Dogmobile
We currently have two Dogmobiles that travel the country, visiting county shows, town centres and supermarkets, showing people what great dogs rescue dogs are.
The bright yellow mobile units contain two comfy kennels for the dogs to lounge in for the day, (whilst looking for that perfect home), plus all sorts of other ‘doggy’ information leaflets and ‘goodies’ are on board.
Keep checking this page for the latest Dogmobile events, and to follow driver Cathy’s blog about the fun they have and the different places she visits.
Meet the Dogmobile Crew
Hello, my name is Cathy and I am the manager of Dogmobile 1, the larger of our two units. This is me and my able assistant Sally!
We ‘motor’ around the country doing ‘the bizz!’, and I’m going to hopefully update you about all the goings on with Dogmobile 1 throughout the year. So stay tuned!
Wyevale Garden Centre Telford, Sat 27th & Sun 28th February 2010
Hello!
We have just been to the Wyevale Garden Centre, Station Road, Telford, Shropshire with our Dogmobile. They were very kind enough to allow us to be sited here for a couple of days, to promote our nearest rehoming centre Roden.
We had a great position, right opposite the entrance, it was great!
It was another cold couple of days though….BRRRRRRR! That’s all I seem to say about these venues this year, but then we have had snow, rain, winds and floods in the last two months haven’t we?
Anyhow, we had a lovely couple of dogs on board. Lea, a Staffi, (that’s her on Sally’s lap), and Goldie, a black Greyhound. That’s them in the matching woolly jumpers we put them in to keep a bit warmer. Don’t they look cute?
They were brilliant and so chilled out. In fact Goldie could hardly keep his eyes open all day! It was just too much effort.
We had quite a few people come and say hello to us. One gentleman was Mr.Barry Smitherman, with Fly, his Collie from Roden. He’s really proud of her, because she is very nervous, but is gaining confidence every day. Well done Fly.
One family went straight along to the Roden centre to find out a bit more about Lea, having seen her on the unit, which was great. This is exactly what the Dogmobile is all about. Letting people know what types of dogs we have for rehoming, showing a couple of dogs wanting homes, and giving people all the information needed to go along to our centres, to see if there are any dogs they like.
Hopefully, Roden will see a few more people down in the next few weeks or months from seeing us there.
Well, that’s it for now, speak again soon, you just never know what you will find at your local Garden Centre these days, do you?
Bye for now,
Cathy.
Westonbirt Arboretum, 20th & 21st February 2010
Hello!
We were at Westonbirt Arboretum last weekend. It’s just near Tetbury, Cirencester. It’s full of the most amazing trees and plants, some hundreds of years old!
We were there for a “Doggy Day”. They had dog agility displays, charity stalls and the Cani x race.
It was bitterly cold, but sunny. We had just had some more snow, which didn’t help, so the ground was muddy and a bit icy at first.
There were lots of different dogs there. Small ones, ‘chunky’ ones, slim ones and sleek ones. There were a number of designer dog coats on show as well! Some were functional, others were purely fashionable… I’ll leave the rest to your imagination!
We had two dogs on the unit looking for a home. Wilbur, a lovely Staffi X, and Ethel, a French Bulldog X. She was a real character. Really cheeky and full of fun. Unfortunately, nobody was really interested in rehoming them at the time, but they had a really fun two days out. They are still looking for homes though if you fancy looking at them on the website.
There were lots of people and dogs who did the Cani x run. One gentleman was Graham Philpott with his ex-Evesham Dogs Trust dog called Bruce. That’s them in the top picture. They did the run to raise money for Dogs Trust. Thank you very much Mr. Philpott and well done to you both. You have done us proud.
Another dog and owner who did the race was Steve Hewer with his ex-Evesham dog called Barney. That’s them by the unit in the second picture down. Barney also entered the most handsomest dog in the fun dog show. He got third place bless him! Well done Barney!
Also we saw Julie a Lurcher with her owner Sarah. Julie had not long been rehomed from Evesham, but was thoroughly enjoying her new life with her new family.
We met some lovely people and dogs, and although we didn’t find a home for Wilbur or Ethel, they had a lovely time, and a lot more people now know where our Evesham centre is!
Bye for now
Cathy
Sainsbury's, Warwick, 11th & 12th February 2010
Phew! What a morning!
Sally set the unit up in the car park of Sainsbury’s in our allocated spot at 7am. I arrived with the two dogs to go onboard later, only to find our generator wouldn’t start!!
We tried, and tried.
I tightened connections, checked the fuel but all to no avail.
At the same time the two dogs we put in the kennels decided to shout at each other non stop. Oh, did I say non-stop?!
So there we were, with no electrics, in the dark and cold, with two dogs barking incessantly; a great start to the day I must say!
