2021-03-31-accounts

Official

ARC AGM 2021

Chairs Report

Despite having to work under Covid restrictions, we have helped a record 1213 animals this year (April 2020 to end of March 2021).

We have had a few notable large rescues - namely the 25 guinea pigs that ended up as over 50, the 38 degus and a group of 18 rabbits. All the teams were already working to their absolute limits, but we were very lucky, and many good people stepped up to help and offer to foster for us when we so desperately needed it.

Nicole has had only just recently taken over running guinea pigs and it has been very tough, but she's done an amazing job and we are very grateful for her hard work (and no doubt a few grey hairs!) Our appeals for guinea pig and degu food were also very successful - our supporters really are very generous. Though finding somewhere to keep it all safe from mice is a problem in its own right - storage is a constant problem for us.

We continue to rescue ex-commercial hens and have homed over 450 this year. Hens are becoming very popular pets now and our lovely vet, Wendy, is even going on a course on veterinary hen care!

We have rehomed one dog this year, but we have given advice to many, many dog owners. We continue to support the Rescue Remedies kennels with any dog food donated to us.

Four Giant African Land Snails are now happily living in their new home.

All our Summer Fairs were cancelled due to the pandemic which caused a large dent in our funds. A small, but very dedicated, team stepped up to attend car boot fairs and sell online instead. Over £5,500 has been raised this way and thanks need to go to these ladies who work so hard to do this, on top of all the other ARC jobs they do.

Despite the getting up early, heavy lifting, getting sunburn or frozen they'd all tell you they actually really enjoy it!

As well as thanking our fundraisers we need to say thank you to EVERYBODY who has helped in any way. ARC can only run and be as successful as it is with the support of you all.

We celebrate our 20th year in December and are very proud to be such a well-respected rescue. Who knows what next 20 years will throw at us. Here's hoping next year will be a good one!

Donna Yerby Chair

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Cat report 2021

The last year, as we all know, is most notable for the Corona virus pandemic. The period under review falls just days from the start of the first lockdown in Spring 2020 to the end of March 2021 when some of the restrictions were just beginning to be lifted. Clearly, this national crisis had a significant impact on Animal Rescue and Care in general and, thereby the cat side too. We had to quickly review and change our operating protocols so that we could try to continue helping cats in need. We were initially concerned that we would not be able to operate at all but, with the cooperation of our wonderful volunteers, we were able to establish new practices that would allow us to continue our work. To keep contact between people to a minimum, cats were dropped off and collected on the doorstep of volunteers’ homes so that everyone could keep their social distance and there was a lot of handwashing and sanitising so that the relevant paperwork could be completed safely. Home checks were carried out over WhatsApp or similar platforms, as was the viewing of cats by prospective owners, once they had passed their home check. A final step we took was to ask for adoption donations to be paid online, before a cat was collected, so our fosterers did not have to handle cash.

During the first full lockdown, it seemed very quiet with very few cats coming in, but it will probably come as no surprise to learn that the cats that did come in were homed very, very quickly. Most did not even get as far as a foster home because, as soon as they were posted on the website, we were inundated with enquiries, so cats were often homed as soon as their vet visit could be carried out. Vet visits were also something of a challenge during this period but, with Twickenham Vets cooperation, we were still able to get cats checked over before homing. Neutering appointments were more difficult to come by, so we did have to set up an account at another local practice to get all the cats who needed neutering done. During this first lockdown, we were also inundated with kind people wishing to volunteer as fosterers as they found themselves at home. However, although we began by taking on some of these people, it quickly became apparent that we did not have enough cats for our regular fosterers let alone new ones! This was an unprecedented situation in the 20 years since ARC was founded.

Despite it feeling to Karen and Emily (who organise the cats coming in and then being rehomed) like this year was much quieter than the previous year, when we looked at the actual numbers, we took in 39 more cats and homed 38 more than the previous 12 months. Although we took in and homed an increased number of cats, what was very noticeable was the lack of kittens. In this year, we were asked to take in just over half the number we had dealt with in the previous 12 months. We believe this was directly linked to the fact that many people wanted a pet during this period and kittens were selling on some sites (not rescues!!) for many hundreds of pounds. Therefore, people with unwanted litters and those wanting to make money quickly knew they could sell their kittens and make a nice profit! We can only hope that kittens sold in this way ended up in loving, responsible homes.

