Yorkshire organisation set to continue dog rescue work during pandemic thanks to emergency funding from Kennel Club Charitable Trust

Good Life Dog Rescue, based in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, has benefited from the Kennel Club Charitable Trust’s (KCCT) recently launched emergency fund, to be able to continue rescuing dogs in South and West Yorkshire amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

Good Life Dog Rescue, which helps abandoned and stray dogs, saved over 300 dogs in the last year. The organisation doesn’t only find new forever homes for the dogs they take in, but also nurses many poorly dogs back to health.

Banjo is one of the dogs that Good Life Dog Rescue is giving a second chance. Banjo’s owner could no longer care for him due to health issues and had to give him up to the rescue. Banjo has been suffering from poor health, including a heart murmur, and further tests sadly revealed he had terminal lung and intestine cancer. Additionally, it became clear that Banjo found life in the kennels difficult, as a senior dog who has lived his whole life by his owner’s side. Thanks to Good Life Dog Rescue, Banjo is now living in a loving foster home, where he can spend the rest of his life resting and receiving cuddles.

The charity’s vet and kennelling bills can amount to thousands of pounds each year, with income depending on fundraising activities and charity shop proceeds. Unfortunately, due to the ongoing pandemic, those major sources of income have stopped.

Vickie Bastow, founder of Good Life Dog Rescue said: “We have been unable to fundraise for some time - our charity shop donators have been closed for a long time and there has been no government funding available for organisations like ours. At the same time, we have also seen an increase in dogs being abandoned, especially those in need of emergency veterinary care.”

The charity plans to use the funding from the Kennel Club Charitable Trust to cover expenses for running of their kennels as well as veterinary bills for dogs in their care.

The KCCT Emergency Relief Initiative, which was established in April, was set up to support canine organisations which may be suffering and unable to continue their vital work, which makes a huge difference to dogs, as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. All of the applications were considered carefully and funding was allocated to 30 organisations in the most urgent situation.

Other recipients of funds from the KCCT include breed rescue organisations such as the Northern Ireland Staffordshire Bull Terrier Club and Greyhound Rescue, as well as other general smaller dog rescue organisations, such as Friends of Animals Wales - the charity from which Boris Johnson rehomed Dilyn, the Jack Russell Terrier.

Revd. Bill King, Chairman of the Kennel Club Charitable Trust said: “We received a significant number of applications for our emergency funding and had to make some very hard decisions on where funds need to be placed as a matter of urgency.

“Keeping these organisations, which take care of health, welfare and future of dogs from all breeds and backgrounds, functional is a priority for the Kennel Club Charitable Trust. We know that most of smaller organisations depend on funding to keep up their excellent work that save dogs lives and want to ensure they can continue despite the pandemic.

“We are also grateful for Our Dogs newspaper’s help with our appeal which is helped to grow awareness about our fund amongst their readers who have so far donated over £40,000.”

To donate online to the KCCT relief fund and help dogs, volunteers and organisations across the country during this difficult time, visit the Virgin Money Giving website. Alternatively, you can make a donation by text. Simply text ‘KCCT [amount]’ to 70450 to donate the desired amount. For example, if you wish to donate £30, simply text ‘KCCT 30’ to 70450. You will be charged your donation plus one standard rate message and you’ll be opting in to hear more about the work of the KCCT and fundraising via telephone and SMS. If you’d like to make a donation but do not wish to receive marketing communications, text ‘KCCTNOINFO [amount]’ to 70450.