After a lot of detective work, I decided it could only be a flat battery. So, off I went to buy another one. Luckily for me, there was a place just down the road. So, battery in hand, I skipped back to attach it, and hoped for the best.
VRRRRRM! It started, thank goodness.
At least that meant we could have lights and heating at last.The dogs soon settled down, the heat warmed the unit up and people started to come and say hello.
Phew!
We had some lovely people came and say hi. One especially was a lady called Bernie Gilbert and her dog Chloe - that's them in the photo above. She’d got Chloe from Kenilworth a long time ago and just wanted to say how lovely Chloe had been and they were all still going for their long walks, if not at quite the same brisk pace as they used to.
The second day didn’t start much better!! Bang smack in the middle of where we were supposed to put the unit was one single car at 7.15 in the morning. What are the chances of that??
Anyhow, after waiting for it to move for half an hour, both a member of staff and I went around the whole store asking if it was anybody’s car. No. So they put the registration out over the tannoy. No.
The only other option was to park it in another position where I only had four parking spaces to get it in. After a bit of tight maneuvering and some help from a passer by, I managed to park it in a spot.
I’d just about set half of the unit up, when who should I see moving his car? Yes, the car we’d been looking for earlier!
I only had to pack it all away and move it again then… (GRRRRRR!)
For the rest of the day, things went a little smoother, thankfully. We even got a guy to come out and check the generator over for us. (Thanks Phil!)
The dogs enjoyed their day of rest, and I think most people enjoyed seeing us there - apart from one! Whilst cleaning the new unit at the end of the day, one man strode past and shouted “I bet that cost a bit”, meaning the new unit, and then followed up with, “you should be spending it on the dogs instead”.
Now I don’t mind people having an opinion, but not when they make statements without seeing the bigger picture.
Firstly, we are spending it on the dogs.
Secondly, the Dogmobile is a MASSIVE advertisement for Dogs Trust. It is one big moving advert, and because it travels all over the country; it is nationwide.
This in itself does more to help the dogs in our care than people think. Not only that, but to be able to see the types of dogs looking for homes, plus speak to somebody from the charity first hand is a connection a lot of people don’t usually get.
We did have a large Dogmobile, which was beginning to cost more in repairs and breakdowns than was worth it. So, we decided to sell the old one and downsize the new one, which would be more versatile, cheaper to run and cheaper to maintain but still have all the benefits of the old Dogmobile.
The aim of the Dogmobiles is to go to venues all over the UK letting people know where local rehoming centres are, what type of dogs we have to rehome, and how the rehoming process works. This in turn hopefully encourages people who are looking for a dog, to give our centres a visit and therefore rehome more dogs.
Like most things nowadays, you have to invest in things to reap the rewards, and this is what we are hopefully doing.
Most people understand and support us on this but there’s always one isn’t there??!!
Asda, Walsgrave, Coventry, 4 and 5 February 2010
Here we are at Asda, Coventry, in the West Midlands!
Tracey the events co-coordinator is great. She lets us position the unit right outside the store where everybody passes, so it’s a brilliant position for us, thank you Tracey.
It was a bitterly cold two days here I must admit. The sun did try to come out, but not for long unfortunately.
Luckily, the dogs, Sally and I were as ‘snug as a bug in a rug’ on the unit, as the saying goes. We had two lovely dogs looking for homes on board, called Chelsea (a Staffordshire bull terrier) and Basil (a terrier). They were on their best behaviour, and really loved all the public's attention.
We gave out all the relevant information to people interested in them, and asked them to go along to the centre on Saturday if they were thinking of rehoming them or any other dogs in our care.
We had lots of tinned dog food and treats donated to us once again from Asda’s customers, so thank you once again.
We had a gentleman come and show us his Collie ‘Max’ he had only rehomed from Kenilworth three weeks prior. He was so ‘chuffed’ with him, and he is apparently settling in very well.
The two days seemed to go very quickly for us, and before we knew it, it was time to pack up and move on.
We had a great time, and you’ll be pleased to know, both ‘Chelsea’ and ‘Basil’ found a home from us being at Asda, Walsgrave, so it really was well worth the visit.
You never know what you might find at your average supermarket these days do you?
See you next time
Cathy
Morrisons Stratford upon Avon
I have some very sad news for all you Dogmobile fans… The old, large Dogmobile has finally been retired.
He was nearly nine years old, and his joints aren’t what they used to be I’m afraid.
The old Dogmobile has been my trusty companion through thick and thin since we both bounced onto the road with great enthusiasm all those years ago. The enthusiasm hasn’t dwindled, but the bodywork has (on us both I might add!!), and he could no longer trek up and down the country as well as he used to.
