Fred's Story

On a cold January morning, Last Hope received a call about three puppies in an abandoned house in Kells. When our volunteers arrived to collect them, they found two pups who were later named Fred and Wilma, but there was no sign of pup number three. Fred and Wilma were vet checked and sent to a foster home for their Last Hope treatment.

Fred & Wilma

About a week later, we received a call about the third pup. Our hearts broke when she was handed over. Bella was skin and bone and had a damaged eye. This poor little girl had been through a terrible ordeal. Bella was taken in and went to a separate foster family as she needed some extra TLC. We thought Bella would lose her eye, but thankfully, she made a full recovery.

Bella when she arrived to Last Hope

The Last Hope family showered the three puppies with love and cuddles to make up for their tough start in life and they made lots of new friends with other dogs, cats & everyone they met. Fred, Bella and Wilma are Staffy-crosses – a loveable breed and perfect family dog. Just like any other dog that is cared for correctly, they are loveable, loyal and happy.

As one staffy owner put it many years ago – “The biggest muscle in a staffy is its heart”.

Fred & Wilma

Fred was a mature head on young shoulders who just loved company. After a few trial runs that didn't work out, Fred went on trial to a farm; they were looking for an older dog but we asked if they would give Fred a chance, and there he found his perfect home.

“When I first decided I wanted a dog I was sure it would have to be an adult - I didn't even consider a pup. I've had dogs in the past but never a puppy,” said Fred’s new owner, Frances Tighe. “I assumed that a puppy meant boundless energy and plenty of mess. For my lifestyle I wanted a friendly independent dog that was first and foremost chilled out! I'm not a fan of hyper, high maintenance pooches, so when Rachel first mentioned Fred, I thought no way. ‘He's so not a puppy puppy,’ Rachel had said to me, but secretly I had my doubts. He's a puppy and a bull breed and they’re hard work right? Wrong!”
During the two-week trial, Frances came to realise that she had given a home to the most laid-back pup in town. “It's ridiculous - I swear one of these days he's going to start speaking to me in a Jamaican accent,” she said.
“Fred spends most of the day sleeping in various positions (some quite humorous). He likes a walk, but nothing too hectic - he's more of a stroller then a power walker (like myself). He treats the car like a moving sofa, which is handy because he's never happier than when he’s cuddling up on the sofa for the evening. He’s a serious cuddle monster and he snores loudly.

“Don't get me wrong, we've had our moments; one incident regarding a bag of flour, and Fred isn't shy about flatulence. Over the past three months we've learned a lot about each other and we've both adjusted. Fred is my little dude and honestly, I prefer him to most people I know! He needed to know I'd be there and he'd be safe, and in return, I share my home with a devoted and loving friend. Put simply - we're happy.”

Bella & Wilma have been in the care of Last Hope since they were very young. They have been loved and have shown much love to us in return and we hope they can find a wonderful forever home and get their happy ending just like Fred. They've grown into beautiful dogs.

Bella can be a little shy at first but she loves cuddles and gets on great with dogs, cats & children.

Bella

Wilma loves life's little comforts and is happy to chill out. She is good with children & ignores cats. She takes a little time to get to know other dogs but once she does she gets on great with them and we are working on her socialisation. She loves a run and has good recall.

Wilma

If you can offer one of these girls a home please email us adoptlasthope@gmail.com


www.lasthope.ie

Friday, 20th of September

And so to the last day of this blog, we hope it has given you a better insight to what we do on a daily basis and how our charity works. 

World Animal Week takes place from 4th of October to the 10th, and our next in-store Petmania day will be on the 5th so we have lots planned for then. It also coincides with Positive Aging Action Week so we have plenty going on, with some exciting plans. Keep an eye on our facebook page for more details.

