Last Hope Animal Charity
This organization has already been registered
Someone in your organization has already registered and setup an account. would you like to join their team?Profile owner : f*********g@l******e.ie
Mission Statement
Last Hope Animal Charity is a not-for-profit voluntary charity that aims to rescue and seek permanent homes for abandoned, unwanted and maltreated animals within the County of Meath and surrounds. Or in the case of lost/found animals, to try and reunite the animal with the owner. The Charity also aims to carry out TNR (Trap, Neuter Return) of feral cats as well as provide additional resources for the spaying/neutering of family cats/kittens.
About This Cause
CATS Trap, Neuter, Return: As a direct result of the grant allocated we continue to bring about a huge reduction in the volume of kittens being born in Meath and surrounding areas. The Last Hope Animal Charity Spay Aware Campaign is an initiative to control cat overpopulation thereby reducing the number of unwanted cats and kittens. The charity abides by the ISFM (International Association of Feline Medicine) Guidelines on population management and Welfare of Unowned Domestic Cats. Last Hope endorses TNR (trap, neuter, return) a method of controlling feral cat population growth. Last Hope supports community-based TNR programmes with ongoing responsible aftercare as the most viable long-term approach available to reduce feral cat overpopulation. As Last Hope operates from a network of foster homes the number of animals we can take into our care is limited. We have achieved a balance of taking tame cats/kittens into the care of Last Hope (based on strict criteria) and focusing our resources into financing our spay aware neutering programme. We believe the spay aware neuter programme benefits the greater cat community and also the local community as the nuisance behaviour associated with feral cats is dramatically reduced upon neutering (fighting, yowling, spraying). The returned colony also guards their territory preventing unneutered cats from moving in and beginning the cycle of overpopulation. The cats continue to provide natural rodent control. Cats/Kittens for Adoption: No cat taken into the care of Last Hope Animal Charity is rehomed without being neutered / spayed. If an un-neutered kitten is rehomed, the adopter is required to sign a “neutering/spaying agreement” (RF-LH-16) and this will be followed up when the kitten is old enough to be neutered (2-3 months). Since January 2018 Last Hope Animal Charity has been responsible for the neutering of numerous cats between our trap, neuter and return scheme and our voucher scheme. The grant we received from the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine in 2018 assisted us in funding our hugely popular voucher scheme (See below). We work alongside participating vets in Co Meath and one vet in Dublin 15 to facilitate members of the public to avail of a reduced rate on neutering. The charity subsidises the balance. We do this in two ways: 1. Voucher Scheme It costs a member of the public €30 per cat to avail of neutering with our participating vets. The charity subsidises the balance by financing the remaining €25 per cat (average cost depending on vet). 2. TNR If a member of the public requests our help but is unable to afford the cost of the voucher scheme the charity will neuter the cats at their own expense through the TNR scheme. On a per cat basis, this costs the charity on average €45 per cat. (vet dependant) EQUIPMENT We currently operate with 3 automatic traps designed to catch 1 cat at a time, 3 manual drop traps designed to catch multiple cats at a time, 1 hospitalisation cages and 1 queens cage for transport. We request a €50 deposit for trap hire. DOGS: No dog/puppy taken into the care of Last Hope Animal Charity is rehomed without being neutered/spayed, vaccinated and microchipped. If a puppy is rehomed, the adopter is required to sign a “neutering/spaying agreement” (RF-LH-16) and this will be followed up when the puppy is old enough to be neutered. Currently, the charity is looking to initiate a dog voucher scheme. LOST AND FOUND THROUGH LAST HOPE Last Hope Animal Charity handles numerous requests for assistance with lost or found animals on an annual basis We do not record how many of these requests lead to a successful reunion of the animal in question. It can oftentimes be difficult, as our posts form a part of a larger network of social media sites who all contribute to get the message out to the general public, to tell if it was our post which lead to a successful reunion. We do have anecdotal evidence that our social media posts generally assist and make it much more likely that the animal is reunited with its owner. EDUCATION