It was all getting a bit too much for him, so he is now having a well earned rest, and the smaller Dogmobile has taken on the ‘baton’.
Woohoo!
What do you think?? Cool eh??
Super sleek, nippy, full of life, and ready to take on the next ten years of motoring around the UK, helping to rehome more unwanted dogs!
Morrisons Stratford was its very first voyage!
We were very kindly put in a most prominent position in the car park (which would never have happened in the big one!). We quickly set up and opened, whilst I went to our Kenilworth centre, to collect the dogs in our animal ambulance.
Enter.Leo (a Jack Russell) and Murphy (a GSD X).
They were brilliant dogs. Leo spent most of the day, squirming around on his blanket, playing up to the crowds…(Of which there were plenty). Lots of people came and said ‘hello’ to us. Leo had so many interested in him, the centre had literally a queue of people waiting for it to open on the Saturday to book him.
No surprise there then, that he was booked on the Saturday morning!
Our day wasn’t entirely without teething problems though…
We did start off with the key to the generator snapping off in the lock!! (Luckily I had a trusty pair of pliers!!). Then later on in the day, the generator stopped of its own accord, only to find out it was empty of diesel because we didn’t know how big the fuel tank was and for how long it would run for.
Luckily for us, it didn’t stop the public from coming on to see our dogs, and find out more about us.
We collected tons of tinned food and treats that people bought for us, which was lovely, and always most appreciated.
Thank you people of Stratford upon Avon!
That’s about it, for our first venture out in the new Dogmobile. The new Dogmobile has already proved he can take on the mantle the large Dogmobile has left behind.
Let’s hope the young ‘pup’ matures into a Dogmobile the old one will be proud of!!
See you next week!!
Cathy
Otley Show, Saturday 16th May 2009
Hi,
I’ve been coming to the Otley show for approximately 7 or 8 years now and only twice has it been hot and sunny the whole day.
Unfortunately, this year was no exception. The heavens opened once again!
Luckily for us, it doesn’t dampen the local’s spirits, as every year the showground is ‘buzzing’. We had two Staffis on board this time. Junior 7 years old, and Lucy, 13.5 years old. Lucy was his mum. They were looking for a home together as they’d always lived together. Junior LOVED cuddles, he was really cute. His mum we think is slightly deaf but otherwise loves life.
We had lots and lots of people come and say hello again. It’s great to see ex-residents like Bart (Johnson) with Gilly Sangster.
There was a cattle show going on just opposite us, and Junior quite liked to tell them which bull he liked most!!
Sally and Junior at the Otley ShowWhat with the rain showers and sheep poo in the fields, our unit was a mess at the end of the day. Cor! It didn’t half take some scrubbing. When we came to leave the showground there was only one gateway to get out of, and unfortunately, everybody’s vehicles had churned the ground up pretty bad. Our unit isn’t very good on mud and we tend to get stuck quite a lot. There was a small band of grass along the side which I took a running jump from to get halfway through the gate, but then we hit the mud and with wheels spinning we slowly came to a stop as the trailer was heading for the gate post!!
OOPS!
You can see from the pictures below how muddy the lane was.
We didn’t give up though and with a couple more wheel spinning episodes, we hit hard core and the wheels bit and slowly pulled us through the remainder of the gate. All accident free as well, although I think that was more luck than judgment, ha, ha. Now we’ll just have to see what next year brings…….sun I hope!!
Bye.
Cathy
Hampshire Show 3rd-4th May 2009
Hello again,
This week we went to the Hampshire country show at the Broadlands Estate in Romsey, Hampshire. It was a new show for us. I tried to get to it last year, but the compressor on my truck burst into flames on the way there, which meant all the trailer brakes locked on and so I couldn’t get to the show!
Luckily for us, we got there with no ‘mishaps’ this year. After setting the unit up on the Friday afternoon, we found we were right in front of the main arena.
‘Great’ you may say. ‘How cool is that?’
Unfortunately for us, as we have dogs on the unit for a few hours each day, they could see everything going on in the ring……’Brilliant’ you might add, the dogs will have something interesting to look at…..
They omitted to tell us that they would be having lurcher and terrier racing going on, and we’d bought along two ex-racing greyhounds!! Ulp! I can honestly say they enjoyed themselves a little too much. They got a little too excited and we ended up having to cover the kennel fronts up whilst the racing went on just so’s we could be heard when talking to people, ha, ha.
It wasn’t so bad for them though, Lucy and Chris came along from the Salisbury centre and spent the day walking around the showground with each dog in turn, stopping and talking to people about how they were looking for a home.
The dogs loved it. Strolling around in the sunshine all afternoon, saying hello to lots of people, they seemed to be in their element!