Why choose to volunteer with a charity like us? Working with animals can be so rewarding, seeing an animal come to us that seems to have lost all hope, giving them a second chance and seeing them change day by day, allowing us to love them is incredibly rewarding. It is an emotional rollercoaster and there are certainly difficult times when it is beyond us to help an animal and we think "is it worth the heartache?" But when we look at the overall picture, yes we can make a difference and yes we are making a difference and we pick ourselves up and keep going. The animals need us.  

So to finish off I've asked our volunteers what the best and hardest parts of working with animals is and why they volunteer with Last Hope, here is some of what they had to say

Andrea "Reasons why I volunteer - its incredibly rewarding to make a difference in one animals life and to see them and their owners when they find each other. Its also a great way to meet a whole new group of lovely friends"

Ann "The reason I continue to volunteer is I want to try and make a difference and because every animal we can help deserves to be helped all the dogs, cats, rabbits, guinea pigs etc are in these situations through no fault of their own, its simply because of humans, since joining Last Hope I have found that theres a hell of a lot of really good active people who really do care and manage everyday to include animal rescue in their lives and who I know will continue to do so.
What makes me very sad is when an owner comes to the kennels to collect their dog (which does not happen very often) I see the huge immediate change in that dog, tail wagging, their eyes light up, you just see a happy happy dog. Then I look at the others and I know how they must be feeling after being dumped and left alone and nobody comes for them THAT kills me AND that is why the work we do in finding good secure homes for these dogs is so important, to give them their right to a safe and loving home where they will have the respect they deserve"

Rachel "God there's so many good & bad parts! A hard lesson to learn is that saving just one dog won't change the world, but a good lesson to learn is it will surely change the world for that one dog! 
High point for me was watching Amber the dog I rescued and adopted finally allowing my dad to pet her after almost two years! But sometimes the lowest point is, still after two years seeing the terror in her eyes when a stranger bends down to her. It's difficult not to think how awful she was treated to still think this way!"

Elaine "Why I volunteer? I'm a bit of a softie when it comes to animals, my family laugh that our two dogs are more like kids. When I see abandoned and unclaimed animals it is so hard to see the sadness and confusion in their eyes. To find those animals a wonderful home is so rewarding, I love seeing the updates from their forever homes and how happy they are and the joy they bring their new families. The volunteers are amazing and have taught me so much and I'm always amazed how much they do for so many animals in need. The hardest part is seeing neglected animals, I find it very difficult and can't and won't ever understand how people can be so cruel and cold hearted to mistreat any animal."

Bex (graphic designer) "The best part for me is being able to put my skills into something truly worthwhile. Before I could foster rabbits I didn't know that there was any way to help, so when I learnt that I could use the skills that consume my everyday life for Last Hope it made me feel wonderful. When I hear about people having found out about Last Hope due to seeing an advertisement that I've created it's a feeling like none other and I'm overjoyed by it.
When it comes to fostering bunnies, there's a whole new reward! To see an animal that has lived all it's live in a small cage or in a garden with little human contact in their day-to-day life come out of its shell is truly rewarding. There's so many little moments along the way, like their first binky and when they first run over to greet you, all this make up the best moments, every one a little better than the last. Then when you teach someone about rabbits as house animals and animals with strong personalities like dogs and cats and seeing people actually converting to this way of thinking, there's nothing better.
The hardest thing is seeing animals that have been abandoned and unwanted all around us. When we get to know these animals and see how amazing they are it's too upsetting to think that there are people out there that are so cold to give up on them, to abandon them or sentence them to a life of loneliness."

So what could you offer to an animal charity? What is it that made our volunteers reach out, make contact and give up a little of their free time to help out? Some can open their homes to take in an animal, whether it was a donkey or one of the kittens, all are loved and cared for in our foster homes. Some people can give up an hour or two to do a kennel shift once a week or every second week. Some can offer to transport animals to the vets, to our Petmania days or collect donations from the public. Some can carry out home visits in their area. Others use their skills as photographers, designers, organisers or writers to help. Some are there for advice others answer a call to shake a bucket or pack bags at our fundraisers. We are grateful to all of them, as without us working as a team, the charity would not exist and we are always happy to see new faces join the team. 

