One Forty

Last year, as part of the 2012 Million Paws Walk, I raised over $1,000 for the RSPCA. I am doing it all over again and hope to raise even more this year with my two dogs, Saxon and Riker, at my side. In order for me to achieve my fundraising goal, I rely on the generosity of you, my friends and family (and as many strangers as possible), to donate towards this vital and important cause. I hope you can support me once again this year – any amount you can donate, big or small, will be greatly appreciated. Even if you cannot donate at this time, sharing my fundraising page far and wide will still help support me in this cause.

Each year over 40,000 animals in NSW turn to the RSPCA for help. The RSPCA is a non-government, not-for-profit, community-based charity. As a charity that is not Government funded, they rely heavily on the generosity of the community to continue their vital work.

The cost of rescuing, caring for, treating and rehabilitating these animals is enormous.

How will your donation make a difference?

The RSPCA provides refuge to animals that are lost, abandoned or rescued from cruelty by their Inspectorate. The RSPCA do everything they can to give each animal a second chance at happiness and this is only made possible with generous community support. The RSPCA receive only 2% of funding from the Government.

No matter how big or small your contribution, the difference your donation could make includes:

- $30 provides overnight accommodation for a horse. 
(99 horses came into RSPCA NSW shelters in 2011/2012)

- $50 pays for a health check for a cat. 
(RSPCA NSW looked after 16,409 cats in 2011/2012)

- $100 allows for the first two vaccinations for a kitten or puppy. 
(11,989 dogs came into RSPCA NSW shelters in 2011/2012)

- $240 covers the desexing of a dog. 
(over 7,200 animals were desexed by RSPCA NSW in 2011/2012)

Please, dig deep and often! Any donation amount is greatly appreciated. Feel free to share my fundraising page with your friends and family – let’s help spread the word and get people involved in donating towards this important cause! Help me support the RSPCA in fighting animal cruelty!

All funds raised go directly to the RSPCA.

Donate Now: http://www.millionpawswalkfundraising.com.au/mpw2013

From my pack to yours,
HotdogWithSauce, Riker and Saxon

If you have been thinking about or wanting professional photography with you and your pets, Tim and Grace from Red Bird Photography have put together a very special, limited time offer that may be purrfect for you and your furry companions!

With over 10 years of study and experience between them, Tim and Grace from Red Bird Photography (now trading as Willow & Co.) are experienced and amazing at what they do; they capture the best moments and devotion of you and your pets and showcase them in beautiful print packages of your choice.  Located in the Blue Mountains, only an hour away from Sydney CBD, they provide photography sessions for those located in Sydney and in the Blue Mountains.

Red Bird Photography actively support the RSPCA. When they’re not in a photography session with their customers, they are often found donating their time to the NSW RSPCA taking gorgeous photos of the many shelter animals across the state who are awaiting adoption into furever homes. Tim and Grace will also be present at the 2012 RSPCA Million Paws Walk in Katoomba this Sunday, May 20 showing their support, taking photos throughout the event and displaying some of their wonderful products and services, so make sure you get your tails down there to see them on the day and say hello!

Willow & Co. (Previously named ‘Red Bird Photography’)
Website: http://willowand.co
Phone: 0406 775 271
Email: info@redbirdphotography.com.au

Follow Willow & Co. on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/willowandco

It has been an incredible and wild first 24 hours into my fundraising for the RSPCA. Yesterday, when I opened my fundraising page to accept donations, I initially set a goal to raise $500. Those of you who have already donated in sponsor of me have been so amazing with your contributions that I have already currently raised $451 which means I am only $49 away from meeting that initial $500 goal!

But I’m not going to stop there. In response to your support, I have now increased my challenge and set my new goal to raise $1,000! Thank you so much for your donations and support. Keep up the amazing effort, guys – you are AWESOME!

Let’s keep the donations coming in for the RSPCA and this great cause!

If you are a business or corporation who is willing to step up to the challenge and get involved in sponsoring me by donating to this great cause, I would love, love, LOVE to hear from you! Don’t be shy – be bold, passionate and wonderfully delighting – no matter how great or small your contribution is, it would be hugely appreciated!

Sponsor me in support of the RSPCA and donate now:
http://www.millionpawswalkfundraising.com.au/hero_pages/view_posts/hwsmpw

I adopted my Kelpie cross Staghound, Saxon, just over one year ago from the Yagoona RSPCA shelter. He is now a healthy 15-month-old who is full of life, love and is a constant source of laughs and fun in my life. I cannot imagine life without him.