We had so many people come and say hello. We had ex-Salisbury residents come for a cuddle. We had lots of people buy our DT doggy bandanas. Lots of people also bought DT poo bags for their dogs so’s they can clean up after them, which is very responsible, because nobody likes stepping in dog mess. Well done all you responsible people! Obviously there were also some irresponsible dog owners out there too, because I had the misfortune of stepping in some dog mess that somebody hadn’t bothered to clean up!! UUURGH!
Come on people, it only takes a second and is sooooooo much nicer for everyone. Please clean up after your dog. Thank you.
B/H Monday was a very similar day. A bit cloudier and colder, but still lots of people went to the show. This time we had two Shitzu’s along for the day. They were lovely. One (Chanel) had only one eye. (AAAH!) She had to have it removed due to a very bad infection poor thing. It didn’t stop her and her sister Coco from ‘clowning’ around all day though. They had a great time.
A family who already had three Shitzu’s was quite interested in rehoming them. So ‘armed’ with all the relevant info we gave them, they said they would pay the centre at Salisbury a visit the following day. (I hope all went well.)
Well, that’s it for another show.
We’re off to Ilkley near Leeds next, for the Otley show.
Sally and I hope to see you there if possible.
Bye for now…….
Cathy
East Anglian Game Fair 25th - 26th April
Hi there…..
What a show!
What lovely weather!
What a lot of people!!!!!
The sun was out and so was half of Norfolk it seemed last weekend.
I arrived at the showground on Friday dinnertime having set off at 7am. Phew! At the showground gates it felt like I was entering ‘Fort Knox!!’
You needed a vehicle pass, and a person pass, plus a stamp if you left the showground again……Goodness!! The security had certainly been ‘beefed’ up this year, it’s not normally like that and a queue was forming already.
Never mind, once through the gates I soon found my pitch, and was very lucky to find I could just get my vehicle into position and set up without too many difficulties. It took a few hours, but looked good when I’d finished.
The Show:
I arrived Saturday morning to find the stall next to me had attached their tent ropes to my unit!! They’d also parked their caravan on my pitch and parked their van half across the back of my unit as well… The cheek of it…. Dogs Trust had paid for the pitch and because I hadn’t used every square inch of space, somebody else had…and obviously they hadn’t paid anything for the privilege. Some stall holders are very cheeky you know. They know all the tricks of the trade, because they know, once they are in, it is very difficult to move them. I did manage to get a couple of things changed with the stall next door, but they got away with more……
Later in the morning, Anne (a volunteer) from the Snetterton centre came with the two dogs that were looking for homes. We had a Terrier called Aled, and a X breed called Bonnie. Anne has often helped on the promotions stall at other shows I have done, but this was the first time she has actually helped on my unit. (There’s nothing like hitting the ground with your feet running, but that’s just what Anne had to do as it was so busy, poor lady. She did very well I might add, thanks Anne.)
The day seemed to just ‘whizz’ by.
One minute it was 11am, and the next time I looked at my watch it was 4pm….where had the day gone?
We had lots of people come and show their support for Dogs Trust.
We had some prospective new dog owners come and speak to us.
We had ex-residents of Snetterton come and say hello and we sold hundreds of our Dogs Trust Doggy bandanas. Everybody loved them, and everywhere you looked at the end of the day, there seemed to be a DT Doggy bandana.
This is a picture of Laura with Dillon an ex-resident. Laura rehomed Dillon from Snetterton last August, and she says he is very happy and doing great.
Bonnie and Aled seemed to enjoy their day out as well. They got lots of fuss and cuddle’s and may have found a home from people seeing them at the show….we will have to see, so keep your fingers crossed.
Anne took the dogs back late afternoon for a well earned rest and some tea back at the kennels. The show carried on until 6pm when lots of weary people made their way back home.
Sunday morning I arrived at the unit to find somebody had been having a party round the back of it.
There was beer cans, pieces of pizza and goodness knows what else strewn around the grass. Just what you want on a Sunday morning, so after cleaning all that up, I once more opened the unit for another busy day.
Luckily the weather held and once again we had a glorious sunny day. Sarah a canine carer from Snetterton came and helped me today. She bought Aled again (as he enjoyed himself so much yesterday,) and Oscar a Setter x.
We immediately had somebody interested in Oscar. He was lovely. The family took all his details away with them, and they said they would go along to the centre on Tuesday to see if he was suitable for them. (Keep all your fingers and toes crossed for him please folks.)
We were packed for the majority of the day again, which was brilliant. Bandanas were the main donation of the day again, and it was wonderful to see so many people ready to promote Dogs Trust by letting their dog wear one with pride. (I must admit, they did look rather sexy!!). The day drew to a close, the dogs went home, and slowly all the stall holders packed up for another year. (I always find it amazing, how so many stalls can get packed up and out of the showground in just a matter of hours.)
