Life on the frontline of animal rescue
A look at the challenges and rewards of working in animal rescue, from supporting vulnerable pet owners to rehoming animals and running community clinics.
Challenges
鈥淗onestly, I just want to cry sometimes! It is incredibly difficult to be too hard on someone with 25 unneutered, interbred cats in a mouldy, smelly flat that鈥檚 absolutely tiny on the 18th floor, in a block where the lift doesn鈥檛 work! Obviously, mental health difficulties are there, and it鈥檚 a balancing act. The welfare of the cats is key, and unfortunately most are too diseased to survive. But this person needs support, and says their life isn鈥檛 worth living without their pets. So we鈥檙e doing more than we鈥檙e supposed to, and I鈥檓 at Social Services because there鈥檚 no one else to shout for them, and if I鈥檓 not then they鈥檒l end up losing their home, as well as their cats. They love animals, I can see that, but they just need a little help, a bit of advice.鈥�
鈥淲e have to increase costs to stay afloat, but there鈥檚 a fine line because we don鈥檛 want costs to be too much for people. There鈥檚 that constant challenge. Whenever we do our rehoming costs, the fees we charge will never ever cost what we spend on an animal.鈥�
鈥淲e鈥檇 love to do more on the education side, it鈥檚 on our wishlist but we鈥檝e never ever seen so many strays and abandoned kittens. We鈥檙e trying to recruit fosterers, trying to serve as fosterers, to get adoptions, but it can be a struggle. Covid blew things up, and even so many years after, we鈥檙e still seeing the impact of that.鈥�
Reflections
鈥淚 love it here, because people ask me what tasks I want to do. I don鈥檛 have much confidence, and spent time steaming uniforms, which my manager said was fine, and also because of my disability, I didn鈥檛 want to use the till until my confidence was up. Now you can鈥檛 get me off it!鈥�
鈥淥ur education officer is a volunteer who loves going into schools to talk to kids! She鈥檚 been doing it for so long now, she鈥檚 so popular. In fact, one of our volunteers remembers her from when he was in primary school!鈥�
鈥淲e have a mobile clinic at set locations weekly, offering means-tested, discounted clinic services. We鈥檝e seen an increase in people using our clinics, because of the cost-of-living crisis, but I have to say it鈥檚 my favourite part of the job, and people are so grateful!鈥�
鈥淚 meet so many kind, wonderful people in my job, that I forget it鈥檚 actually a job. People really, really care about animals, and I feel like I鈥檓 in my element.鈥�
鈥淭here鈥檚 no nicer feeling than rescuing a lame horse and seeing that horse through its rehab, to trotting around a field, without a care in the world!鈥�
鈥淎nimals are my life, this is me. People? Nah!鈥�
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