One of the most memorable cats to come our way during lockdown was an elderly, 16 year old cat called Pearl. She was brought to our attention by an ARC supporter, Lauren, who works as a pharmaceutical’s rep visiting lots of vets. At one of the practices she visited, she met Pearl who had been taken to be put to sleep by her owners as she had been suffering from diarrhoea for at least two years. Lauren asked if ARC could help, and Pearl came to stay with Karen at the end of November 2020. It soon became apparent that Pearl’s problem was severe with pooh literally dripping from her bottom uncontrollably! Karen had to keep Pearl in her utility room where all the

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surfaces were washable, and the washing machine ran almost daily washing Pearl’s bedding. The vets at Twickenham tried various treatments, including steroids, and Pearl was placed on a specialist veterinary food. There was a marginal improvement but nowhere near enough to enable Pearl to be rehomed. It was clear that Pearl was uncomfortable, as she crouched on her litter tray many times a day suffering clearly from cramping pains. Karen considered whether it might be kinder to have Pearl put to sleep but took her back to the surgery one last time where she saw vet Adam. Adam suggested trying Pearl on a long-term antibiotic as this is sometimes successful at treating irritable bowel syndrome which it seemed likely Pearl was suffering from. It was also possible she was suffering from cancer, but it was felt to be worth treating Pearl for irritable bowel in case this was the issue.

Soon after beginning the antibiotic, Pearl began to improve and, providing she was kept on her special diet, the situation began to improve, and Pearl started to regain control of her bowel function and, more importantly, seemed much more comfortable. Once it seemed this improvement could be maintained, Emily placed Pearl on the website but also ‘advertised’ her on Facebook. This prompted a wonderful older lady, Emi, to come forward and offer to foster Pearl long term. Pearl was collected by Emi in early March and she settled into her new home, in Twickenham, immediately. Pearl was greatly relieved not to have to share her home with Karen’s 2 feral cats and 2 dogs anymore! Emi was also delighted with Pearl who is the sweetest, most friendly cat. Since going to live with Emi, poor Pearl has had one episode where she was quite poorly but the vets at Twickenham were again able to help her. ARC continues to support Pearl’s veterinary care for her irritable bowel while Emi provides for all her other needs for which we are hugely grateful.

Another cat that came to us with severe medical problems was a white and torti cat called Isabel who arrived in our care in September 2020. She was a much-loved pet but had a terrible skin condition that her owner could not get on top of and could not afford to treat. When she arrived, Isabel had many sore places on her body that were hairless and weeping. She must have been so uncomfortable. Again, she was seen at Twickenham Vets where she was fleaed and given a steroid injection. She was then collected by Joe and Eva, two very experienced cat fosterers. They cared for Isabel for over a month as we fought to get in control of Isabel’s skin condition. Eva and Joe had to take Isabel back to the surgery several times and Isabel had to wear a collar to prevent her from scratching at her itchy wounds. With appropriate veterinary care, Isabel very slowly began to recover until, eventually, she was ready to go on the ARC website. A lovely lady, Mima, came forward to offer Isabel a permanent home. Isabel settled very well into her new home and her skin has continued to improve so that she no longer needs to wear her cone. It seems likely that her skin had become so bad due to a severe allergy to fleas. Her new owner has to make sure Isabel is regularly treated with a veterinary brand flea treatment to keep her flea free.

These are just two of the many cats ARC has assisted and found loving homes for in the past year despite the restrictions imposed by Covid. We are very proud to have been able to function during such difficult times and are so grateful to all our volunteers for making this possible.

Karen Hide Cat Rehoming Co-ordinator

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Peal enjoying her new life

Isabel in her new home.

