RESCUE MEI ANIMAL '￿ThNL l unl.ly JustTextGlvlng by vodolon Rescue Me Animal Sanctuary (RMAS) Trustees, Annual Report 01.08.2023 - 31.07.2024 Charity Name: Resciie Me Animal Sanctiiary Address: Bells Farm, Prescot Road, Melling, Liverpool, L31 IAR Telephone Number: 07952 017696 Email: info@rescueme.orR.uk Website and social media: Website: X, formerly Twitter: Facebook: @rescuemeanimal rescuemeanimalsanctuary Legal Status: Registered Charity No: 1157210 CHARITABLE INCORPORATED ORGANISATION GOVERNING DOCUMENT: Constitution Charity Objectives- "For the benefit of the public and in particular the more vulnerable members of our community, to relieve the suffering of animals in need of care and attention and in particular to provide and maintain rescue homes or other facilities for the reception. care and treatment of such animals" REHOMING VEfcRINA A strict rphoming policy is followed ensuring every rescue animal finds their'foreyer home, Every animal in need of professional veterinary care receives it promptly Tlie deiiiai)d tliis yeai. agaiii reinaiiied overwhelming for Rescue Me Animal Sanctuary with 456 ai)ii)ials (agaiii plus iiuiiierous sinall rodents, often pregnant females who gave birth to litters) adniitted froin desperate situations. many having been turned away from other rescues due to the lack of space. Tl)e majority were cats, kittens, dogs. puppies, guinea pigs and rabbits. Once admitted tliey were triaged, provided with the necessary veterinary treatments and were then placed into our foster home network until rehomed. Sadly, again this year we admitted a high number of diseased kittens from the streets and very young kittens with deceased mothers or who had been abandoned, who needed hand rearing which required a large amount of resources. Notably again this year we admitted some very poorly animals requiring significant veterinary treatments. We continued this year to take a small number of dogs from the local pound, and also to publicise their plight, so that we succeeded in getting them placed with other rescues. Kind members of the public and our supporters will often offer to rehome them. but we have to insist that they only go to rescues who can properly assess them. as they have often been passed around from home to home and may not have received the appropriate socialization, exercise and positive training. We are aware of the 'fashion' for particular breeds of dogs, which some people buy without regard to how they can meet any particular requirements for the breed, and a lot of these dogs are then abandoned and end up in the pound. For example, there are a large number of bull breeds, especially French bulldogs, plus an increasing number of "pocket bullies" and at present many of the 'pound dogs, do not have a microchip or it is out of date. A number of Trustees and staff have experience in advising on dog behavioural issues, and we will advise an owner if they want to accept advice which may mean that their dog doesn't need to be rehomed. This year, notably we have again admitted a number of puppies who have cleft palates, most of whom were surrendered to us by their breeders. Some of the clefts were probably caused by inbreeding, as unfortunately some people will want to buy a puppy with a particular colour coat and breeders will often be able to charge a lot more for such puppies. The surrendered puppies were either new born or a couple of days old. The breeders did not have the experience and/or the will to hand rear them. so again this fell to our fosterers and/or our small staff team. Quite often, one or more of the puppies will have died before the breeder will reach out for help. These puppies face an uphill battle because they need constant monitoring and frequent hand feeding, they will need to stay in an incubator and we are always devastated when they do not make it. despite the tremendous efforts made by their dedicated carers. They also require assessment and ongoing veterinary checks and treatment: the breeders who have surrendered them are not prepared to pay for this. We have again this year noted the ongoing increase in brachycephalic{'flat faced,) dogs who are at risk of breathing-related problems because of the shape of their noses and jaws. We continue to operate as a member of the Association of Dogs and Cats Homes (ADCH) and we have been grateful for their guidance provided. We have a staff member on site from 9 to 5 every day. as we have five staff members, one being full time and four part time, plus from October 2020. Steph Taylor continues as Manager. We have a Veterinary Nurse who works almost full time. We continued