Mayhew, London’s animal welfare charity, are doing some amazing things to improve the lives of dogs, cats and the community, both at home in London and internationally.

So when we got the chance to sit down with some of the movers and shakers behind the charity to learn more about their programs, we were pretty excited. We talked all things, from working with the homeless and their companion animals, to community vet clinics, population and disease control abroad and their incredible Therapaws initiative.

Here’s what we learned in conversation with Mayhew…

MBFKC: Your Animal Welfare Officers work closely with the homeless community and their companion animals. What does a regular day for one of your officers look like and how does this work impact the homeless community and their companion animals?

Mayhew: Mayhew has been a lifeline for homeless people and rough sleepers since 2000.

A dog is often a homeless person’s only companion, but the added expense of vet and food bills puts an extra burden on people who are already in a vulnerable situation. Our Animal Welfare Officers regularly visit the homeless and their dogs at centres and on the streets, where they build close and trusted relationships with them and provide free general health checks and microchipping.

On a typical day, our Animal Welfare Officers will offer preventative vet care including neutering, vaccinations, de-fleaing and worming treatments. We also give out collars, tags and leads to keep homeless dogs safe, and provide jackets to keep them warm in the cold winter months. We also make sure all the dogs have plenty of food, and team up with local hostels, shelters and homelessness charities such as St Mungos and Crisis to try and secure temporary accommodation for owners in need.

MBFKC: We think your Therapaws program is absolutely fantastic! Can you give us a little insight into what it’s all about?

Mayhew: TheraPaws is our dog therapy programme that works to improve wellbeing in our local community.

Our team of volunteers take their therapy dogs into care and residential homes, hospitals, hospices and day centres across London to engage with residents, provide companionship and brighten up their day. We specialise in visits to the elderly with dementia and to palliative care units encouraging social interaction to promote emotional and physical wellbeing.

We have also recently started visiting mental health inpatient and outpatient units, where we provide a much-loved service for children, adolescents and adults suffering from a wide range of diagnoses from eating disorders to depression.

“Our TheraPaws visits improve the quality of life of care home residents by up to 12%”

A recent study undertaken by Middlesex University revealed that our TheraPaws visits improve the quality of life of care home residents by up to 12%, and we will be undertaking similar research in the future to establish the scientific benefits of animal assisted therapy in different settings.

We welcome all breed of dogs onto our TheraPaws programme, however there are a few requirements that you will need to match. If your application is successful we will invite you to take part in our two tier assessment, which includes a home visit and secondary location for further assessment and interview. After this you will need to attend a half day TheraPaws induction at Mayhew. The whole process can take up to three months from filling in the application form to your first visit.

MBFKC: Mayhew offer a community vet clinic. Can you tell us what services are offered here, who is eligible to use this clinic and where the clinic is based?

Mayhew: Mayhew’s Community Vet Clinic, based in Trenmar Gardens, NW10, provides free and low-cost veterinary care for all pet owners and our in-house animals. The services we offer include free and low-cost neutering, vaccinations, microchipping and flea/worming treatment.

Our low-cost neutering services are available to everyone. We offer free neutering for cats eligible under the London C4 scheme.

We are also delighted to have been awarded Cat Friendly Clinic status recently. An accredited Cat Friendly Clinic has reached a higher standard of cat care. Achieving Cat Friendly Clinic accreditation involves all staff, from receptionists, nurses and technicians, through to vets. Each accredited clinic also has at least one ‘Cat Advocate’ – someone who ensures the cat friendly standards are adhered to, and who would be happy to talk to you.

MBFKC: Mayhew's Pet Refuge program provides shelter and care for pets and people in crises. We're intrigued… tell us a little bit about this program.

Mayhew: We run a Pet Refuge programme that provides shelter and care for the pets of people in crisis.

Through Pet Refuge, we are able to provide temporary care and shelter for the pets of people facing personal difficulties, whether that be due to an ongoing issue or an unexpected emergency - an owner being hospitalised, going to rehab or needing respite for example.