This year on May 20, 2012, I will be walking 4.6km with my dog Saxon to raise funds and show support for the RSPCA and animals in need everywhere. This will be Saxon’s first time participating in the RSPCA Million Paws Walk and we are super excited! I have a passion for animals, responsible pet ownership and animal welfare. When I’m not working at my day job during the week, I am spending my weekend working at the Rouse Hill RSPCA Care Centre.

I have set a goal to raise at least $500 in funds for the RSPCA but I am hoping that, with your help and support, I can totally SMASH that $500 goal! I’d really appreciate it if you could share this as far and wide as you can, donate some money and get as many people as you can to also donate to my fundraising page.

The money raised will be helping the RSPCA care for the thousands of animals received each year – provide them with the medical care, love, food, support and shelter they need and deserve. It will also help every animal great and small find their fur-ever home. It will speak volumes about how we should look to adopt shelter animals before we consider impulse buying from a pet store or puppy mill.

All funds raised go directly to the RSPCA.

If you are willing to sponsor me in the 2012 RSPCA Million Paws Walk, you can make your donation online on my fundraiser page: http://www.millionpawswalkfundraising.com.au/hero_pages/view_posts/hwsmpw

If you are a business or corporation who is willing to sponsor me by donating to this great cause, I would love, love, LOVE to hear from you!

 The Easter school holidays are coming up, which means kids will be home and eager to get out and do all sorts of fun things. If you are located in New South Wales near Rouse Hill and have a child who is interested in the protection and welfare of animals great and small or perhaps would like to learn a bit about it for their first time, then pop into the RSPCA Care Centre at the Rouse Hill Town Centre to meet Inspector Claire, one of the RSPCA NSW’s many Inspectors who do fantastic work in ensuring animals are treated with the appropriate care and love they need and deserve.

Claire will be visiting the RSPCA Care Centre at 11am on April 11 and 19 to talk to kids about her job as an Inspector as well as share stories about the four legged friends she has made along the way and the happy endings the RSPCA find for each animal that comes into their care. Inspector Claire will also be giving Easter gifts to every child who attends, plus an additional super awesome surprise for a lucky boy or girl who is a GREAT listener!

Don’t miss out on this fun, totally free activity and the chance to also see some of the wonderful animals waiting for adoption!

For further enquiries:

Rouse Hill Care Centre, Rouse Hill
(02) 8883 0622

Mon – Wed: 9:00 am-5:30 am
Thu: 9:00 am-9:00 pm
Fri: 9:00 am-5:30 am
Sat: 9:00 am-5:00 am
Sun: 10:00 am-5:00 am

Yes. People have a tendency to believe their Internet audience is only as wide as they want it to be. There’s certainly a sense of anonymity on the Internet, so even the most truthful of entries will still feel as secret as they need to be because the majority of its readers a) won’t know the author and b) won’t understand who the content may be about. Sometimes, I think, people want to be heard without feeling as though they are being judged or at a risk of ruining something like a friendship. The Internet, blogs especially, allow that opportunity to feel as though others will “hear” you and give a sense of ‘release’ without having to address the issue directly with the person(s) involved.

It’s interesting, because I recently discovered a blog journal of a friend of mine, whom I recently have begun re-developing our friendship with after we started drifting apart due to our own personal priorities. In that journal was a blog post that spoke about me, only briefly, but was enough for me to gain insight on the thoughts and feelings of this person that I had no idea about at the time. They weren’t negative thoughts or feelings but it was something I kind of wished I knew at the time, so I could better support this friend at that stage of their life.

But, most of all, I think part of what keeps online journals/diaries honest is that people long for the feeling that they’re not alone – to put something out there that expresses how they feel or to discover someone else’s post and realise that person is sharing all the same thoughts and emotions that you have personally been trying to deal with also. There’s a lot of power in realising you aren’t the only person and I think that’s what helps makes publishing blog posts to the public not only such a successful thing but something so voluntary of the author.

If you have 30 minutes to spare in your day, please take the time to watch this video that exposes the injustice of LRA Leader Joseph Kony. We have so many freedoms and live in safety that we often take for granted. Freedom and safety that the children of Uganda deserve to have. That they NEED to have.

YOU are their only hope.
STOP AT NOTHING.
KONY 2012.

Dear pet owners,

Today is Australia Day which means firework celebrations. The days following firework displays result in a 400% increase in stray animals brought into RSPCA shelters across the nation. To keep your beloved furry companion safe during fireworks, here are some tips:

• If possible, keep your pet indoors in a safe and familiar area.
• Walk and feed your dog before fireworks begin as this can help decrease any fear or anxiety they may experience.
• Leave your TV or radio on; you could even use the fireworks time to do a load of laundry! The sound generated by these appliances can help dull out the loud firework noise.