to run at full capacity making full use of our network of foster homes. Our amazingly dedicated team of volunteers has contlnued to tlrelessly fundraise towards the property remodeling and ￿furb15hmeI7t of our premlses. We are fortunate to have a team of highly committed long-term volunteers, many of whom have been With us since the start of Rescue Me. since￿ compassion and a genuine determination to help our area's most vulnerable animals enables the team to work together to achieve the shared goal of becoming a truly sustainable charitable animal ￿sCUe. Dr Steph Taylor, Founder and Head Trustee at RMAS VISIQN AF7ER CARE & SU Eiiei} animal ￿111[ enjov a healthy, happj, ljfe in a loving home New Okvners are offered exiieyianced after care and support for their neyi pet Our Wision: RMAS continues to fa￿ increasing workloads due to the cruelty and abandonment of animals within Merseyside and the surrounding areas. The overall vision of RMAS is to grow and develop, to ensure that it is effective and fit for purpose to meet the increasing demand and promote education and animal welfare to the general public. Animals provide measurable benefits to people's physical and mental health and this is one area that the organisation would like focus on in the future. The aims of the charity are to: l. Raise awai"eiiess of ai)iiMal welfare issues and encourage the public to adopt these pi"iiiciples; 2. Assist witli tlie iieutering, rescue and rehoming of stray and unwanted animals with special atteiition to those most at risk; 3. Ei)coura8e the local community to become involved through various campaigns; Provide education on animal welfare so that we can put a STOP to animal cruelty at the root level; 5. Provide local employment to like-minded individuals 6. To reduce the numbers of cats living in feral colonies with the expansion of our TNR (Trap, Neuter & Release) programme in partnership with other local rescues. Our Mission Statement "for the benefit of the public and in particular the more vulnerable '.1 "Our philosophy is to members of our community, to relieve Il accept any animal in to our care based solely on its I the sufferingof in need of care I need and not on any other physical characteristic and attention and in particular to providing we have the space to accept and care for j. 11 them. We have a strict non- li provide and maintain rescue homes or ! destruct policy and will # other facilities for the reception, care keep every animal in our care until a forever home and treatment of such animals" can be found" Our Values The sanctuarfs ethos is to never turn away a call from a member of the public even if the problem is outside the capabilities of the organisation or falls outside the remit, but to assist through the network of more relevant bodies within the community to help with the call and to ensure both the member of the public and the animal (s) in question are supported and cared for in a kind, compassionate and supportive manner. Public Benefit Need RMAS has been set up to assist members of the public within the Merseyside region in the rescue, care, support, re-homing and adoption of stray and unwanted animals. The general public benefits from knowing that RMAS will do everything within its capabilities and resources to support both themselves and the animals in need. This includes vulnerable members of the community, people who find they cannot cope, or simply find they no longer can afford to keep their animal due to financial circumstances. Our activities Siiice its foi'iiiatioii iii Jlily 2013. RMAS lias growli frum an extremely small organisation to a registered charity with a iieiwoi'k of foslei" lioiiies spread across tlie Merseyside area and now we have premises. This lias beeii acliieved by tl)e coiiiiiig together of a group of like-min(Jed, passionate, experienced voluiiteei-s wlio l)ave woi.ked witli aiiimals for many years and bring a wealth of experience to the saiictuaiy togetlier witli our Trustees. Every aiiimal that is taken in by RMAS is assessed and they are all: Neutered (if applicable} Microchipped De-flead and wormed Emergency veterinary care is provided if required th On our 5 Anniversary on 20/0712018 almost 2,500 animals had been admitted into the sanctuary and the demand for our assistance grows daily. During the year ended 31" July 2019 we admitted st 458 animals plus 319 hens; to 31 July 2020 563 animals plus 51 birds and small rodents (this number includes the litters they gave birth to) and to 31" July 2021501 animals plus 76 budgies. pigeons, small rodents (and litters given birth to) and we also arranged for 9 'home to