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Newsletter
January 2010 The Archives
A very HAPPY NEW YEAR from all the dogs and their people at FEN BANK to all our friends and supporters.
We ended the year on a better note when the Christmas party unexpectedly made a very welcome £1800 to boost the funds somewhat depleted by the kennel project. A further two sizeable donations, one from Jean Sainsbury Animal Welfare Trust and one from a small private animal welfare trust, ensured that we could put a further £5,000 towards the cost of the kennels, which is topping £30,000 as of today!!
A number of generous Christmas donations including one from Kinsley Greyhound Stadium ensured that as is the tradition at Fen Bank, the dogs enjoyed their Christmas Day Turkey dinner with extras - just so they knew it was a special day for them as well.
Best of all DANDY found a home a few days after Christmas and has gone to live with Stella (our kennel Trustee) and her family in Essex. Many of you will remember the lovely fawn girl, Ginny who languished in kennels until Stella and Gerald took pity on her some 5 years ago. Sadly at 13 Ginny has gone to Rainbow Bridge, and as Stella put it, “little dogs will now be asking permission to cross”! Ginny was Ginny to the end - but otherwise a lovely girl, and much missed. Her passing made room for Dandy in the Pullum household, and we are very grateful to Stella for taking him on; he has settled brilliantly, as we knew he would.
Several other dogs found homes over the Christmas period and once the magic 27th December arrived Joe, Elton and Fuji prepared to set off for their new homes. Every one of them to people we feel sure will put the dogs first in their lives. Just as we do, and as it ought to be, especially for Greyhounds who spend their lives as servants to others.
As we were all settling down to think about Christmas and congratulating ourselves on having got to the end of the year, Jenny’s van died - or more accurately, the cam belt snapped and yet another bill loomed - and then the electricians who were wiring the new kennel inspected the house wiring at our request and guess what? We must have the house rewired!! We are hoping that this will be the last major expense in 2010 - but somehow with not much conviction!
Just before Christmas, Boston was carpeted with a blanket of white flakes to a depth of a foot in places at Fen Bank - the dogs loved it – and Jenny and I consoled each as she chipped away at ice in Friskney and I chipped away at ice in Grimsby - neither of us have had any water for days and break the padlocks and the water bowls daily with hammers – it is pretty, but not much fun - and only good for walking in the soft snow! I fell flat on my back with 3 dogs, knocked myself out temporarily and opened my eyes to see 3 heads, tongues at the ready approaching my face! And I was still holding the leads! Ever since then one of them, Chief, who is a lovely black boy, stops every time we get to an icy patch and looks at me as if to say “ Will you be all right?” of course I try to look nonchalant, but it’s a bit much when even your dog realises you are in need of a carer!
Speaking of carers, the Fen Bank team have been fantastic in the continuing winter weather, and the dogs' beds are deep, the heat lamps blazing away and the oldies buried in layers of kennel coats and enough duvets to supply a small hotel! In fact I have just approached a hotel for some more! We gobble them up - and literally in some cases!! I love the way they then settle down in the chaos they have created - they don’t seem to realise that duvets are warmer if left entire! And if, like me, you are careless enough to put a feather duvet in with a known chewer, the results can be truly dramatic - feathers everywhere and completely untameable unless you have a hosepipe which of course we don’t because the pipes have been frozen for 2 or 3 weeks!!! Spitting feathers had real meaning for quite sometime!
So yes, We are looking forward to the New Year, hopefully the weather will ease and the kennels can be completed and some more deserving dogs can be taken in and we can start our annual Meet and Greets and other activities.
By the way, if anybody is minded to come and join Tim and Pauline and live near to Fen Bank there is a really very nice bungalow with a lovely garden just up the road for just under £200,000 - we can send you the agent’s phone number!
Best wishes from Sandra and all at Fen Bank for a very Happy 2010!