Every animal lover will know that when watching films, seeing the loyal companion of the main character pass away is sometimes worse than the inevitable bad ending.
Having always grown up with a dog and then being treated to two kittens at the age of 11, I honestly believe that pets can help you so much in life. You are able to make connections with them that teach you how to love later on in life and see how they respond with loyalty, regardless of your flaws.
Battersea Dogs and Cats Home is a quintessential British charity that aids every dog or cat that needs their attention. I had the pleasure of working with Battersea since September 2017, when I was introduced to their community fundraiser by a colleague. When I met the then community fundraiser, it was evident how passionate he was to showcase the charity’s amazing work to as many people as would listen. I knew that all the generous people at Cisco would completely understand the message.
Once we had been able to get approval to have Dogs on site at Cisco and with a new community fundraiser appointed, we arranged a fundraiser date for June.
Dogs at Work – what could be better?
On June 4th, we welcomed Gorgeous George through our doors in Building 10. Gorgeous George has the most beautiful story of pain and misfortune. Being bred by backstreet breeders, George suffered with lots of physical injuries such as a broken jaw which left him disfigured, causing his tongue to hang out, plus a condition that left him with little fur. Despite his cute and fun-loving appearance George has suffered a lot and because of this he does not readily trust humans.
George was bought at a railway station by a family with children after having been advertised on Gumtree. However, due to George not being as ‘entertaining’ as the family wanted, they decided to leave him in the safe hands of Battersea. The team work by Battersea staff and volunteers helped save him. Their wonderful work has enabled George to have his complex veterinary and psychological needs seen to. George was fostered by Battersea Volunteer Chris. Together with her pack of dogs they helped to move George forward both physically and mentally. They went on to adopt him, feeling that he could not cope with further change.
Along with George, we were delighted to be joined by some of the Ambassadogs from Battersea. Outside Building 10 at Bedfont Lakes, we drew quite a large crowd. During the day we ran two sessions inside, where George’s story was told – but the clear highlight of the day was when we hijacked the patio and encouraged everyone to say hello and buy some cakes.
Everyone loved hearing George’s story and meeting his wonderful companion Whippet who melted everyone’s heart with her love and loyalty. Whippet is another dog adopted by the same wonderful foster family, and her hyperactivity and love for humans has helped encourage George that humans are trustworthy.
After the event in June, we raised more than £1,200 for Battersea Dogs and Cats Home. Cisco will be matching this total, plus, for every hour an employee volunteered we are donating an extra £10. However, the greatest achievement was that the interest and engagement from everyone, encouraged me to work more with Battersea. So, we did more!
Over Christmas we invited Battersea to attend our Christmas fair where they were able to sell their Battersea Baubles, raising even more money to help look after and care for these wonderful dogs.
So, what’s next?
On March 29th, in Old Windsor, myself and four of my fellow Cisco apprentices will be taking part in the Battersea Stray Over 2019 to raise money for this wonderful cause. My involvement with Battersea over the past year has been incredible and being able to introduce Gorgeous George to others across our company in June was the highlight of my year. George’s story still makes me upset – and he wasn’t even a stray! Putting ourselves in a stray’s ‘paws’ will allow us to understand a little bit of what these wonderful dogs and cats go through and how Battersea can help.
Our target is to raise £550 per person- so for our team of five we need to raise £2750! The total amount raised could care for all of the Staffies at Battersea for a full day and cover the costs of re-homing one. In 2017, Battersea re-homed over 350 Staffies.
Here’s how you can donate:
- Visit: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/ciscostrayovermarch2019
- Cisco employees: Request a donation match in Bright Funds
Or visit battersea.org.uk/strayover for more information.
I would really appreciate any help towards the total we can get… however this is not the point of this blog. I want everyone to know the wonderful work that Battersea Dogs and Cats Home do and to thank Cisco and its wonderful Culture for enabling me to show these brilliant animals to everyone in the organisation.
Thank you all, and get supporting!
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3 Comments
What a wonderful charity to support Libby – looking forward to hearing about the experience afterwards. June 4th was a lovely day and I hope we can see the dogs and people from Battersea D&C Home, at Bedfont again in the future.
What a wonderful thing to do Libby. Hope the “stray over” goes well.
Lovely blog Libby brought a tear to my eye. Goid luck with the stray over.