home, adoptions Wlth our staff and volunteers providing the advice and home checks. During the year ended 31" July 2022 we admitted and rehomed 540 animals (plus litters born) being400 cats and kittens- 31 dogs and puppies; 60 guinea pigs: 23 hamsters: 20 rabbits: 2 ducks; 2 budgies: a pheasant and a lizard. During the year ended 31 July 2023 we admitted and rehomed 478 animals, being 370 cats and kitten5; 71 dogs and puppies; 12 rabbits; 21 guinea pigs; 2 rats- I hamster and I parrot. During the year ended 31" July 2024 we admitted and rehomed 456 animals (plus litters born) being 328 cats and kittens; 119 dogs and puppies- 6 guinea pigs and 3 rabbits. This make5 a total of 5951 animals helped by Rescue Me. This does not include the animals which we have managed to place with other rescue5. During this year we had a lot of building work completed which meant that some of our facilities were closed for short periods of time and this meant that the number of animals admitted is slightly lower. RMAS charges a re-homing fee for our animals. highlighting the ongoing financial commitment of pet ownership. It would not be in the best interest of any of our animals to re-home them to people who could not afford their upkeep, financial commitment and care. Current rehoming fees at 31/07/2024 are: Cat: £125 Kitten: £150 Rabbit: £50 Dog: Puppy: £375 Smaller animals by minimum donation of £5 £275 We also advise oli tlie i))ii)iii)Iiii) accciil¢iblLI I)uiisiiiE set ups fur smaller animals, because the set ups sold ai)d I"e8ai"ded as accepiable ii) i)et sl)OFlS are oftei) far too small and with inadequate exercise facilities witl) litile to i)0 possibilities for eiiricliinent activities. We do not rehome unless the adopter proirides tlie i-i8lit eiivii.oiii))eiil aiid facilities for any of our animals. le are proud to offei. full 'Rescue Back Up, for all of our animals, and we have become aware that iiiaiiii IEscues do iiot operate to tliese standards. We continue to offer a unique approach to tackling the 'bigger picture,. This involves our 'in-reach' oii-line free-ad work, where we directly reach out to people currently part of the irresponsible re- homing and breeding'system, which forms the crux of today's overpopulation of domestic pets and a large proportion of the animals that ultimately require rescue. This promotes responsible pet ownership as we offer to neuter any resident pets for free especially the mothers of the young who are being advertised and offer to undertake home checks for animals being advertised. This approach differs from other neutering/rescue services who offer a more passive approach by helping only people who seek out their service. We believe the 'on-line animal free-ad community, will not seek help as this community makes it both free and easy to'get rid, of pets they no longer want. We have had huge success by directly approaching these people via comments, private messages or emails in a non-judgmental fashion and offering our help for'free,. Main achievements and summary We have continued to utilise our onsite Vet Room to the full, and now have a fully operational Vet Suite in the refurbished premises. We have specific Vet Days when our staff and volunteers ensure a smooth visit from start to finish: animals arrive at precise times with owners driving in through one gate and leaving by the other and they are given times to collect their animal(s) once they have had a suitable recovery to the satisfaction of the Vet/ Vet Nurse. As it is now compulsory for all cats to be microchipped before they are 20 weeks old, with the details stored on a DEFRA approved microchipping database, the trustees decided that we would neuter and chip all our kittens at 9 weeks, old before they are adopted, which saves them from being recalled so is more convenient. We continue to make best use of our Hospice/Hospital due to the number of very sick and/or palliative animals that we have increasingly been asked to take in. This was constructed and named 'Angel's Place" after Angel, an elderly palliative dog who was cared for at HQ. We were grateful to receive donations and income via, amongst others, Enthuse {formerly Charity Checkout), Paypal, Online Giving, Payroll Giving, Go Cardless and Justgiving, Petplan, Agria Pet Insurance, Raismore, Vet Club. The Big Help awarded us a grant of £1,000 and we received some donations from individuals who would prefer not to be named. We received £300 from the Mad Do8 Race; various amounts from Aughton Meadows Pet Crematorium, from the clientele of the Pear Tree Cattery and from Colormatrix; £5430 from R McGinnis; £IOOO from Animal Friends. We