Thanks for reading this blog, we hope you enjoyed finding out a little more about us and what we do and the people who make it all happen. We are very grateful to all those that support us and allow us to continue to do what we do. 
www.lasthope.ie

Thursday, 19th of September

Over the last year we have built a relationship with a rescue in Sweden, Friends Forever, where they select dogs in our care who they feel they can find great homes for in Sweden, typically it is medium to large dogs like springers, lurchers etc that we can find difficult to rehome here so it is a great partnership. Sweden has a good history of responsible dog ownership. Dog breeding is controlled, most dogs are pure bred and having a dog is a financial commitment people do not take lightly. It is a legal requirement for dogs to be registered and permanently identifiable, preferably by microchip, from 4 months of age and dogs being transferred to a new owner must have their details updated within 4 weeks of going to a new home. As a result of these procedures, once caught, stray dogs can be reunited with their owners with in a couple of hours, meaning they have a low stray dog population.

Friends Forever contact us when they see a dog we have in our care and think they can find suitable homes for them in Sweden. This can be a difficult process for our volunteers, as we could have a dog in foster for a couple of months and then have to wave goodbye as they are loaded on to the lorry to make the trip to Sweden, it is a very difficult thing to do. These days are always full of emotion and there are many tears but in the end we know it is giving the dogs the chance to find a wonderful home. All dogs going on this journey are microchipped and have been checked by our vets and have relevant paperwork filled in. 

This time it was Maya & Carly that were making the long journey and we were all thinking of them and their foster Mammys today as we know it is tough on everyone. Ann a volunteer who fostered Ronald, a cheeky little character, who was rehomed to Sweden on a previous occasion wished the girls all the best and said "And who knows maybe she'll meet Ronald and tell him we still love, miss and talk about him all the time and give him a big hug and tell him that we are so happy that he's happy and being loved. x" Dodo the Lurcher had also been chosen, but one of our volunteers fell in love with Dodo and he has found his forever home here in Ireland. We wish the lovely Maya & Carly a safe journey and we know Sweden can offer them great homes. We can't wait to see the updates. 

Good Luck Maya x

Dogs from a number of rescues all set for the trip Sweden

Back at the kennels, Jimmy the Beagle was off to the vets to be neutered. And two of our kittens Aero & Twix were also being dropped to the vets from the their foster home to be neutered. When Eva collected them this evening, Jimmy was happy as ever, you wouldn't think he had just had an operation, but Aero & Twix weren't so happy and were quite drowsy. It should take just take a couple of hours to be back themselves. 

Aero & Twix are looking for their forever homes

Jimmy, last weekend on a day out from the kennels with one of our volunteers

The phones were busy with reports of stray dogs, one of which we were able to reunite quickly with her owners. We were also busy trying to find room to take in two dogs at risk of being put to sleep and helping owners try to rehome two more dogs. When we get numerous calls in a day looking for help rehoming dogs it can be difficult trying to prioritise those to help first, we only have room for so many dogs but being animal lovers it is difficult not being able to help them all. 

Coco a surrender to the kennels has come on in leaps and bounds over the last few weeks and we are hoping to get her into foster now so she is ready to find her forever home as soon as possible. 

There has been some interest in a couple of our kittens so we hope to get them rehomed in the next couple of weeks and bring our cat numbers down to numbers that are more manageable for our foster homes. 

We are busy deciding which Christmas fairs to attend this year to sell some of our Christmas cards & calendars, the first on the list will be in Knightsbrook Hotel in December. We have received some lovely photos for our photography competition. 

www.lasthope.ie
www.idonate.ie/248_last-hope-animal-charity.html

Wednesday, 18th of September

Rosie the new pup had a good night and is eating soaked puppy nuts & drinking water which is always a good sign. She is making friends with the resident dogs and looks like Lillian is her new bff.