AND AWARENESS We believe that we have a responsibility to the animals in our care to give them the best chance possible. Many of the animals (in particular dogs) have been abused or suffered significant neglect and require patience and behaviour modification. Our volunteers provide talks at local primary schools. Volunteers are also present at a number of summer fairs such as The North East Connemara Breeders Pony Show, The Royal Meath Fair and Christmas fairs, and although some of these are also fund-raising events, educational material is always available and volunteers are willing to answer any questions. Through the use of our social media page, we are able to reach a large volume of individuals, providing education and animal awareness information. We have a very active Facebook page with over 20,000 followers. PROVIDING ASSISTANCE Telephone assistance: A last Hope volunteer is available on a dedicated mobile phone number to offer assistance to members of the public. We receive numerous calls and every possible effort is made to assist with queries. Requests for Help: Last Hope Volunteers provide assistance for families in certain circumstances. Occasionally cases will be referred to Last Hope from other animal charity groups such as the ISPCA. Volunteers will also, in special circumstances, provide assistance in the trapping of cats. VET BILLS We help members of the public with veterinary bills on a case-by-case basis. All requests are assessed and we will endeavour to help when we can. In some cases, we run appeals to help with vet bills. WORKING WITH POUNDS When we have the capacity, we endeavour to work with Meath Dog Shelter to prevent dogs from being euthanised. We have an excellent working relationship with both Meath County Council, Environment section as well as Meath Dog Shelter, this is a direct result of the contributions we have made over the years to the general welfare of domestic animals across Meath as well as the number of dogs from Meath Dog Shelter we have helped find a permanent home through our network of foster homes. WORKING WITH OTHER EUROPEAN RESCUE CENTRES We work with a German-Based Rescue, whereby a number of unwanted/abandoned lurcher/greyhound dogs are sent to Germany to provide them with a better life. ADOPTION DAYS We have 2 pet adoption days per month in Equipet, Navan. Fosterers bring in their cats and dogs in their care to the store to allow the public to meet with a view to rehoming. All potential homes are home checked before an animal is adopted. REHOME FROM OWNER We understand that from time to time people cannot keep their animals. We offer these people the opportunity to advertise on our web page and Social Media pages with a view to them rehoming the animal themselves, and also offer them the opportunity to come to our Adoption Days in Equipet with a view to meeting individuals or families who may adopt their pet. We only offer to rehome from the owner for those individuals who have had their pets neutered and in the case of dogs, also microchipped. RELATIONSHIPS WITH PET STORES We have established a relationship with Equipet (Navan and Ashbourne), whereby they contact us when their pet food is almost out of date and donate it to us free of charge. It is food that is too close to its sell-by date to sell but it still in perfect condition and will be used by our fosterers well before it goes bad. We also have donation bins in each of these locations where members of the public can donate pet supplies. FIVE FREEDOMS Every new volunteer is made aware of and given access to our Volunteer Handbook (HB-LH-1) which was first published during early 2017. This contains the 5 freedoms by which last Hope Animal Charity abides. These include: 1. Freedom from hunger and thirst: by ready access to fresh water and a diet to maintain full health and vigour. 2. Freedom from discomfort: by providing an appropriate environment including shelter and a comfortable resting area. 3. Freedom from pain, injury or disease: by prevention through rapid diagnosis and treatment. 4. Freedom to express normal behaviour: by providing sufficient space and proper facilities. 5. Freedom from fear and distress: by ensuring conditions and treatment which avoid mental suffering. VOLUNTEERS All of our fosterers and volunteers assist in this massive rescue effort free of charge. We do not provide a salary or any other compensation for the time spent. We do reimburse expenses incurred during the fostering of the animals in our care as long as they are in line with the expected costs of caring for a pet. With our enthusiasm and dedication, we believe that we can continue to make huge inroads to lower the volume of animals that are euthanised unnecessarily, or die sick and alone.