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Hello Friends
I’m writing this on New Year’s Day while the wonderful Christmas we had here is still fresh in my mind. It is strange to know that you will be reading this in a few months time in the spring newsletter when snowdrops and daffodils will hopefully be blooming rather than the current very cold snap, with a possibility of snow due ( EDIT - snow arrived the following day but didn’t last long enough to be a problem ).
As always, it was a joy to hear from you and to read the wonderful letters, cards, messages and notes; along with receiving used stamps and donations. Unfortunately I picked up a winter bug just before Christmas that slowed me down for a few days which meant that I got behind with sending replies and am sorry if yours was delayed ( and with thanks to those who say no acknowledgement required )
Some of you kindly urged me to “ spend some of it on you, not just the furries” and so I did, thank you. I usually wait until they are reduced in mid January to pick up a wall calendar, but not this year. I chose one I love that fits the wall space available, and has wonderful drawings for each month. Also, not only the cats and dogs had some lovely edible treats, but so did I.
I have ( and love ) this lifestyle that means I don’t feel the need to ‘get away for a break’, however, I did enjoy some quiet time at half speed, with a lapfull of furries, a cuppa, a good book and with some of those nice nibbles.
A nearly empty “before shopping” food shed ( 1st photo ) and a decidedly full “afterwards” one, plus just a very few of the pets gifts, thank you all.
Our friend and patron Peter ( Egan ) put the sanctuary forward to again be considered for a donation from Ricky Gervais’s tour fund of his Mortality live stand-up tour. Ricky donates the extra profits from the most expensive premium seats at his shows, to good causes, and I feel huge gratitude that we have indeed been included.
Thank you Ricky for your generosity and care towards the non human lives we share this Earth with, and for all your support to so many various animal groups, both large well known ones and the smaller ones such as ourselves.
When I heard the amazing news, it put a huge smile on my face as you can imagine, though it took a while to sink in. I am currently pondering what ‘one day’ projects some could be used for, as well as towards the ever on-going costs, and a few treats for the sanctuary residents.
I mentioned in the winter newsletter that rising costs had been noticeable last year and am well aware that this is the case for everybody sadly.
As Jacky and I always have said, every donation matters to us, and someone who puts aside a fiver and sends it, is just as valued a donation as the larger amounts - you all make a such difference and every one of you is appreciated more than you know.
There is no doubt that the Christmas outpouring of support from yourselves as ever, plus the incredible gift from Ricky, has been a huge help and reassurance that hopefully the sanctuary won’t suffer the same stress this year.
At the time of writing Ricky’s donation has yet to arrive, but your generosity at Christmas, plus a legacy that arrived around the same time, means the sanctuary funds are looking healthier, thank you.
I’d also like to say thank you to anyone who has remembered the sanctuary in your Will - it truly makes a difference. When I hear the news of a legacy, it is with mixed feelings - immense gratitude naturally but with sadness at the loss of a sanctuary friend. So my thanks are given now, and I hope it’s a long time before your final kindness arrives.
A sad update as last year ended, when Taxi ( collie dog ) briefly got up one morning, but then collapsed and passed away. She was always a strong character, which is why she ended up here and you’ve seen her many times in the newsletters. She always had a lot to say about life, and that became worse as she aged, but she has left another hole in my heart. She arrived fourteen years ago when just a year old, and was one of the first new dogs to arrive after Jacky died; which is now 15 years ago.
My thanks to our long time supporters who have been with us all this time, and to the new friends who have found the sanctuary and become a part of it. Together, we make a difference to the traumatised cats and dogs who live here, giving them a safe place to recover and find a new joy in living.
As I write it is still winter, though a couple of days have shown a glimmer that Spring is just around the corner at last. It has been another very wet winter and a light layer of snow was actually welcomed here by all of us. Even the cats have been fed up with the mud under paw, and Heather was happy to make pawprints in the snow.
Rosa looks at the pawprints made by Wizard, and decides to stay under the porch without cold snow.
When Jeeves and friends went out to play lots more pawprints were added - and much easier floor washing for me when they came back in !
During this time, outside someone’s house, an old stray cat had only a cardboard box with a frozen blanket to lay on. A friend in rescue scooped him into safety and so Frost came here for palliative care. He had a few weeks of a comfy bed by the ( always on ) radiator, whatever he wanted to eat and lots of cuddles to end his days - he was a very happy cat for that time and we made a difference.
Many, many years ago someone’s cat had kittens and we’ll never know the full circumstances, but at least one of the litter was let down by humans, and became Frost. It’s another example of the importance of neutering, and I wanted to let Frost’s life be remembered and not just be another statistic of “old stray cat”.
As you know, we have solar panels in the field, and one of the snowy day jobs is to sweep the snow off so that any sun we may have can actually produce electricity. Sadly due to the wet winter they have not had much work to do - another reason I prefer cold, bright days as they give us free power.
I love cleaning out guinea-pigs Mousse and Bannoffee in winter, because of opening the box of hay and getting a wonderful whiff of summer from the sweet smelling contents. Mousse went to the vet on Christmas Eve as she has become arthritic and needed medication. I had been giving syringe feeds as her appetite was poor, and was delighted early Christmas Day to see her start eating on her own - that was a lovely present to start the day !
Here Mousse is in a jug of warm water, having a spa bath to help her keep clean and comfy.
The wild birds had new peanut feeders from your Christmas donations. I don’t make homemade fat balls but for anyone who does, please be aware that if you use human peanut butter, check the ingredients exclude xylitol as it’s toxic to birds ( as well as to dogs and cats which you already knew ). Always use 100% natural peanut butter or brands specifically made for birds.
Before leaving winter behind us and moving forward into the year ahead, here is a lovely piece that I hope you like as much as I do - especially on those dark days when incentive is running low to “get on and do stuff”.
From the book Wild Hope by Donna Ashworth.
We all know about doing things at top speed but at the sanctuary, we now have a new one called Sparkle speed !
Sparkle is an older lady now ( will be 16 this year ) and tends to gently amble when going anywhere. This means that if Sparkle is going the same route as any human, we slowly walk a few paces behind her - hence Sparkle speed.
Here Sparkle is on my lap in front of the fire.
The new shed that was still flat packed in our last news-letter, is now erected and in use - and I can open the door !
My gratitude to Lucy Claire Illustrations who kindly gave me permission to use her wonderful Home Love on the front cover. I know you’ll all love it as much as I do. There were no conditions placed to use it, but I will gladly share her website for those who use the internet.
https://www.lucyclaireillustration.com/
We continue to collect used stamps, and also collect ( used or full ) Canon and HP Ink cartridges only. Lately stamp funds raised £64 - wonderful !
We also received the latest funds from your Easyfundraising efforts – it’s a great way to help the sanctuary at no extra cost, thank you.
The local Amazon driver certainly knew his way to the sanctuary at Christmastime. Thank you for ALL the gifts from our wish list - I had to keep topping it up with more items !
We will be at Chaldon Village Fete as usual on Bank Holiday Monday in August, Items suitable for the tombola are gratefully received please.
Your ongoing support, monthly standing orders / Paypal, and donations are so very important, thank you so much.
Without you, our sanctuary could not be the home of love that it is. You fuel the sanctuary - and me - with your care for all the residents.
With enormous gratitude and purrs and woofs from all of us,