Well, there you have it for another week. Another show done and hopefully a few more dogs may find that home they have always dreamt of.
Bye!
Cathy
Mid Suffolk Show 18th -19th April
Woohoo!!
My first show of 2009 and we couldn’t have had better weather. It was lovely for a change. Very warm and sunny. Just what the doctor ordered. May there be many more like it is what I say…..
Anyhow, Mid Suffolk Show….
I have never been to this show before, so I didn’t know what to expect.
It was like a small country show really.
They had a main ring where the RAF cadets marched; a collie ‘herded some turkeys!!.....horses were judged, tractors paraded and many other things were shown.
Around the outside was a food hall and lots of stalls selling things from clothes to garden furniture.
We had a couple of dogs from our Snetterton centre bought along to see if they could find a home. (Not rehomed off the unit I might add.)
We had ‘Bailey’ a 6 month old Staffi pup who’d come in with two broken back legs. We’d fixed his legs and he was now looking for a new home. A family who already had a Staffi and another Terrier were looking for a 3rd dog and fell in love with him.
AAAAAAAAAH, he loved them. Hopefully they will be visiting the centre this week to finish the rehoming procedures. If all goes well, not only did he have a great day out at the show, he found a lovely home in the process. Good luck ‘Bailey’.
We also had ‘Karen’ a very elegant Greyhound. She just loved being able to sleep all day, so she also enjoyed her day very much too.
We had lots of donations from our ‘Doggy Bandanas’. Everybody seemed to be enjoying the sun and the day out, so there were a lot of happy (very pink) people leaving the show at the end of the two days.
Sally and I were very tired by the end, but we still managed to have a bit of fun.
This is Sally trying her best to jump, whilst giggling (and might I add getting nowhere near) to close the canopy on the unit. Ha, Ha really….what did we expect. (We did eventually manage to close it safely I might add, when the laughing had stopped.)
After a 4 hour journey back in glorious sunshine, we made it back home.
Pheww! East Anglian Game Fair next…….hang on…..that’s back in Norfolk….Oh no………. See you soon.
Cathy
Asda Caerphilly 31st March and 1st April
Asda Caerphilly……
Sally and I set the unit up on the Monday. Lots of people seemed to be wondering what all the blocked car parking spaces were for from the looks on their faces as they walked by us. They never asked though!
When we had parked the unit, we hadn’t even opened it up and we were being asked for information on rehoming so we thought this was a good sign of things to come!! Setting the unit up was a ‘doddle’ for a change. Sally my new colleague was, by now, well into the swing of it, this being her second venue.
We arrived on the Tuesday morning to a cool, cloudy day. After opening the unit up we were ready for the crowds of people to arrive……. We were still waiting when Fran arrived with the dogs…….
Fran is part of the campaigns team in Wales (opens new browser window)who promotes neutering and microchipping. She does a brilliant job. She’d volunteered to help us out for the two days which was really nice of her. (That’s her stood on the top step next to Sally.)
Once the dogs were settled in, we once again waited with baited breath for the crowds to arrive……..
Nothing!! Not a sausage!! Just a trickle of people all day.
The dogs were wagging their tails and throwing their toys around the kennels to try and attract attention but all to no avail……it was pretty dead. Even the supermarket car park didn’t have that many cars in it. We couldn’t understand it. Normally we are really busy, but not this time.
We did obviously have a few people come and say hello. Some were interested in getting a new dog and some wanted to help by sponsoring a dog, so it wasn’t all bad.
Wednesday was a very similar day apart from the sun was out. Once again, Evie and Otis were throwing their squeaky toys around to try and attract attention, but once again, it fell on deaf ears. It did seem slightly busier as people came out in the sun to see what we were doing.
Nearly everybody who saw us put some doggy treats or food in our donation trolley, so the dogs were happy.
Although mainly we promote rehoming, we always get lots of other queries asked us, from membership, sponsorship, insurance, to behavioural and much, much more. It’s really a very interesting job and I love it…..even on the slow days.
We also get some really nice gestures. Like one old lady who saw us there on the Tuesday and bought all her dogs old and unused toys and blankets along for us on the Wednesday. How kind is that to make a special journey back for us??
Well, I’m afraid that’s it for another venue…..
Here’s hoping we see you again in Caerphilly another year….
Bye!
Cathy
Asda Sittingbourne 26th and 27th March
Hello!
We went to Asda Sittingbourne in Kent this time. I say ‘we’ as my new colleague started this week. Meet Sally Nash…….
