You may have noticed that we often emphasise that Holbrook is a little bit different from other rescues. You may also have noticed that sometimes we only have a few dogs available for adoption. So why is that?
Firstly, although Holbrook is known as a rehoming centre, in practice we are much more than that. We accept animals, not just dogs, that are unable to find sanctuary elsewhere and we either rehabilitate or provide a loving home for life. This wasn’t completely by design, it evolved over time. We have a no kill policy and the belief that every animal has the right to a long and happy life. Consequently, we have rescued animals that have behaviour and/or health issues and the numbers have grown as other rescues have become aware of our work.
We work with these animals, addressing their behaviour or health issues before we make them available for adoption. Rehabilitation takes time but we persevere. Some animals never become suitable for rehoming and they spend the rest of their lives in sanctuary at Holbrook. Loved and pampered by Laura and her volunteers.
We have a qualified behaviourist who develops a rehabilitation plan for each dog. She trained with the International School for Canine Psychology and Behaviour and specialises in fear free training. She also provides support for our recently rehomed dogs and their families.
Over the next few weeks we will be introducing these animals, telling you about their backgrounds and the work we are currently undertaking. Dogs such as Poppy who spent the first years of life in a small crate with little human contact. Consequently she was terrified when she arrived and spent her time hiding in a cubbyhole. Now she is out in the field all the time, still nervous of humans but playing with the other dogs and accepting the occasional treat. It’s not only dogs, we rehomed some chickens who were extremely nervous of people. We spent time socialising them and they were eventually adopted. We also have goats, sheep, chickens, a pony and horses.
The second difference is that we are one of the few ‘open’ rescues in the UK. We do not have kennels. The dogs sleep in the sunroom. It is heated during the winter and has a mixture of sofas, armchairs and bunk beds. In addition, there is the kitchen with underfloor heating, it is full of soft beds and purpose built cubbyholes where the dogs can curl up when they need quiet time. There’s also a little room off the kitchen where very nervous dogs can seek solitude.
All this means that we face challenges that other rescues do not. We have limited space because we ensure the dogs have plenty of room. We have higher vets bills and fewer donations from rehoming dogs. We are completely self funding and rely on generous donations from our supporters. If you sympathise with our work and what we are trying to achieve, then please have a look at our support page and find out how you can help https://www.holbrookanimalrescue.com/supportus
We have also set up a separate facebook group where we will post regular updates on each dogs progress and stories of our sanctuary animals and their Holbrook adventures.