This morning we posted a fresh appeal for homes for the rescued battery hens and were delighted with the response. We quickly found homes for all the hens we had in foster and took many more calls & emails from people willing to offer homes to others which means we can help with saving some of the final 1000 hens this week. Thank you so much to everyone who has helped finding homes and rehomed these girls. 

Doris one of our volunteers has organised for our two rescued greyhounds, Jack & Trixie, to be rehomed later in the month and as soon as a place is sorted for them, they will be heading to Germany to start their new life. 

One of our volunteers had a busy afternoon;

"After school today I made the not so short drive from Dunshaughlin to Ballivor to carry out a home visit! I met a lovely couple who want to adopt an outdoor dog. Outdoor dogs can be problematic for the charity as many of our dogs have been indoor dogs before arriving to us and all our fosterers keep the dogs indoors. There are also dangers of rambling and theft if a dog is left outside alone for long periods of time. After a lengthy chat it was agreed the best thing to do would be to consider a puppy who would sleep indoors until it was older and strong enough to move outdoors. The family assured me the dog would still be stimulated and have constant companionship as it would be with them on the farm during the day! Other arrangements were discussed and I left with everyone happy. A potential great home for one of our puppies! 

I then drove back to the kennels where I talked the home visit over with chairperson of the committee Ann to make sure all had been considered. Here I met Rosie the lovely new puppy. 

Back home I typed up my home visit form and began updating my cat & dog Petmania profiles. Hopefully I will have some new ones to put in our in store folder and some rehomed animals' profiles to take out! The manager had contacted me last night to ask if we had any ideas for World Animal Week which will coincide with our adoption day! Thinking caps are on and a visit to the store is planned for tomorrow!!"

Doris carried out a home visit in Kells for a dog in a lovely home for a companion for their dog. Another two volunteers Ann and Ellen went to Trim in the hope of trapping some stray cats we have seen roaming. The plan is to trap, neuter and release these two remaining ferals as we try to prevent yet another feral cat colony. Ann and Elaine caught a mother and her 3 kittens in the same colony two weeks ago but they unfortunately tested positive for  Felv  These older cats are harder to catch however and although they came to have a look, they wouldn't go into the trap. Last week they had ventured inside but didn't go far enough to set it off. Ah well better luck next time - we'll keep trying.  Ann says "It's really just a waiting game so it was a great opportunity for two of the new volunteers to get to know each other. Aside from the all the fantastic work Last Hope do for animals, volunteering is a great way to meet like minded people." 

There is a huge problem with the number of stray cats in Ireland. The population can increase so rapidly. Rescues around the country are doing their best to get this under control but more people need to take responsibility and neuter their pet cats if we are to have any success with this. During kitten season rescues are inundated with requests to take in kittens, it is impossible to help them all as we just don't have the resources. As they say prevention is better than cure and we are running our second cat neutering scheme of the year. In conjunction with our vets, we are subsidising the cost of neutering, offering it for €20 for males & €25 for females. so if you have cats that need to be neutered now is a great time to do. For more information please have a look at our website.

Normal charity duties run along side all this and the kennel volunteers & fosterers are busy as always looking after our animals.

www.lasthope.ie

www.idonate.ie/248_last-hope-animal-charity.html

Tuesday, 17th of September

Sad news this morning, 2 of the rescued battery hens in foster passed away. It is heartbreaking that they were so close to a wonderful life outside the cages but never had the chance to really enjoy it. Sometimes the stress of moving these hens is more than they can take and are not strong enough to make it through to a new life. We have had some lovely updates from people who took hens and how they are getting on. Many are already laying eggs, some have not been brave enough to venture outside their new houses and others are absolutely loving their new found freedom, like little chuckles who loves being outside and foraging in the muck. Hopefully it won't be long before her feathers fill out and she is looking better.

