South Downs Show: Canine Charities
Michelle Monaghan from the Petersfield Post reports on some of the dog charities at the 2024 South Downs Show.
Copyright: Michelle Monaghan/Tindle
Copyright: Michelle Monaghan/Tindle
Transcript
00:00Dogs are always an important part of the Southdown show, which is held annually at the Queen Elizabeth Country Park in Hampshire.
00:08Many attendees bring along their waggy tail companions to enter best-in-show, gundog displays, demonstrations, obstacle courses and more.
00:19And this year, for the first time, organisers created a dedicated dog zone for all canine lovers.
00:27A variety of canine charities were in attendance. I spoke to a few of them to find out more about what they do.
00:34We're Coast and Country Canines. We're all about wildlife-aware dog walking.
00:38So we're just raising awareness of how to walk in the countryside responsibly with your dog.
00:42So we cover the whole of the coast, and I say we raise awareness, we have all sorts of tips and tricks on our website, and we also do little waggy walks around the coast as well.
00:51We heard it was going to be hot, something to cool the dogs down, and we're going to do some little carrot bobbing, and obviously we have our favourite goose in there as well, to sort of talk about wildlife.
01:00I'm Abby, I'm one of the kennel staff for the Portsmouth Greyhound Trust, and this is Otis, who I rehomed from there.
01:07We take in all retired greyhounds and find them loving homes with lots of different families.
01:15Trying to get out how great greyhounds are, how well they can adapt to different homes.
01:22So for example, Otis lives with my two cats very well. We've got some that live with other breeds of dog.
01:32Old, young, they live in, you know, homes for older people, families with kids, you know, all different kinds of houses and stuff as well.
01:41So just to really show how versatile these guys are.
01:45Hi, I'm Ali, and I'm from Canine Partners. We're a national charity, and we train assistance dogs to help people with physical disabilities.
01:54So it could be someone that uses a wheelchair, mobility aids, that type of thing.
01:58And our incredible dogs help people with tasks around the house.
02:03They empty the washing machines, they pick up things, they help with the shopping.
02:08All those different types of things, and really help give our partners independence back and love.