Once again there is a rustling of shredded paper at SESAW as more hungry hedgehogs demand their dinner. They will stay with us until they put on enough weight to fend for themselves. The Sanctuary is in winter mode with the short damp days and long cold nights. The volunteers are concentrating on daily chores, maintenance and preparing for next year’s events. It has been another year of ups and downs (maybe that’s why it’s called SESAW!) finishing with a fantastic Christmas Fair. Lots of old friends called in and £3845 was raised. Looking at the photos, it’s obvious a good time was had by both two and four legged visitors!
Despite our best efforts, some of our rescue stories do not have a happy ending. One such is Titch, a gentle giant of a mastiff, found tied up on a London building site. She needed a leg operation upon arrival but soon recovered and went to live with one of our volunteers and her pets. Unfortunately the dogs became jealous of each other and who should share the sofa with the humans. She returned to SESAW to enjoy her walks and playtime again until a sudden decline in her health. Our usually boisterous girl was found to have a massive growth and sadly, is with us no more. It seems those that get dealt the wrong cards throughout their lives cannot have a happy ending. My, how we all miss her ugly ol’ mug gazing at us saying “come on give us a cuddle”.
The festive season is not a good time to introduce a new pet into a new home so, like many other animal re-homing centres, we will be closed over Christmas. That said, I must tell you about three cats, abandoned on the streets of London. The family expanded to nine by the time they arrived and all but three have now been homed. Little “Auntie” Pepper is about two and still timid. She would not be happy with another cat unless homed with the seven month old kittens who are beginning to enjoy life. All three will need a quiet household where they can be kept in for a considerable time until they have gained confidence. If you have room in your heart and home to offer these cats or some of our other residents a new start, please leave an answerphone message or email us.
It is advisable to check our opening times if you plan to visit us – we will be closed from 1pm on Sunday 15th December, re-opening on Thursday 2nd January 2020.
Season’s greetings and best wishes for 2020 from all of us at SESAW, including Ollie (the Black) Cat and me, Kenny (the Boss) Chihuahua.