The first photo shows her leg almost healed and the second Isabel is looking longingly at the garden

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Rabbit Report

When I joined the rabbit rehoming team (in May 2010) we were rehoming around 100 rabbits per year. At the end of this financial year, we rehomed 248 rabbits (and took in 221). This is a huge increase in just over 10 years. Numbers have been slowly increasing year on year and we, and other rabbit rehoming charities, are now at crisis point. As I write this, we have over 60 rabbits in rescue and are still getting around 10 enquiries per day asking us to take in more unwanted rabbits. It’s a really sad and desperate situation. I think this next year we need to try to find ways of educating and informing people about the situation and how we can stop people buying rabbits from breeders and pet shops and adopting instead . . . a big job!

We still hold a very long waiting list of rabbits waiting for a rescue space so if a rabbit needs rehoming and is already neutered and vaccinated we offer to rehome the rabbit directly from the owner (a DRH rabbit). We ask for details of the rabbit and confirmation of their vaccination then when interest is shown for that rabbit we get them in to ARC and the viewing is done at the foster home. It takes a bit more coordination, but it helps us to rehome more rabbits when we are so full.

Luckily, we were still able to continue rehoming during the Covid lockdown and worked out ways of doing it safely for ourselves and the adopters. We carried out all home checks by video or photos and a telephone call. Adopters were asked to ‘meet’ the rabbits in their cars, and when bonding was needed, rabbit drop offs were done on front doorsteps with everyone keeping their distance. It took a bit of getting used to, but it soon became quite normal!

So, here are some highlights - The new year started with some good news for two rabbits who had been in rescue for over a year. Missy & Nibbles arrived with us the year before in a real state. Nibbles was very mucky around her bottom and smelt awful, poor thing. We gently cleaned her up and put them both on a strict diet of hay, a few pellets and pro fiber and absolutely no veg. It took many months to get them to eat this healthier diet, but perseverance won, and they eventually started to smell sweeter and Nibbles’ back end and tail started to grow new fluffy fur again. They were adopted by a lovely lady called Lisa who absolutely adores them.

In July we were asked to help a family where breeding had got out of control (which happens all too often)! Very often people don’t realise their female is pregnant until she starts to nest build and 12 hours later she has a litter of kits. As the male is usually still in with her, she is pregnant again that night and 30 days later another litter of kits are born. But in this situation, there were three single males, one single female, a pair of boys, three mums and all their babies, 18 gorgeous Dutch bunnies altogether, all living in cramped and dirty conditions. After all being neutered and vaccinated, we found wonderful homes for them all.

In September, one of our volunteers spotted a post on a local social media page showing a domestic rabbit had been spotted out in the wild. Within a few hours a group of amazing volunteers set out to try and catch the rabbit. This is not an easy job, but it was made even more difficult due to the surroundings of boggy ground, brambles, and a large open area. A humane trap (usually used for catching feral cats) was taken and loaded with food and the team sat quietly waiting for him to hop in. Eventually after waiting patiently that evening and the following day, little Dorney, as we named him, hopped in and everyone breathed a sigh of relief. He was one lucky boy and is now living the best life with a beautiful female bun.

One real highlight for us this year was the adoption of Albus & Remus. They came to ARC over 3 years ago and were the most terrified rabbits we have ever had. They needed a really special home and the right home just never came up. We decided the best we could offer them was a long-term

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foster place with a family who had already adopted from us. But in February this year the family decided to formally adopt them (now called Bob & Alan) and they have the most wonderful home with attached runs which they can feel safe in while enjoying their space. We really couldn’t have asked for more for them.

In April and May, we took in 8 white rabbits who had been found dumped on Hounslow Heath. In April it was two boys (Harry & Herbert) then in May we were alerted to more white rabbits having been dumped. We put a message up on our FB Volunteers page and within an hour people had dropped what they were doing and headed off to Hounslow Heath. Amazingly they managed to catch Mum (who we have called Peony) and her five 3-week old babies. Peony was very thin and yellow (from being pee’d on) but was still a great Mum to her babies. Peony has now put on weight and is ready for neutering and will then be off to a loving home of her own with a neutered male. We wish people would realise that domestic rabbits will not survive in the wild!