Today saw the arrival of a pup abandoned in Bohermeen. A beautiful female, possibly lab/German Shepard cross, who the finder thought was about 7 weeks old but after seeing her we think she is only 4 - 5 weeks. We don't believe her mother would have left her at this age which would indicate she has been dumped & left to die. Hard to believe anyone could be so cruel. We have named her Rosie. Rosie was far too young to stay in the kennels so she went into foster, where Eve the eldest of the resident German Shepherds has taken on the role of Mammy and is comforting this little girl. It is amazing the love animals can show for each other immediately after meeting, a lot can be learned from them. Our biggest fear now is there is more of her litter out there and they won't survive long on their own. It will be a while before this baby is ready to be rehomed. 

Rosie 

When we receive an adoption application, the next step is to arrange a home visit. This is usually very informal, we get a good idea of how an animal will integrate into the families life and it gives us the chance to answer any questions a potential home might have. Home visits have been arranged for the week ahead. One took place today and they are able to offer a lovely home to one of our cats. We are so delighted they have chosen Francine, who has been in our care since January this year. Often the older cats get over-looked with so many kittens needing homes but they have so much love to give and there are huge benefits to adopting an older cat. We are thrilled for Francine and we hope she loves her new home. Good Luck Francine x

We know one guy who will miss you dearly

You may have read about the two bunnies also found dumped on the Bohermeen bog a couple of weeks ago. They were found separately and were so happy to be reunited, here is an update on their progress.

Bo and Canti, the Bog Bunnies, come inside.

Two weeks after their ordeal Bo and Canti are doing great. They are still tiny little things, probably still only babies at 12-16 weeks old. They have been happy in their sheltered hutch palace, but are fascinated with the house and the bunnies inside. So this weekend, their foster Mommy decided it was time to see how they would get on as house bunnies.

Introducing bunnies to a house environment is a great idea. They adapt really well to living indoors, and much to peoples surprise they are very very easy to litter train. They will naturally choose one corner to "do their business" and you can use a little tray, much the same as for a cat. They are curious and full of personality, and having a bunny in the house will allow them to get to know you and you them much more easily. Also, as rabbits are prey animals, having them regularly indoors will ensure that you can spot any signs of illness much more easily, as they tend to hide symptoms of sickness.

On Saturday night Bo and Canti were nestled beside their foster Mummy on the couch, happily cuddled together while she watched tv. They stayed in on Saturday night, and being such clever little bunnies, there was not one accident. Litter Tray Success!

Sunday morning, Foster Mom decided to have a lazy morning, and since her own house bunnies were also lazing about on the landing, she took Bo and Canti indoors and up to bed for a snooze. They were fascinated by this and spent time on the bed chilling out together. They are too small to jump down but given their curiosity it wont be long before they are running the whole house - up and down the stairs. They have a little while to go yet, but are doing great.

These 2 bunnies are a bundle of fun and would suit a home where they will be regularly interacted with. Preferably with access to a garden and secure run, and brought in at night time for fun and cuddles.

Monday, 16th of September

Monday is back to business and with most of our volunteers having their own full time jobs, children to look after, school runs to do, it can be very busy during the week. We have no paid staff and are completely run by volunteers who give up their free time. Sometimes the public have the idea we have a similar set-up to the likes of the DSPCA or Dogs Trust with staff, an office, large kennels and a cattery but we don't. We receive very little funding and rely completely on our fundraising campaigns to keep our services going. We work through foster homes so there are limits to the number of animals we can take in so unfortunately it is impossible to take in every animal we are contacted about, but we always do our best to find room in an emergency. 

On Mondays the admin team try to catch up on any emails and messages we may have missed over the weekend. We are constantly monitoring and updating our website and facebook page, answering emails, checking adoption applications and arranging home visits. Vet visits are arranged, the committee manage our finances and the general running of the charity.

