Dogs Trust Loughborough celebrates ten years of finding dogs their forever homes

Dogs Trust Loughborough has been celebrating their tenth anniversary over the past month, honouring the amazing work of the staff, volunteers and donors who have helped to find over 5,500 dogs their forever homes.

Throughout May, the team at the rehoming centre held several events which were enjoyed by all, from their valued volunteers to their ‘paw-some’ pooches.

To celebrate the many dogs who have been rehomed from Dogs Trust Loughborough over the past decade, a reunion walk was held on 28 May at the stunning Rushcliffe Country Park in Ruddington. It was an emotional occasion for the centre staff to be reunited with dogs who they previously cared for and to see them living their best life with their new owners. The gathering was a great opportunity for the team to thank their rehoming community and for the adopters to share their rehoming tales.

The Dogs Trust team work incredibly hard to take care of the dogs at the rehoming centre, as well as finding them their happy ever after. Since the opening of the centre in 2012, over 5,500 dogs have been adopted, including the centre’s former sponsor dog, Melton Max.

The Cocker Spaniel came into Dogs Trust’s care as a stray in 2015, and he was believed to be about eleven years old. Initially Max had some behavioural issues which needed to be worked through, so during his time as the centre’s sponsor dog, the team were able to support him with specialised training which led him to finding his forever home in 2017. He is now a very happy OAP (old age pooch) with a family who adore him, and he regularly visits the centre and the team who are very fond of him.

The team’s care for the dogs doesn’t stop once they have left the centre and they have joined their new family, as they continue to provide behaviour training and advice and support adopters for as long as needed.

Celine Di Crocco, Manager at Dogs Trust Loughborough, said: “It’s been a wonderful celebration of all the amazing work of Dogs Trust Loughborough. There have been so many people to thank for their time and dedication over the past ten years, to help find so many dogs the lives and loving families they deserve. The staff, our volunteers at the centre and home-based foster carers, generous donors, adopters, fundraisers, and the list goes on. We are so grateful for everyone’s support.

“I hope everyone has enjoyed our festivities and they are looking forward to seeing what we can achieve in the next ten years, and beyond!”

Other events included 18 of the current four-legged residents enjoying an outing with their canine carers, stretching their legs and exploring a new off-site walking route, racking up impressive 60,000 steps in total. The team at the centre had the chance to exercise their general knowledge in a fun staff quiz. The celebrations wouldn’t be complete without a cake, and the team were presented with a delicious dog-themed cake, made by one of the centre’s volunteers, Janet O’Keeffe.

The centre also officially opened their new summer shed, just in time for the warmer weather. The funding of the new shed, which provides shelter from the elements for the dogs and the team, was donated by local supporter, Marie Lomax, who collected the funds in loving memory Dave Davies.

To find out more about all the dogs at Dogs Trust Loughborough waiting for forever homes, or if you are interested in supporting the rehoming centre please go to https://www.dogstrust.org.uk/our-centres/loughborough/