also receive grants and do fundraising activities at Pets at Home, both the Edge Lane and the Southport branches. I"he Aiiia7.01) Wi%li Li%t ai)i)eals c()iitii)Iie to $111)F)()rl ()Iir wi)rk an(1 many nec.eeJJ*ary rJiJpplieJ arp donated bil oiii. kiiid siii)ii()I'ti'. i-s. We coiitiiiiie to l)ave siippoi'l fi'oii) doiiors wlio Eive reEiilarly via stan(Jing order for which we are very gi"atefiil. Ivei) will) tlie iiiipacl of tlie LOSt-of-livii)e iiicrease. this has remained steady. This iieai- oiii" I'affles, facebook sellii)g Eroiip, F.bay selling, street collections and a (Jog walk continued to bi"ii)g iii fiiiids, as well as sales of clotl)iiiE, cakes and bric a brac. The 'Boiiiis Ball, Lotteiy briiigs iii a regular income of £195 monthly which is of great help. Some wiiiners have decliijed to accept their prizes and we are grateful for these extra donations. A lottery has also been set up to bring in another welcome regular income. Gifted supporters and volunteers continue to make and sell craft items which are always popular, including knitted, crocheted and wooden items such as hog houses for hedgehogs. We continued to raise money by weighing in clothing, curtains and handbags which were not suitable to sell and from selling used stamps. A number of supporters and volunteers kindly donated themselves or asked their friends and families to donate instead of giving presents or sending Christmas cards, and this wa5 much appreciated. We are grateful to those small businesses who hold our charity collection boxes, as well as to those businesses who act as drop off and collection points for pet food. donations and auction items. Sadly, a number of our supporters passed away during this year and we were extremely honoured to receive donations in their memory. Several volunteers also donated funds in rnemory of beloved deceased pets. We have made progress with further renovations of the building which is all subject to Planning Applications and we have engaged specialists to perform the various surveys as required by Sefton Council. We work in a collaborative way with other likeminded rescue organisations. As can be seen in the Receipts and Payments Account for this year, compared to last, our income has remained steady, owing to an increase in donations. decrease in adoption fees, roughly the same in fundraising and gift aid and an increase in the contribution (individually assessed depending on the person's circumstances) for Vet Costs, Neutering and Microchipping. We also received reimbursement from VAT Claims. Our expenditure increased in terms of Vet. medicine, kennels and animal transport costs and payroll costs (there was an increase in the National Minimum Wage); we also spent £256666 on refurbishment of the building to create the "Vet Suite" with a suitable operating theatre. recovery room, consulting room and specialist cages and equipment. We remain optimistic about our future Examples of some of the anlmals whom we have had the pleasure to care for thls year qIIIL- ti) lis lix)iii .q liiiii ii) Illl'¢il I,i)IlLtI.81iirL Ic I cippri)ximcQtcly 8 week.8 cild. Fle was, born 7.a711 L4 iiiilijii ,? 11)lillll' i)I" ILI'qI l L,ql8. iiiicl iilili()IlL?II IiL li1i(13 sibling8, he wa8 the smallest and very IlllIlLiiILiLilil tc)I' li18 Qc gyL. li ivas LILa1' IIL Iiic (18()me L()ngenital issues anil all of his feet were ILtI)IIIILxI. likLI)r iqs 42 IL8iIII ol" gLIiLfc?li()iis ()1" Llose genetic breeding. Al l adults were neutered .91 ()iir i)118iIL ulii)iL. aiiLI liis sibliiigs liave gjone on to find lovely homes through Rescue Me. IIffiLii he arrived al oui. veteriiiary clinic, his prognosis was quite guarded. He was also suffering iith Lal tlu. and ivas unable to use one of his back legs. Zazu, however, did not let this get him doiin and had such a zesl foT life tliat he passed on to everyone who met him. After a course ot medication: Zazu's iiiedical condition improved greatly, and although physically he looks difterenl, this did not slow him down and he was usually up to all kinds of mischief. He can climb, run and play just like a nornial cat with no signs of pain or discomfort. He enjoys life in his forever hoine and is completely adored by his owners. He has three new friends, one cat and two dogs, and even enjoys going on holiday. 1".97. I.gIIIL li) lig .91 .$ IVLLks i)ILI c)1) 21i(l M,ii'Lli 2()24. 1 li.%. brcL(IL'r Wcls planning t() euthani8e him a% IiL ilias iii)iiiiliiib) 1111(l iiiilinl VLI IL.sl% liii(l ii()I f()iin(l a (licigyn()8is. 'la/. came tc) us in a very l)i)i)rl!r 8latL iiqili iiili'aLI'Il)IL Vl)iiiilii)g l)iil IiL rL.8P()iILIL(I WLI I to puppy g