The fundraising team are busy as always and today we launched our photo competition for our 2014 calendar. We had a great response last year with some fantastic entries and the calendars turned out brilliant. With the first entries already received we are excited to go through all the photos and choose the winners. We are also working on arranging our Christmas photo shoot next month for our Christmas cards.

It's challenging finding ways to raise money and there was no rest after the dog walk yesterday, the team are busy organising our next event, a table quiz in the Round O pub in Navan on the 1st of November. Collecting prizes isn't easy, you almost feel guilty asking people for them but thankfully people are very generous and we always come up with something.  

Amber studying for the table quiz :)

Antoinette brought Woody, one of the dogs she fosters, back to the vets for a check up after his operation on his knee. Not so long ago we discovered why Woody could be a little snappy at times. He has a condition where his back knees would pop out of place and back in, sending shooting pains up his legs. Understandably this made him very nervous of people touching him and he could snap. Thankfully with the help of one of our vets he has had the first knee operated on and today the vet is pleased with his progress but we will have to wait another 2 weeks to see when the operation on the second knee can be done. Poor Woody isn't fond of the vets and howled when getting his stitches out. He is on crate rest at the minute but he will be like a new dog at the end of his treatment. Any help with Woody's vet bills is much appreciated. http://www.idonate.ie/248_last-hope-animal-charity.html

Five more of the battery rescue hens went to a new home and I'm sure will adjust in no time and start laying eggs. We still have a number of them in foster if people know anyone looking for some. Hens are very easy to keep and we have people available to answer any questions people rehoming these girls may have.  

Almost daily we receive requests from people asking for help to rehome a pet, the reasons vary and sadly these days emigration is the most common one we hear. It's usually cats & dogs but todays request was a little more unusual. We were contacted to see if we could help with rehoming two cockerals who live on a farm with 3 older cockerals and to avoid fighting have to be kept separate from the older birds, so with 5 on one farm this is getting more difficult. They are beautiful birds and hopefully we can help find these two handsome guys suitable homes.

www.lasthope.ie

http://www.idonate.ie/248_last-hope-animal-charity.html

   

Sunday, 15th of September

It has been a busy day today for the Last Hope team. As well as the every day tasks like kennels shifts, foster duties, admin etc we have our sponsored dog walk on Tara Hill and the hen rescue. 

When we looked outside at the weather this morning, our hearts sank, what a change from yesterday, wind & rain was not what you wanted when visiting Tara Hill as it's windy on the best of days. Although we knew it would effect the turn out, the dog walk was to go ahead regardless, even if it only meant our Last Hope dogs got a good walk on a "fresh" day.


It was an early start for the guys on the hen rescue, a convoy of Last Hope volunteers set off for Laois to meet up with the team from Little Hill Animal Rescue. 150 hens were loaded into the cars, van & horsebox in boxes and crates and driven back to Navan, where they were collected and headed off to their new homes. These hens have never seen the outside world, never felt the sun shine, or pecked their way through a grassy field. We knew they would adjust to a free range life in no time and I'm sure will be laying eggs in their new homes in no time. We do still have some hens needing homes if anyone is still looking to get some. 

Hens being packed up and heading for a new life

One of the rescue hens in their Last Hope foster home

A big night last night for the kittens Pip, Bella & Meg. Pip & Bella are sisters and Meg was a stray found wandering in Dunshaughlin and was taken in by one of the volunteers. They had so far been kept separated at night in their foster home, with slow introductions during the day and last night they finally slept in the same room. Gillian came down to find Pip and Meg fast asleep curled up together in the same bed, while Bella was already up for breakfast. The three kittens now play happily with the resident cats and it is lovely to see the hard work paying off & them making great progress over a few weeks.

Meg & Pip

The dog walk was taking place at 2:30pm and the volunteers were meeting there at 2pm. Much to our surprise and delight the weather had cleared and although the wind was blowing, the clouds had passed to leave us with beautiful blue skies. Mother nature must look favorably on animal rescuers :) and we were delighted to see it wasn't just the volunteers that turned up but some of our supporters too. A big thank you to those that came out to support us and for all the donations we received. 

