Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

As some of you may know, in September last year we adopted Teddy the Yorkie from the Mayhew Animal Home in London. At the age of 4 he was no longer wanted by his previous owners and was therefore thrust into the completely alien enviroment of an animal rescue centre with dozens of other dogs.

Established in 1886 the Mayhew have become the busiest and most effective animal sanctuary in London, rescuing thousands of animals from cruelty and neglect. They believe that animals, as living creatures, are 'entitled to legal protection, moral and ethical consideration and have a value beyond economic measure'.

They also help animals in need as far afield as Afghanistan, Russia and Zimbabwe.

There mission is to take in and care for unwanted or abused animals and rehome them with responsible, caring owners; to ensure that no healthy animal in their care is put to sleep; to prevent unwanted animals through their neutering and outreach programmes and to promote respect and compassion for animals through their activities, campaigns and education programes.

Basically they turn around the lives of unwanted, neglected or abused animals-Dogs and cats found wandering the streets of London in a terrible state or handed over like an out of date mobile by people who no longer want the commitment of a pet after the novelty has worn off, or are unwilling to compromise their lifestyle! 

When we adopted Teddy, the Mayhew ensured that they were matching the right dog to the right home. Fortunately he did not need fostering before he found us. Some animals need time in a foster home to grow accustomed to living in an ordinary home enviroment, to learn to trust people or to heal injuries or infections that have been left untreated and therefore become incredibly painful, even life threatening.

Whilst some might think it mad to shave the hair on one's head off, I only have to envision the dogs at the Mayhew who have had to be shorn completely so as to treat a neglected skin condition. They don't have the luxury of being vane, so why should I be? After all it will grow back.....hopefully. Hopefully the same colour as well-I already have a few grey hairs and you know what they say-if you pull one out........ If we raise enought money together I won't mind looking like a badger too much!

In supporting the Mayhew I am in good company-famous supporters of the Mayhew include Joanna Lumley Neil Morrissey(Men Behaving Badly) Chrissie Hynde (of the Pretenders) Anthony Head (the Nescafe adverts and Buffy) and famous comedians Ricky Gervais and Al Murray.

It costs £3400 a day to run the Mayhew and you can find out more about them by clicking on this link;

http://www.mayhewanimalhome.org/

HSBC Bank, my employer, will match the money raised £ for £  (up to a maximum match of £500) which is really great. So the more we can raise the better!

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity and make sure Gift Aid is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a UK taxpayer. So it’s the most efficient way to donate - I raise more, whilst saving time and cutting costs for the charity.

So please dig deep and donate now.

I shall update a picture once the deed is done. Saturday the 10th April is the date at my local hairdressers-Lloyd Charles in Englefield Green, Surrey.

I really can't thank you enough for supporting something so close to my heart. Teddy has given us so much, it will be great to give something back.

Nicola

2.03.2010 - P.S I have increased my original £500 target to £1000 as the response so far has been fantastic. Please tell all your friends!