Thank you to all the wonderful Bunny Team Volunteers, we have achieved so much this year!

Gill Manning Rabbit Rehoming Co-Ordinator

Guinea Pig Report for AGM

The phrase ‘be careful what you wish for’ certainly applied to the ARC guinea pig team in the year ending 2020-21. After a steady flow of piggies coming in and being rehomed, some of the fosterers wanted more work! They began to ask when they would get their next foster pig as they had room for more squeaky guests.

In March, their wishes were granted when 25 guinea pigs came into rescue from one property. The boy guinea pigs had been fighting and some needed treatment for bites. The females looked in better condition, but appeared to have quite full tummies.

This was the biggest single rescue we’ve ever done, but even worse, the girls’ waistlines continued to get bigger and our suspicion that they were pregnant was confirmed. Within 10 days of coming into rescue the first of our chunky girls went into labour.

The team of fosterers rose to this incredible challenge, many of them overseeing piggy births for the very first time. Some of them stayed up all night to keep watch on their maternity wards. But under the guidance of our top midwife, Jan, we got all the mums through safely and ended up with a staggering 36 baby piggies. And with uncanny foresight, we even called one of them ‘Lilibet’, weeks before Harry and Meghan announced their news.

This huge guinea pig challenge showed just what a disaster can unfold when unwitting owners buy guinea pigs and don’t get them sexed. But it also showed what a fantastic team of volunteers we have at ARC. They are ready to drop everything to collect or take on a new guinea pig, to get the necessary vet treatment, to administer medication if needed, to get to know the personality of their foster pig, to handle them and get them used to people, and to shower them in love until they are adopted. Astoundingly, 39 guinea pigs from that rescue have been rehomed so far.

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And what a complex job it’s been for volunteer Lynn, who dedicates so much of her time to organising and overseeing the ‘bonding’ of guinea pigs, and for Jean, who keeps a spreadsheet of the numbers.

This year we’ve taken in more guinea pigs than ever before, which highlights both our success, but also the increasing number of unwanted pets.

A top priority apart from rescuing and rehoming has been continuing our work to improve the welfare of guinea pigs. In March we took a very active role in the first ever national Guinea Pig Awareness Week. We posted advice on all aspects of guinea pig care across our social media platforms, with videos, posters and information. One of the key aspects we highlighted was the size of living accommodation guinea pigs need and we got some of our adopters to send in photos of ‘model’ set-ups. Our rehoming guidelines have also been revised to ensure that all guinea pigs go to big enough living quarters – whether indoors or out.

We hope that in year 2021-22 we can continue our education work alongside our rescuing and rehoming and help make life better for guinea pigs whether they’re in our care, or somewhere else. Thank you for your ongoing support.

Nicole Jenkins

Guinea Pig Rehoming Co-ordinator

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Small Furries Report

As I'm sure we say every year, it's been incredibly busy again! We've sadly had to say goodbye to some fosterers due to changes in personal circumstances but have taken on a few more helpers to prepare for the predicted post-lockdown surge of animals coming in. The Small Furries side continues to be managed by Cat Davies (for animals coming in, website edits, fosterer recruitment, social media marketing and awareness etc.) and Nicole Jenkins (for animals going out i.e. home checks, advice for adopters, connecting them with the fosterer etc.)

We've had a steady stream of rats coming in which we've luckily been able to rehome quite quickly, helped by posting about them on social media and rat rescue groups.

Rats: 38 Hamsters: 11 Mice: 27 Gerbils: 15 Chinchillas: 10 Degus: 43 Also a few fish

For hamsters, it's been much quieter than usual, possibly because they were a popular choice of pet during lockdown - we had endless emails asking to adopt hamsters but barely any available, and any that did come in, weren't around for long! It's good to know that people still made the time and effort to contact us, even though we couldn't offer them the animal they wanted, instead of just impulse buying from a pet shop.

We had a lot more mice this financial year and with needing to get the males neutered due to their smell and likelihood of fights due to hormones, we're very grateful to Windlesham Vets for continuing to do this for us as many vets don't neuter mice due to their size or charge an astronomical price to do so!

