Since we announced that we were one of the three charities selected for The Times Christmas Appeal, £165,000 has already been raised for us by readers of The Times and Sunday Times. Thank you to everyone who has donated through the appeal, such fantastic support will help us transform more lives through specially trained dogs.
We’ve had nine articles over the past few weeks and were proud to be featured in a leading article in The Times on 3 January, where we were described as a pioneering charity making a huge difference:
‘In recent weeks we have recounted how the introduction of highly trained dogs has transformed the lives of autistic children and their families, disabled children and adults, and those living with dementia.
Children unable to go to school, isolated adults, and teachers struggling to maintain control in classrooms have all seen dramatic improvements in their quality of life in the company of these extraordinary creatures.
In the context of a social care crisis charities such as Dogs for Good are plugging the gaps, replacing or reducing the need for care workers to help people around the house. However, for many of the charity’s beneficiaries the real reward is an irreplaceable new member of the family.’
The Times articles have showcased brilliantly how dogs are good for us, featuring our assistance dogs for adults and children with physical disabilities, and autistic children, dementia assistance dogs, community dogs for adults with autism, and our Family Dog service which helps parents of a child with autism explore the helping benefits of a pet dog.
You can meet many of the people and dogs featured in The Times Appeal in the blog area of our website.
Being part of the Appeal has enabled us to raise greater awareness about our work, as well as desperately needed funds to train more dogs and help more people. We’re hugely grateful to everyone who has donated to The Times Christmas Appeal so far.
We’re grateful to JM Finn & Co for supporting the Dogs for Good campaign with a donation equivalent to the lifetime cost for one dog.