.

Canada Geese African Pigmy Hedgehog

Hermanns

Tortoise

Baby hedgehog

Snake

Owlet

Tawny Owl

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Focus on Brixham Welcome to the Brixham Shop! My name is Mandy Booth and I have managed the shop since March 2010. Together with my Assistant Manager Jo Mander, we have developed and improved many things to make it the successful outlet it is today. We sell good quality ladies, men’s and children’s clothing. We have a large display of bric-a-brac and homeware items, which is frequently updated. In our entertainment section you will find a range of DVD’s, CD’s, jigsaw puzzles and games to suit all ages. Whatever you’re looking for, it’s well worth paying us a visit. Our toy section is popular with our younger customers. We often run special offers during school holidays on toys, books and games. We have a friendly team of volunteers at Brixham who help to keep the shop tidy and fully stocked. They cover various duties such as steaming and processing clothes, serving customers at the till point and keeping rails and displays tidy. We always need new volunteers to help with different processes within our shops. Why not consider joining us for a few hours each week? Please call in for a chat if you are interested or give us a call on 01803 859695. We run a recycling scheme at Brixham for items such as broken jewellery, mobile phones, cameras, foreign and English coins and postage stamps. There is a collection box in the shop so if you have any coins left over from foreign holidays, please post them in our recycling box to help raise extra funds for Little Valley Animal Shelter. We always need good quality, saleable donations. There are some items that we are unable to accept owing to current legislation so please phone to check if you are unsure. Our window even won the Brixham Pirate Festival Best Dressed Window Competition recently! We also ask that donations are not left outside the shop when we are closed. They are often spoiled by rain and we have had items stolen in the past. A warm welcome awaits you at Brixham, so please pay us a visit soon. Dogs are welcome in the shop as long as they are on a lead. Fresh water and doggy biscuits are complimentary! We look forward to meeting you!

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Event News All of our events are listed on our website and our Facebook page, so don’t forget to keep checking. We will be holding a car boot sale here at the Shelter on Saturday 29 August from 3pm to 5pm. This is the first time we’ve ever done this so we hope it will be a big success. Sort out your drawers and cupboards and come on down! It costs nothing to come and pick up a bargain, but bring some spare pennies as we will have refreshments on sale. Free entry for buyers. To sell, the charges will be £5 for a car, £6 for a van and £7 for a transit sized van. No commercial sellers please. We will be having an Open Sunday at the Shelter on Sunday 13 September from 2pm to 4pm. This gives you a chance to come in and look around the Shelter and see the work we do. Light refreshments will be on sale and we will ask for a donation from everyone that visits.

Our next big event after that is the Big Walkies on Sunday 27 September from 11am to 3pm at Ludwell Valley Park, Exeter. There is plenty of free parking at Wonford Sports Centre, Rifford Road, Exeter EX2 6NF and we hope to have stalls and all sorts of fun on the day. There is a choice of a 3km or 5km walk and any monies raised will come back to the Shelter. Sign up now online here: http://bit.ly/1QcnZTW or contact the Shelter for a form. It promises to be the BEST WALK EVER—do join us! Our Christmas Fair this year will take place at the Shelter for the first time ever and run all day on Saturday 28 November from 11am to 4pm. You can come and enjoy the

stalls and refreshments and get to look around the Shelter too! We hope to attract lots of craft stalls, so please email jcurrey@rspca-littlevalley.org.uk if you would like a stall. More details in the next newsletter.

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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

Events 2015 Saturday 29 August—Car Boot Sale 3pm to 5pm—Little Valley Animal Shelter, Black Hat Lane, Bakers Hill, Exeter EX2 9TA Free for buyers, sellers £5 per car, £6 per small van, £7 per transit van (no commercial sellers please) Details: Shelter on 01392 439898 Saturday 12 September—Flag Day, Budleigh Salterton Details: Dave Phillips on 01395 278604 Sunday 13 September—Open Sunday 2pm to 4pm—visit the Shelter to see the work we do, light refreshments available A donation will be requested upon entry Details: Shelter on 01392 439898 Sunday 27 September—RSPCA Big Walkies 11am to 3pm—starting at Wonford Sports Centre, Rifford Road, Exeter EX2 6NF walking around Ludwell Valley Park Sign up here—http://bit.ly/1Krm0tp Sunday 4 October—Sponsored Beach Dog Walk, Exmouth 10am to 12 noon—Starting at Harbour View Café, Queen’s Drive, Exmouth EX8 2AY Details: Dave Phillips on 01395 278604 Saturday 21 November—Christmas Fayre, Exmouth 10am to 12 noon—All Saints Church Hall, 2 Church Road, Exmouth EX8 1RZ Details: Dave Phillips on 01395 278604 Saturday 28 November—Little Valley Christmas Fair 11am to 4pm—Little Valley Animal Shelter, Black Hat Lane, Bakers Hill, Exeter EX2 9TA Details: Shelter on 01392 439898

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