Puppies on Parade to Help Wounded Soldiers
http://dervishcom.blogspot.com/2011/11/puppies-on-parade-to-help-wounded.html
Undisciplined, loath to obey orders and with one eye on the biscuit barrel, these young recruits may seem ill-equipped to form an elite new military force.
But when their training is over in two years’ time, the puppies will be invaluable assistants to members of the armed forces who can no longer work. As well as performing routine tasks such as opening the door, emptying the washing machine and getting money from a cashpoint, the labradors and golden retrievers will provide companionship and support for young soldiers seriously hurt in Afghanistan and other conflicts.
Costing £900 each and picked for their sociability and cheerfulness, the puppies are the first recruits for a new charity called Hounds For Heroes, which has already raised £100,000 towards the £20,000 each dog will cost during its working life.
‘When the guns go quiet on the battlefield, the battle with injury, trauma and bereavement are only just beginning,’ said charity founder and vice chairman Allen Parton, a former Royal Navy weapons electronics officer.
Mr Parton, 54, from Clanfield, Hampshire, has been confined to a wheelchair since a car crash during the first Gulf War in 1991 robbed him of his mobility and some of his memory. But his despair was eased by Endal, a retriever which helped him with everyday tasks.
They formed a partnership which resulted in newspaper and magazine articles, books, TV programmes, a film and awards – including the coveted Dickin Medal, the animal equivalent of the George Cross, in recognition of Endal’s devotion.
Mr Parton, who teamed up with another dog called EJ after Endal’s death two years ago, said: ‘A group of us realised there was a need for an individual organisation that only places dogs with veterans.
‘We set out to raise the first £100,000 because we worked out that it will cost £20,000 per dog from the time it is seven weeks old, through its training when it is looked after by one of our volunteer puppy walkers, to the eight years or so it will be with its new owner.
‘We are going to be paying all the costs because we don’t want a young soldier who has a wife and children to be worrying about dog food or a vet’s bill.
‘I have been humbled by the response and how much the armed forces want this to happen. We set out to fundraise without a product to show for it because we wanted the money in the bank and it has just poured in.’
Each of the first recruits has been given a military name. Monty was named after Second World War general Field Marshal Montgomery and Colonel after Colonel David Sime of Hampshire, who won the Military Cross for holding a position for days to help infantry cross the river Po in Italy in 1945.
Flanders got his name from the battlefields of the First World War, Yomper is in honour of Royal Marine Richard Hollington, the 300th serviceman to be killed in Afghanistan, and Juno is named after a D-Day beach. Donors can name a puppy for £5,000.
But when their training is over in two years’ time, the puppies will be invaluable assistants to members of the armed forces who can no longer work. As well as performing routine tasks such as opening the door, emptying the washing machine and getting money from a cashpoint, the labradors and golden retrievers will provide companionship and support for young soldiers seriously hurt in Afghanistan and other conflicts.
Costing £900 each and picked for their sociability and cheerfulness, the puppies are the first recruits for a new charity called Hounds For Heroes, which has already raised £100,000 towards the £20,000 each dog will cost during its working life.
‘When the guns go quiet on the battlefield, the battle with injury, trauma and bereavement are only just beginning,’ said charity founder and vice chairman Allen Parton, a former Royal Navy weapons electronics officer.
Mr Parton, 54, from Clanfield, Hampshire, has been confined to a wheelchair since a car crash during the first Gulf War in 1991 robbed him of his mobility and some of his memory. But his despair was eased by Endal, a retriever which helped him with everyday tasks.
They formed a partnership which resulted in newspaper and magazine articles, books, TV programmes, a film and awards – including the coveted Dickin Medal, the animal equivalent of the George Cross, in recognition of Endal’s devotion.
Mr Parton, who teamed up with another dog called EJ after Endal’s death two years ago, said: ‘A group of us realised there was a need for an individual organisation that only places dogs with veterans.
‘We set out to raise the first £100,000 because we worked out that it will cost £20,000 per dog from the time it is seven weeks old, through its training when it is looked after by one of our volunteer puppy walkers, to the eight years or so it will be with its new owner.
‘We are going to be paying all the costs because we don’t want a young soldier who has a wife and children to be worrying about dog food or a vet’s bill.
‘I have been humbled by the response and how much the armed forces want this to happen. We set out to fundraise without a product to show for it because we wanted the money in the bank and it has just poured in.’
Each of the first recruits has been given a military name. Monty was named after Second World War general Field Marshal Montgomery and Colonel after Colonel David Sime of Hampshire, who won the Military Cross for holding a position for days to help infantry cross the river Po in Italy in 1945.
Flanders got his name from the battlefields of the First World War, Yomper is in honour of Royal Marine Richard Hollington, the 300th serviceman to be killed in Afghanistan, and Juno is named after a D-Day beach. Donors can name a puppy for £5,000.