Yep it’s now the terrible ‘twosome’. We’ll be ‘winging’ our way around the country this year going to a lot of shows and supermarkets promoting our rehoming centres….so look out!!
Back to Asda Sittingbourne………..
Getting in was really easy this time, as we were able to go in the ‘drop-off’ point right outside the store….brilliant!
Nicola the events co-coordinator from Asda Sittingbourne was lovely. She really looked after us and kept us supplied in teas and hot chocolates, so thank you Nicola if you’re reading this.
Thursday 26 was cold with sunny intervals and Gemma from our Canterbury centre came along with ‘Mojo’ the Staffi x for the day.
Gemma and MojoThat’s Gemma with ‘Mojo’ having his belly tickled. Mojo LOVED being on the unit as he got to say hello and have his tummy tickled by everybody. He was a star.
Unfortunately we didn’t really have any real interest in rehoming ‘Mojo’ during Thursday or Friday which was a real shame, as he will make somebody a super pet.
Friday was a similar day to Thursday. It did however rain on and off through out the day, so most people seemed to be running from their cars to the supermarket and back again to avoid the rain. Unfortunately this also meant they avoided coming to see us as well so it was a pretty slow day all round really.
Gemma dropped ‘Mojo’ off for another days ‘tickling’.
We had some people interested in volunteer work at the centre so that was good.
We also asked for donations of tinned ‘hot-dog’ sausages. Yes really! We use these as training food as they are really tasty to dogs and you can break them up in to tiny pieces for training purposes. You won’t believe how generous Asda Sittingbourne people were. By the end of the two days we nearly had a full trolley of dog food, treats and ‘Hot-dog’ sausages. It was brilliant. Thank you all for your generosity.
Asda will have to restock them now!!
Friday afternoon came and went. ‘Mojo’ was picked up by the centre and taken back to the kennels for his tea and bed and Sally and I closed the unit up to go home.
There was only one thing that spoilt what was otherwise a very enjoyable two days, and that was when we were trying to get the unit out of the car park. To be able to exit the very busy car park we had to divert cars down one of the other ‘avenues’ for a few minutes whilst we maneuvered the unit out.
Sally my new colleague politely asked all the drivers if they would mind doing this. Most people were quite happy and understood what we were trying to do, apart from this one VERY RUDE young woman who was completely enraged when she couldn’t get to the space she wanted, because it was down the avenue we were trying to get the unit out of.
After a large amount of F***** words and ‘I’m not walking that F***** far!!’ shouted at her, Sally was left in a cloud of exhaust fumes and burning rubber as the woman screeched off down the car park! Well!! Some people have no patience and definitely no manners!!
Thank you to all those people who did wait and understand. Our four and a half hour journey home that night was definitely subdued after that….
Cathy
Asda Canterbury 18th and 19th March
Hi,
Hooray! The weather’s changed….spring has arrived….well for the first day it did anyway.
I was set up in the Asda in Canterbury this time. You know the one in Sturry Road.
Well, it was really good.
The weather was warm and dry and I had Mandy from the Canterbury centre help me. Mandy bought along ‘Ozzy’ a greyhound x who is looking for a home.
He was brilliant. He loved all the fuss and getting to lay out in the sunshine and have his belly tickled. That’s Mandy and Ozzy in the picture. Cute eh??
Ozzy and Mandy
The Asda customers and staff were really friendly. We had quite a few people say they were looking for a dog, so that’s good.
We also had a lot of you people looking for volunteer work…that’s always a great help to the centres, thanks.
One lady was quite smitten with Ozzy. I don’t know if she went along to the centre or not yet but I hope so. Ozzy has been in kennels for a long time and is desperate for a new home. His only failing is he doesn’t like cats, but that’s the greyhound in him.
Lots of people gave us donations of doggy treats and toys as well which is wonderful. Thank you all.
One gentleman was trying to get his wife to understand that going to work all day and getting a new puppy do not mix. He took a lot of advice away from the unit with him to persuade her to think again. I hope she understands. Getting a puppy and both partners working full time is unfair on the new dog. A puppy needs a lot of time and attention spending with it for it to grow into a happy, well adjusted dog.
Although the two days were not massively busy, we had a really good time. We met some really nice people and one or two ex Canterbury residents.
Nice people….nice weather… what more could we want except a few more dogs finding that home they have always dreamed of….
Here’s hoping!
Bye for now
Cathy
Morrisons Tewkesbury 12th and 13th March
Hello again!
I’m still on my own at the moment. My new colleague hasn’t started yet, so I had to ‘borrow’ a helper from the Evesham rehoming centre (opens new browser window)to help me get the unit into the car park and set up for Thursday and Friday this week.
