I am planning to take part in the 2012 Pike Hike, a walk organised by the Rotary Club of Todmorden in Lancashire which covers some of the local countryside. The walk is approximately 12 miles in total which I will be doing together with my dog Daphne. The reason for the walk is to try and raise funds for the Himalayan Animal Rescue Trust, a charity which helps animals in Nepal.  It primarily runs a birth control programme, anti-rabies inoculation and also treats as many sick and injured animals as their funds allow.

After my first visit to Nepal, I was deeply affected by the vast numbers of street dogs which roamed the streets, the vast majority of them starving and furless due to infection by mange mites. Most of them are very sick and many injured due to being hit by motor vehicles. The way the local authorities generally deal with the street dog problem is by putting down strychnine laced meat.

HART have also started a programme helping cats, although the numbers of dogs far outweigh the number of cats.  Mules, donkeys, and horses are used as working animals throughout the country and most of them suffer dire conditions.  At this moment in time, HART does not have the resources to help alleviate their situation.

They have been working to help animals in Nepal for a while now, but it is a mammoth task and they need all the help they can get, hopefully we can give them that help. I wish that all the animals in Nepal could be as loved, well fed, have a comfortable warm bed, and be looked after as well as Daphne is. Sadly that is not the case but I do hope to alleviate their suffering by raising funds for HART.