Hilary & Harley ready to go

Beautiful Day on Tara Hill

The dogs thoroughly enjoyed the walk and meeting lots of new & some old friends. Many of the dogs in foster & from the kennels were there with the volunteers along with their own dogs. And with a lot of us being part of the "Failed Fosterers Club" it's great to see ex-Last Hope Dogs and catch up on how they have settled in to their forever homes. We were delighted to raise a total of €524 for the afternoon and I'm sure I wasn't the only one who had two very quiet dogs sprawled in front of the fire for the rest of the evening.

www.lasthope.ie

www.idonate.ie/248_last-hope-animal-charity.html

Clockwise from top left: Bella. Chrissy an ex-Last Hope dog came to say hello. Last Hope @ Tara Hill. Wilma. The adorable little Mari who is also looking for her forever home

      

Saturday 14th of September

We are starting this blog for a week to give our supporters more of an insight to what happens on a weekly basis within Last Hope Animal Charity. We start the week off with 25 cats & kittens, 5 rabbits, 2 guinea pigs and 11 dogs in our care and we never know what surprises the week has in store for our volunteers. 

Our days usually begin with the volunteers on the kennel shifts. We have two, two hour shifts daily which involve cleaning out the dog kennels, feeding, watering and some basic training. Once the daily chores are over, comes the fun part and we get to play with the dogs, bring them for a walk, have a cuddle and hopefully by the time the dog is put back in their kennel, they are happy and have burnt off enough energy to settle down for the night. This week we have 4 dogs in our kennels including two greyhounds who were rescued from certain death. 

Today the sun was shining so Lorna & Ann decided to take two of the kennel dogs, Jimmy & Coco for a nice walk at Tara Hill. Lorna regularly volunteers at the kennels and finds one of the most rewarding things is to see a dog improve as the volunteers work with them. "Cannot believe the change in Coco ...in the space of two weeks she has come totally out of her shell! Gone is the nervous wary Coco,& now a very happy playful girl with a lovely confidence :) Both Jimmy & Coco are delighted to be out on their walk in the beautiful surroundings at Tara. Had such a fun day, great to be part of such a wonderful charity, really look forward to every weekend to spend time with the dogs in our care! " 

Jimmy & Coco at Tara Hill

Coco

On the first & second Saturday of each month we hold adoption days in the Navan Petmania Store. Today is cat adoption day and we try to get as many of our cats from our foster homes into the store to meet the public and hopefully find their perfect home. It is a great way for the public to learn more about us and we love having a chat with them even if they aren't there to adopt an animal at that time. As a new fosterer it was Gillian's first time at an adoption day and she brought along her beautiful foster kittens Pip, Bella & Meg. One of Gillian's favourite moments from the day was when a father asked if his daughter with special needs could pet a kitten. "Her reaction to the kittens fur was lovely to see and he was so thankful that she got to pet the kitten. A lovely side to adoption day and the effect these animals can have on people."  
Our relationship with Petmania has proved to be so important to us over the months and it is a great opportunity for the public to come and see our cats & dogs as we work mainly through foster homes so do not have a main premises for people to see the animals in our care.

Meg

Pip

As always our foster homes are busy with caring for their fosters, their own pets & families.

Three volunteers spent much of the day coordinating a trip to Laois to help with the Little Hill rescue of battery hens. We hope to save 150 of these girls tomorrow and bring them back to Navan to be rehomed in the surrounding areas. We already have homes arranged for 109 and are positive we can find homes for the remaining hens. 

We are also holding a sponsored dog walk tomorrow at the Hill of Tara so the volunteers are busy with the final prep for that. We hope it will be a great afternoon and the sun shines for us. 

www.lasthope.ie