Luckily we had no problems, because Morrisons allowed us to go in a great position in the drop off point, just outside the store, so it was very easy to get into for once.
On Thursday, I had to get to Morrisons and set up ready for the dogs to arrive.
At approx 10.30am, Christina arrived with the dogs. A Terrier called Toby and a Boxer X called Betty. They were finding it difficult to get a home at the centre and had been in our kennels a very long time. They were lovely and well behaved. I think they really enjoyed their few hours away from kennels.
Although we weren’t very busy we did have a few people come and say hello. Most people wanted to know what we were doing there. Lots of supporters were very pleased we were trying different methods to help rehome rescue dogs.
Friday was a very similar day. Christina was dropped off with the dogs again. We had the same dogs to try and give them as much exposure as possible.
We did have one lady interested in Toby the Terrier. She did dog training and went to agility classes which would be brilliant for the likes of Toby. I hope he gets some interest from this.
We put a supermarket trolley outside for people to put donations of food and treats in for the dogs if they wanted. People were very generous. We had a trolley full by the end of the two days. Great! Thank you people of Tewksbury. Evesham were very grateful.
Until next time then……….BYE FOR NOW!
Cathy
Sainsbury, Hove, Wednesday 25 and Thursday 26 February 2009
Hi again, I really do not want another day like this……….
I arrived at Sainsbury Hove at approx 2.30pm. (I’m doing this job on my own at the moment because my new colleague hasn’t started yet.)
I spoke to the duty manager and worked out where I was going to go in the car park.
I then waited 3 hours in the cold, for all the cars to move, so’s I could get the unit in. I had roped in the help of one of the trolley guys, Robert, so that I could go to the toilet and get a coffee etc and just as the last car was moving, the duty manager came out and said the supermarket manager would like me somewhere else. Actually it was a much better place, I just didn’t think I could get my unit in as it was surrounded by bollards and I need a lot of space to maneuver.
Still I gave it a go, and ‘hey presto’ after a lot of twisting and turning I managed to get it in, only to realize I was now blocking the whole of the thoroughfare.
The store manager then said I could go where I originally had planned.
Okey, dokey I said. The only problem then was how to get out!! I was stuck!! Literally!
Because I had made such a good job of getting in, I now couldn’t reverse out!!
I now had the help of two trolley guys trying to back me out.
After half and hour I’d just lost the will to live, when suddenly (and I don’t know how) I managed to get myself in a position to reverse out between the bollards.
Hooray! With sweat pouring off me from the effort, I drove around the car park and managed to get into my original position. Phew! Day over….or so I thought. On the way back I got stuck in the tail back of an accident for half an hour, and then couldn’t find anywhere to park when I got back, as half the parking spaces were being dug up and out of use………I was shattered. I managed to get something to eat at 8.45pm and was in bed by 9.30………..ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
Wednesday was a much nicer day. Sarah from the Shoreham centre helped me on the unit today. She bought Anna (a Greyhound) dogmobileand Frederick (a Beagle x) to go in the kennels. Anna was lovely, she slept most of the day, which is what greyhounds and Lurchers tend to do most of the time. Frederick on the other hand tried to do what Beagles do, dig his way out of the kennel most of the time, and try to go ‘walkabout’. They were lovely though.
We had a slow but steady response all day. Quite a few people came and said hello that already had a dog from Shoreham. They were all very happy. Some others were looking for dogs and will hopefully go down in the future.
Thursday was very similar to Wednesday. Slow but steady. Hannah helped me this time. (She’s the one with ‘Pip’ the German pointer over her shoulder.)pointer
We had a visit from Mrs Przebinda and family member, who had rehomed ‘Ollie’ an old black and white spaniel nearly a year ago. Both owner and dog were really, really happy and so glad they met.spanielfamily
We also heard of ‘Dooza’ a springer collie x, Ethel another spaniel whom some people had rehomed and ‘Fimba’ a mini poodle.
We collected a whole lot of donated dog food and treats from customers, so thank you people of Hove. You were very kind.
Well, that’s it for the time being. Join me again soon for another day on the Dogmobile!
Bye for now.
Cathy
Asda Donnington Wood 18 and 19 Feb 2009
Hello.
Its Cathy again. Here to tell you about my latest escapade.
I had to set the unit up on my own for this event, because my colleague was away.
My goodness that was a task in itself!
I had to block a load of car parking spaces off with trolleys, and then I had to try and reverse the unit into the free spaces without people diving into them with their cars before I could do so! Ha, ha what a laugh.
In the end I had to ‘borrow’ a trolley boy to help me out. Eventually, after a lot of backwards and forwards I managed to get it into position and set up after 3 hours…..
