Holly Looking for her Dad!

Companion Dog Show - Jarrow

1 June 2008

Event ~ Companion dog ShowVenue
Headworthfield Community Centre, JarrowTime ~ Sunday 1st June

Caer Urfa Canine Ringcraft Club are once again holding their annual Companion Dog Show in aid of Pets As Therapy and Hedworthfield Community Centre. Come along and meet some of the Pets As Therapy volunteers and their PAT dogs, while joining the Pedigree and Novelty classes.

Grandma and Granddad's

Today Chester had his first Sunday lunch at Grandma's, its her Birthday next week so the whole family attended, including 7 dogs. We all enjoyed our lunch!

I can see you!

Toys

Its fab here I have taken over the toy box and no matter how much my dad's tidy up I empty the box!

Josh takes Chester under his wing

Well Josh has found a new buddy and Chester a new mentor. Josh is teaching him how to watch the fishes in the pond and the great game of tug. Josh also took Chesters to the Vets this morning for his first shot. Chester was of course just like Josh, a big brave dog, not even a wimper with the injection.

PAT dog Bryn, a crossbreed owned by Mrs Sue Yates from Bebington, the Wirral,

Pets As Therapy is a national charity whose volunteers regularly take their dogs (and cats) to visit hospitals, care homes, special needs schools and similar establishments throughout the country, bringing much needed therapeutic care to patients and residents. The animals – and their owners – have to pass a strict assessment before qualifying.

For several years Bryn and Sue were regular PAT visitors to a local nursing home until its closure. Then two years ago, when a request came in from the Clatterbridge Centre for Oncology in the Wirral for a registered PAT dog to work with patients there, Bryn was seen as the perfect choice. Within a short time the Wirral was buzzing about the beautiful black PAT dog making such a difference to patients’ lives in the Centre. Such has been the demand that Bryn now visits twice a week.

The Clatterbridge Centre for Oncology is one of the largest cancer treatment centres in the UK. Bryn received many nominations from its staff and patients, one of which said: “Bryn’s work is invaluable to the Department … I believe he has saved many lives by giving patients back that bit of normality they have been forced to leave behind while undergoing very frightening treatments.”

Alison Bell, the Volunteer Co-ordinator at the Centre, said: “Bryn’s unique personality, always sympathetic yet calm and unflappable, brings outstanding support and understanding to people who are in distress.”

Bryn not only helps the patients; he is a great help to their families too. In a further nomination the daughter of a patient undergoing treatment said: “I was often close to tears after I had to leave the room while my mother was being ‘zapped’. Bryn and Sue were just outside the treatment area on a number of occasions as I came out. To be able to bury my head in Bryn’s soft fur and give him a cuddle helped me through those terrible times. Bryn was there at just the right moments to work some of his Pets As Therapy magic for which I will be eternally grateful.”

Bryn was voted ‘PAT Dog of the Year 2007’ by a celebrity panel, including actors Roy Barraclough MBE, Pam St Clement, Pauline Fleming, Roy Hudd and Lisa Riley, television chef James Martin and the editor of Yours magazine, Valery McConnell, together with Yours readers.

Bryn was presented with his award by Valery McConnell and Tony Parkinson, Managing Director of HiLife Pet Foods, the Pets As Therapy sponsors, at a special ceremony in Buxton, Derbyshire. He received £500 and three months’ supply of HiLife dog food and a piece of engraved crystal by Birkdale Crystal.

Tony Parkinson said: “It is a privilege for HiLife to be long-term sponsors of Pets As Therapy and to be able to play a part in supporting the excellent and invaluable work done day in, day out by its volunteers and their dogs.”

Five runners-up, who each received prizes of £100, a month’s supply of HiLife dog food and a piece of crystal by Birkdale Crystal, were Bearded Collie Riley, owned by Carol Laura Williams from Oldham, Lancashire; Cavalier King Charles Spaniel Holly, owned by Susan Perks from Leicester; Labrador Hoyt, owned by Sharon and Richard Betts from Malvern, Worcestershire; Border Terrier Beanie, owned by Monica Dixon from Alton, Hampshire and Border Collie Moss, owned by Patricia Weatherley from Hextable, Kent.

Nominations came from medical staff, carers, patients and residents of hospitals, hospices, residential homes, special needs schools and other similar establishments throughout the country.

P.A.T Dog Fun Day

On Sunday 30th September P.A.T's Teesside and Darlington held a Companion Dog Show and Fun Day held at the Dogs Trust at Sadberge near Darlington, this proved to be an ideal location for the event this was the first event organised in the area and the first I have ever organised . The weather was very nice on the day, we also had lots of enquieries regarding P.A.T. with interest from prospective new volunteers and their dogs. All the volunteers did an excellent job throughtout the day with car parking duties, running tombola's and inflating balloons etc, the balloon race was the major fund raising event. Good profits were made from the three tombola type stands, which were run by our volunteers Margaret Lincoln, Pat Nash and Lynn Robinson with the ladies providing and paying for all their prizes.

The catering also proved very successful, we can not thank and praise the ladies from the Volunteers of the Dogs Trust enough for their support and hard work on P.A.T. behalf on the day.

The judge for the show was Mrs Pat Wardale from Darlington who had an entry of 78 dogs making a total entry of 179, there were four pedigree classes and six noventy classes. There was a display of Healwork to Music, unfortunatly the P.A.T. dog and Dogs Trust Parade had to be cancelled due to a lack of time.

At the end of the day the volunteers were very pleased with the success of the day, our first venture into fund raising in Teesside raised £681.18 for the charity. We are all looking forward to next years event which we will be starting to plan over the next few months.

Ian
Area Coordinator - Teesside

Dog Show Win!

Well I entered my little Jessie into her first ever dog show! It was just as a bit of Fun at the PATS dogs show held today, we entered four classes and came second in the dog the judge would most like to take home! It was a long afternoon for Jessie and we did it for fun, but most of the other people were quite serious. So we may enter some classes to work on our show skills, think its more for me than Jessie, but we all had a fab afternoon.

Josh and Jessie at Buttermere

The Blind Girl sees things we dont!! Is it a ball or a Orb?