We ensure that the animal receives the best possible care and is placed in a safe environment for the duration of the crisis period. We can either look after the animal at our Animal Home in London, or we can send a ‘guardian’ to take care of them at the owner’s house for the duration.

MBFKC: Mayhew appreciates the importance of spaying and neutering dogs, both locally and internationally. Why is this such an important task and how do Mayhew go about this on both a local and international level?

Mayhew: The neutering procedure offers a humane and permanent solution to unwanted litters, and reduces the risk of your pet developing certain cancers and other diseases. Your pet will also be less likely to develop unwanted behaviours such as roaming, spraying and fighting with other animals.

There are many causes that lead to the overpopulation of stray and owned animals at home in the UK and abroad; including unregulated breeding of un-neutered animals, limited knowledge and acceptance of neutering, limited veterinary provisions and preventative animal care, and poor waste management.

We address these issues on a local scale, by teaming up with authorities, veterinary training establishments and animal welfare groups to develop programmes that will provide a sustainable solution to the problem. In the UK, we operate a Trap, Neuter, Return programme for feral cats, and offer low cost neutering at our Community Vet Clinic. We run similar programmes abroad in Georgia and Afghanistan.

MBFKC: What are the steps that members of the public should take if they think they may have found a stray?

Mayhew: If you encounter a stray dog, please immediately phone the dog warden closest to you from the list on our website here, or visit www.doglost.co.uk.

MBFKC: When Mayhew take in a dog, how are they cared for?

Mayhew: Many of the animals that arrive at Mayhew have been abandoned or found as strays. We are often called by helpful members of the public, who alert us to animals who are in distress or roaming the local streets. Our Animal Welfare Officers will then respond to these calls and go to help the animal in need.

If necessary, animals are brought back to Mayhew, given an initial health check by our vets or Animal Welfare them, and then either admitted straight into our vet clinic for treatment or bedded down in a warm cabin or kennel to rest and recover. Sometimes, we will look to place an animal with a foster carer if we do not think they will cope with the kennel or cattery environment long term, for whatever reason.

Once an animal is nursed back to full health and has passed behavioural checks, we will then help them to find a new, loving family - animals are advertised on our website and in our newsletter, and also occasionally featured in local and national newspaper articles and columns.

MBFKC: Tell us about some of the programs you are currently working on abroad.

Mayhew: Mayhew International works with governments, local communities and charitable groups to help improve animal welfare overseas. We primarily address issues around dog and cat populations in urban areas, and try our best to change attitudes towards animals.

In Kabul, Afghanistan, the local municipality historically controlled their street dog population by poisoning the dogs with strychnine, hidden in meat. This poisoning causes convulsions and impaired breathing, and often takes over an hour to kill the animal.

In January 2017, Mayhew signed a landmark agreement with Kabul Municipality to stop culling dogs in the city. We agreed that we would implement a mass canine rabies vaccination programme and develop a sustainable dog population management strategy. This programme began in August 2017 with the support of the local authority, and is now in its third cycle.

In Georgia, our team in Tbilisi are currently giving extensive veterinary training and advice to students and established Georgian vets, and helping to treat sick and injured cats and dogs in existing shelters there.

MBFKC: How can the community help to support Mayhew?

Mayhew: As a charity, we receive no government funding and rely solely on the generosity and kindness of people like you. Every single penny you raise and time you give will help the animals in our care who desperately need support and protection.

There are many ways you can get involved; from attending one of our annual events to applying to volunteer at our shelter, becoming a foster carer or challenging yourself to a race, fun run or sponsored silence - the possibilities are endless! You can get advice and inspiration our website here.

*Please note that due to Coronavirus, the majority of day-to-day operations at Mayhew are temporarily suspended, and all of our scheduled 2020 events are either postponed or cancelled. We are listening to advice from the UK Government and Public Health England, and will update our supporters with all new developments. You can read more about our response to the current situation here: https://themayhew.org/coronavirus-update/.*

In conversation with Mayhew

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