The Roden centre dropped the dogs off for me, two LOVELY staffis. They were two older dogs (mum and son, Roxy and Buster) who needed to be rehomed together and got on with everybody, kids as well. They were thoroughly enjoying their day of cuddles and fuss.
I had a lady called Linda help me on the unit for both days. She is a volunteer co-coordinator at Roden and loves helping the centre out whenever she can. We had lots of ‘doggy food’ donated to us over the two days, which is always lovely. It’s so nice that even in these harsh times, people will still buy a tin of food or a bag of treats for the dogs. On Thursday we had two chocolate Labradors which also needed to be rehomed together. (Pheobe and Rolly.) They liked their treats I can tell you. Well they are Labradors!
Lots of people came and said hello. A lot of people seemed to be looking for a dog or a second dog, but also a lot came to tell us of their ‘ex-Roden’ dogs they already have. One was even from being seen on my unit a few years ago at this very venue. The lady said she’d seen him on the unit, gone and told her husband, and before the week was out, they’d gone to the Roden centre and booked him. How cool is that?!
Once the dogs had been collected by the centre at the end of the day, Linda and I cleaned and closed the unit up. It’s just starting to stay a bit lighter at this time of year, so we managed to do it in the light which always helps when I’m trying to get out of a very busy supermarket. I had hardly moved out of the first space when a car was waiting to drive in behind me.
Phew!! Talk about impatient!
Anyhow, bye for now. I must get ready for my next event.
Cathy
Asda Walgrave 5th and 6th February 2009
Hi all,
Yes it’s me again. Cathy from the Dogmobile reporting on our latest adventure.
Well, what can I say apart from BBBBBBBBBRRRRRRRRRRRR!
We were set up at Asda Walsgrave, Coventry this time. Well my colleague was, I couldn’t get out of the village due to the snow!!
What a sight…..I awoke to find a blanket of snow covering everything. You couldn’t even see the kerbs!
I couldn’t get off my estate to get to the unit let alone set it up. Luckily my trusty colleague was staying in the area and managed to get in to set up for the day. Because I couldn’t get in, this unfortunately meant the dogs couldn’t get there either, so my colleague spent the day huddled in front of the heater on his own…poor soul.
He did have a handful of brave people out shopping go and say hello to him, but not many, and I don’t blame them not wanting to go out…it was terrible.
As the day wore on the snow started to melt a bit thankfully, ending with a big thaw.
The second day started very similar to the first. I awoke to blizzard snow this time. It was settling well again, so although we decided to not take the dogs again (they stayed in a warm centre rather than out in the cold and snow) I battled the conditions to get to the unit. Once again, my trusty colleague had set it up ready for the day. (AAAAAh Bless!), and we both stood on the freezing cold unit, waving at people as they ran from their cars to the supermarket and back.
After about one and a half hours, the snow was getting thicker and faster. We could hear on the radio that the M4, M5, M6 and M40 were closed at places due to snow and the police were warning people not to go out unless absolutely necessary
It was at this point I made the decision to cut our losses and close for the day.
Pity, because we always normally have a good couple of days here, but the Gods were against us this time.
With snow dribbling down our necks, we closed the unit up, attached it to the cab and said our goodbyes to snowy Coventry.
Last year was floods and muddy fields. This year has started with snow.
Still it can only get better…… can’t it??
See you all next time. I’m off to get back under that duvet.
Bye
Cathy
Morrisons Evesham 19 and 20 January 2009
Dogmobile 1 has just been to Morrisons Evesham.Brrrrrrrrrr! What a couple of cold days that was.
We had a brilliant position, right outside the store, but I think the cold weather put a lot of people off from coming to say hello. We just didn’t see too many people I’m afraid, which was a pity because we had three lovely dogs Betty, Bobby and Molly on board looking for homes.
Obviously we were just promoting the dogs and NOT rehoming off the unit. We were hoping to encourage people looking for a dog to visit our rehoming centre at Wickhamford in Evesham to find out more about the dogs and perhaps end up giving them a loving home. But alas, it was not to be this time.
The people we did see though were lovely.We had a lady who had, only last Thursday, rehomed ‘Millie’ a Boxer from Evesham. She was so enthusiastic about her dog saying she was adorable, very happy, and thrilled to have found her.There, another happy ending for another unwanted dog.
After a few behaviour questions, a couple of people interested in volunteer dog walking and a veterinary question!! The event came to an end.
It’s really amazing you know, we spend quite a few hours ‘open’ to the public with very little response, and the minute we close the doors to clean up, 6 or 7 people suddenly appear out of the woodwork wanting to know what we are doing there…..amazing!
Anyhow, that was our two days at Morrisons. Remember, the next time you go shopping, you never know there might be more bargains there than you expect!!
Bye for now
Cathy