WHAT THE MAYHEW DOES...

Hi everybody,

Cameron & Lucy on their second of four walks a day

This is Cameron and Lucy... my two favourite pups at The Mayhew Animal Home. They were abandoned by their owner when they were mere weeks old. If it wasn't for the Mayhew, who knows what would have happened to them.

Lucy making sure she gets her share of cuddles...

Cameron and Lucy have been neutered and vaccinated and have grown so much since they first arrived. With the care from the staff and volunteers - they are now happy and healthy pupppies. Lucy will be going to her new home soon - and this would not be possible without The Mayhew.

Cameron getting some cuddles in her kennel
(Can you see her TV at the back?)

I know I have gone on about how fantastic the Mayhew is, but alot of you must also be asking what exactly does the Mayhew do to make me gush so much about it.

Well here's just some of the things that the kennel staff and volunteers at the Mayhew do on a daily basis (The cattery is also excellent - but as I am dog mad, I don't do much there):

1. Clean each and every kennel with pet safe disinfectants
2. Put down fresh and clean bedding for each of the dogs
3. Take each dog (unless medically un-fit) out for AT LEAST 4 short walks a day (i.e. 15 mins per walk at the minimum)
4. Take each dog (unless medically un-fit) out for AT LEAST 1 very long walk each week to the canals or scrubs (i.e. over an hour)
5. Ensure that each dog has some time in the in-door or outdoor runs every day.
6. Feed the dogs with specific types of food depending on their health and condition
7. Provide veterinary care by qualified vets at Mayhew's very own state of the art clinic.
8. Vaccinate every dog that comes in
9. Spay / neuter every dog that comes in
10. Play soothing music for the dogs in the afternoons / nap time
11. Get lots of cuddles from staff and volunteers!
12. Do LOTS of laundry - as there are tons of bedding to be washed and dried every day!

The actual kennels at The Mayhew are very different from other shelters. The first thing I noticed on my first day was that it was relatively quiet.

The reason for this was that each kennel was built to feel like a room within a house - wooden doors and walls to start with. So if a dog does bark, the sound doesn't reflect off steel walls and cause all the other dogs to bark.

The size of the kennels are also fairly large - the smallest one being the size of a decent single room!

Then each kennel has a small television set that gets turned on at certain hours of the day. This is to familiarise the dogs with sounds that they will experience in a home when they are finally adopted,or to make them feel more at home if they have been given up by their owners. The radio also gets turned on at various times of the day for the same reason.

Each dog also has very sufficient bedding so that they do not sleep on cold hard floors like in most other kennels. AND all kennels are fitted with heaters (for the winter) and air conditioners (for the summer!).

These are only some of the things that are done on a daily basis at the Mayhew. There are many other important things that are done at The Mayhew to ensure that all the animals receive the best level of care possible and to ensure that the best homes are found for all the animals.

I could go on and on about the Mayhew... but I think I shall stop for now. I would however like to appeal to each and everyone of you to sponsor me for the British 10K run which I am taking part in to raise money for the Mayhew so that they can continue their fabulous work. Please visit www.justgiving.com/natashafernz to sponsor me.

Please note that you can still sponsor me even if you are not in the United Kingdom... :)

Your donation will be greatly appreciated by all the animals at The Mayhew...