Most importantly, make sure your pet is wearing an ID tag and/or is micro-chipped with up-to-date contact details. I cannot stress the importance of having your pet micro-chipped with your details or wearing an ID tag on its collar – it really does help in the successful reunion of your pet if they ever manage to become lost.

RSPCA NSW Chief Veterinarian Dr Magdoline Awad said a lot of people are unaware of the effects sudden loud noises can have on animals. “Dogs and horses are particularly affected by fireworks,” said Dr Awad. “Animals can break through fences, smash through glass doors or run onto roadways among traffic. Sadly, many die as a result of their injuries.”

RSPCA staff members are still working to reunite owners with lost pets that went missing as a result of New Year’s Eve fireworks. If you find a lost animal without identification; do not keep it. Take it to your local council pound or the RSPCA so the animal can be scanned for a microchip. If the animal is injured, please contact your local vet or the RSPCA.

“You may think you’re doing the right thing by holding onto the animal, but it’s actually illegal,” said Dr Awad. “Every attempt must be made to contact the animal’s owner.

For more advice and information, please feel free to contact your local RSPCA shelter.

Christmas is a time for family, sharing and giving something to those you love and to those in need. The RSPCA have sent a message to Santa, asking him to pay a visit to their RSPCA Care Centre in Rouse Hill, with a professional photographer, to give pet owners everywhere an opportunity to capture their furry companion in an amazing photo!

If you are looking to capture your furry companion in a photo this Christmas, please consider doing so with the RSPCA Care Centre team at the Rouse Hill Town Centre. A photo of the furry love of your life will cost $15 for a 6×4 size photo print, $25 for an A4 size photo print or $35 for both photo print sizes. All of the proceeds raised will be going directly to RSPCA NSW to help care for the hundreds of abandoned and surrendered animals they receive over the Christmas period.

Don’t worry! If you won’t be able to make it to see Santa Paws but would like to show your support for the RSPCA, you can always make a donation to RSPCA’s Project Guardian Angel appeal. In return, you will receive a photo of the animal your donation helped create a happier Christmas for.

So please, if you can this Christmas, help support the not-for-profit organisation that works tirelessly to support our community and animals in need everywhere, great and small.

Saturday Dec 3rd and 10th between 10am—4pm
$15 for 6×4 print, $25 for A4 print or $35 for both photo print sizes

All proceeds going to RSPCA NSW

RSPCA Care Centre
Rouse Hill Town Centre
Civic Way (next to Gloria Jeans)
Windsor Rd, Rouse Hill
Call (02) 8883 0622

Some of you may or may not be aware that I give my time working for the RSPCA and also promoting animal welfare and responsible pet ownership as part of my own personal mission and passion to help unfortunate animals find loving homes and have a second chance at a safe and happy life.

This year, Petbarn stores nation-wide will be partnering with the RSPCA to create “RSPCA Giving Trees.” Until December 24^th, in exchange for a small donation of $3, $5 or $10 in store, you can place a decoration on their RSPCA Giving Tree, with all funds raised going directly to the RSPCA to help provide much needed support over the Christmas period. The decorations will include space for you to write a message and sign with your name (or your pet’s name).

“It’s great to see how excited people of all ages are when it comes to hanging their decoration on the Giving Tree,” says Petbarn Campaign & PR Manager Gail McWhinnie. “There’s a real sense that they are doing something for an important cause – and now is the time of year when the RSPCA could do with that support.”

Each year, during the summer and Christmas period, the RSPCA receive hundreds of abandoned animals a day that require shelter, feeding, medical attention and fostering before they are ready for adoption. Petbarn began their RSPCA Giving Tree promotion two years ago, with this being the third year that they have supported the RSPCA and their mission. Last year, Petbarn successfully raised over $40,000 in Giving Tree donations – these donations go a long way toward helping all RSPCA animals have a second chance at life. This year, Petbarn are hoping to do even better!

So, if I could ask you all to do one thing for me this Christmas, it would be to either make a donation directly with the RSPCA or visit your local Petbarn store and make a donation at their RSPCA Giving Tree. Petbarn will be running their promotion until December 24^th, with all funds they raise being presented to the RSPCA in the New Year.

Find your local Petbarn store: http://www.petbarn.com.au/locations.php
Donate directly to the RSPCA: http://rspcaguardianangel.com.au/

Please help spread the word and share this post with your work colleagues, friends and family.