Alfie was diagnosed with arthritis at 5 years old and and lived for another 6 years with his condition supported by various treatments and care. Alfie chose to come and live wth me at 6 months, and he was already neutered... Not that I could do anything about that, but I didn't realise this is a possible contributing factor to dogs developing arthritis. I was lucky enough to meet Hannah and her dog Holly who had established www.caninearthritis.co.uk to raise awareness for dog owners and professionals and I will be walking the 64 mile/106 km Serpent Trail over 4 days in September in memory of Alfie (it crosses many of our favourite places) and to raise funds for Canine Arthritis Management.

I also intend to donate to https://www.vetlife.org.uk/ which offers emotional support to everyone in the veterinary community via the independent, confidential 24/7/365 Vetlife Helpline. Mental health is a huge issue in the veterinary industry - I had explored giving Alfie's body over for student vets but my lovely vet politely, eloquently and passionately explained that working with a well loved dog (which Alfie certainly was) was quite traumatic for her when she was studying, so I feel this a more appropriate way for Alfie to provide something as his legacy.

Just in case this sounds like a jolly I've pledged to clear the Trail of any dog "leavings" as a constructive contribution to Alfie's legacy.

Thank you for reading and your support

Henry (and Alfie)