| The Oldies Club | The Oldies Club began life in March 2005, when a group of like-minded dog lovers and rescue volunteers saddened by the plight of older dogs in rescue set up the group. With close to 200 volunteers nationwide, offering their services as transporters, canine foster carers, fundraisers, Oldies offer a valuable second chance to older dogs who would otherwise have to spend their remaining lives without a proper home. The reality is, older dogs often struggle to find new homes; potential adopters can be put off by worries over vet bills, life span, temperament, history and many other queries. While, in truth, older dogs can be a wonderful addition to any household - they already 'know the ropes' of domestic living, aren't as demanding as puppies, and often have many healthy, active years ahead of them.
The Oldies Club do not maintain a central kennels; dogs are assessed and cared for by one of our volunteer fosterers, in their own home, until a permanent home is found.
Many adopters find their 'perfect match' through the Oldies Club website, where our dogs and those of other rescues are advertised, and many people who have adopted dogs from the Oldies Club have gone on to become loyal supporters and active volunteers. Extract from the Oldies Club May 2006 |
"I was diagnosed with ME or Chronic Fatigue Syndrome听 in 1998. At the time I thought I would never do anything again, said Mary Jane Kingsland.
"It was so difficult to get out of bed, let alone leave the house. I couldn鈥檛 take exercise, I couldn鈥檛 do any of the things I enjoyed doing before. "Luckily for me, over time, I started to gradually get a little better and a couple of years ago, I was able to take on Max (the dog). He helped me in so many ways that I could not have envisaged owning a dog would. "All of a sudden there was another living creature here, that I had to look after. Another living thing who needed to be walked, who needed to be played with, needed his exercise, even if I was tired, even if I felt terrible, and I was in pain. "And gradually over time I started to get that bit better. In the two years that Max and Hector (other dog) I do believe that owning dogs, being with dogs has really started to improve my health. "I started to feel that I could be useful again, that I could do things and it was around that point that I thought I should do something to help (dogs). "I got involved with the Oldies Club, a national organisation for rescuing and re-homing elderly dogs through the internet. "A lot of people think with elderly dogs you haven鈥檛 got long, they鈥檒l be health problems, they鈥檙e not going to be as rewarding as a puppy or as a young dog. "I don鈥檛 think that鈥檚 true. Older dogs are really, really rewarding. There is so much to be said for looking after them and for everything that you get back from an elderly dog, from giving an elderly dog that second chance. "That鈥檚 what motivated me to help and what continues to motivate me," said Mary Jane Kingsland.
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