Caring for our furry friends

Caring for and improving the lives of furry friends is a labour of love for volunteers at Peninsula Animal Aid.

Kevin Smart, Anne Denton, Leanne Wainright and all 110 volunteers work tirelessly at PAA to ensure all animals – big and small – are looked after before they find their forever homes.

Kevin works as a Cattery Supervisor, Anne as the President and Kennel Supervisor and Leanne as a Kennel Attendant.

Whether they started volunteering due to retirement or to simply find a new hobby, Kevin, Anne and Leanne’s love for volunteering has blossomed thanks to the friendly animals and supportive team – who dedicate their time to caring and respecting each other and the animals.

Having volunteered for varying amounts of time, Kevin for seven years, Anne for 14 and Leanne for one, the three all share similar memorable moments during their time at PAA.

“I think all of our adoptions are just memorable moments. It’s good to see – because I work in the cattery – it’s good to see a cat or a kitten get adopted,” Kevin says.

“Probably one of the most memorable moments was Jack. He was a cattle cross dog that we had here for over eight years because we’re a no-kill shelter, so we don’t put anything down – we just keep them and hopefully eventually the right person comes along; and he got adopted after eight and a half years, so that was great,” Anne says.

“So, one of my favourites…was a dog called Dobby. We got four of them in together – there were three girls and then Dobby was the male,” Leanne recalls.

“All the girls got rehomed, but Dobby stayed for quite a few months and then eventually, one of the families that took the girls saw that he was still here and decided to adopt him as well.

“So as much as I was sad to see him go, it’s lovely to see he's found a family, and we’ve seen pictures of him with his sisters and with the cat as well, so that really warmed my heart to see that.”

Not only are their memorable moments similar, but so are their feelings towards volunteering, with all saying it is a rewarding experience.

“This is my eighth year now as President, so it’s been very rewarding,” Anne says.

“If there’s people who are out there who are looking for somewhere to volunteer and they like animals, this is the place to come.”

To find out more about volunteering at Peninsula Animal Aid, visit the website.