We also had quite a few gerbils and with our dedicated gerbil experts (Polly & Sian), we had a brilliant outcome for gerbils who arrived in December 2020 and March 2021 (see photo):

Rosie arrived in foster care late last year, having fought with her tank mates. Clare arrived in March in a terrible state having been attacked by her tank mate. As both these girls were a similar age (3 years) the gerbil foster team decided they could be a great match. They used the split cage method for 3 weeks in a Falco, swapping them to different sides 3 times a day, so they sleep on a different side each night. After much patience, they successfully bonded so are now spending their retirement together in their adopted home.

We're continuing to be contacted about chinchillas as a lot of other rescues don't take them

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due to being classed as exotics so for this reason, we now have an account with CJ Hall in East Sheen who are exotics specialists, to ensure they're in tip top condition before being adopted.

This year we had what we refer to as a degu explosion! We were contacted by the RSPCA after they were notified about a hoarding situation with a house full of hundreds of degus in only a few cages, so they had to get them out. They contacted rescues for support across the UK including us so after assessing how much space we had and who could foster, we ended up with 43 in total, inclusive of babies who were born in our care! Some of the adults were in poor health with sores and generally traumatised but after veterinary attention and lots of love and care from their fosterers, they're back to full health and many have been rehomed now. Sadly, degus aren't popular animals even though they make great pets for children and are fun to be around and intelligent. Many people also haven't heard of a degu before so we decided to run a degu social media takeover for a week in March, inclusive of educational videos, posters, degus of the day (those waiting for homes), quotes from adopters and first time degu owners etc. We posted across various groups and local veterinary surgeries also shared our content. It was a slow start but did help to drum up some interest and get people talking which we're delighted about! We also got some very generous food (possibly the most successful response to a request for food ever!) and equipment donations from our social media followers and small businesses so a big thank you to them from us and the degus!

Finally, with the extra time with being able to work from home i.e. no commute for some of us, we created brand new factsheets using Canva for all 6 of the small furries we rehome, to help educate and prevent potential adopters asking the same questions or finding inaccurate or misleading information online. We also negotiated discounts with independent businesses for ARC adopters to help with costs when setting up for their new animal(s) but to also help give them guidance on what to buy (whilst also supporting a small company) as many larger retailers stock unsuitable or unsafe items.

Thanks again to all the fosterers for your time and effort with the many animals you've looked after and given the confidence to, to allow them to show their true personalities!

Cat Davies Small Furries Rehoming Co-ordinator

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AnimalRescue andCare
Contents
Item	Page
Trustees' Report	2
Independent Examiner's Report	3
StatementofIncomeandExpenditure	4
Balance Sheet	5
NotestotheAccounts	6

	Year Ended31/3/2021	Year Ended31/3/2020
Receipts Donations FundraisingActivities Animal Adoptions AnimalAcceptances	72,031 7,834 43,161 2,184 840	17,245 9,556 31,774 2,401 378
MembershipSubscriptions PetPlanCommission	2,152	1,908 3,148
OtherIncome BankInterest	360 128,562	371 66,781
TotalReceipts
Payments VeterinaryFees FoodandSupplies Equipment Printing,Postage&Stationery Advertising&VenueHire Telephones&Website	60,537 4,847 1,425 1,473 2,948 216	51,414 7,207 955 1,647 35 619 216
SubscriptiontoJustGiving	95	133
Pet Feeding Insurance OtherExpenses	663 1,812 74,016	1,262 1,604 65,092
TotalPayments
NetIncomefortheYear	54,546	1,689

	31/3/2021	31/3/2020
	£
Current Assets	156,175	94,872
CashatBank		2,141
Cashinhand	156,175	97,013
TotalCurrentAssets
CurrentLiabilities	4,616
Creditors TotalCurrentLiabilities	4,616
NetAssets	151,559	97,013
Reserves ReservesBroughtForward	97,013 54,546	95,324 1,689
SurplusfortheYear	151,559	97,013
TotalReserves