Vet charity to visit Brighton & Hove offering free dog ‘MOTs’
Vet charity PDSA is setting tails wagging with plans to visit Brighton & Hove as part of a national pet wellbeing tour, which aims to help all pets stay happy and healthy.
In partnership with Brighton & Hove City Council, PDSA vet nurses will be on board the charity’s PetCheck vehicle carrying out free wellbeing checks for local dogs, and giving advice on other pets. They will be at the following locations:
Tuesday 8 Sep, 10am to 5pm – Waitrose car park, Nevill Rd, Hove
Wednesday 9 Sep, 10am to 5pm – The Level, Lewes Rd, Brighton
Thursday 10 Sep, 10am to 5pm – Selsfield Drive Housing Office, Brighton
Friday 11 Sep, 9am to 4pm – The Hub, 179A Whitehawk Rd, Brighton
PDSA Vet Nurse Helen Wright will check the health of each dog, including their weight, eyes, ears, coat and general fitness. Microchipping, nail-clipping and ear-cleaning are offered free of charge if required. Helen can also discuss dogs’ diet, behaviour, socialisation and living environment, and answer any questions, to help owners make the best choices for their pets. Cats Protection neutering vouchers will also be available.
Helen said: “We know people love their pets and want the best for them, which is why we’re here to help. By offering free, friendly advice and support, we can help owners make small changes that can make a big difference to the health and happiness of pets around Brighton & Hove.”
Brighton & Hove City Council’s Animal Welfare Officers will also be on hand to advise dog owners on the rules and regulations of owning a dog. They will be giving out free dog tags and ‘poo bags’.
Potential dog owners can also find out about some of the strays currently in council care and how to go about re-homing.
PDSA’s PetCheck tour visited locations across the UK last year, resulting in significant improvements to dogs’ welfare*. For instance initial visits revealed that just one third (34%) of dogs seen had an ideal diet. But six months later more than half (51%) of dogs who visited PetCheck were now receiving a healthy, balanced diet – an increase of 17%. Similar improvements were also seen in dogs’ health needs being met. However, there is still room for improvement, says PDSA, as a third of dogs (33%) need help to improve their behaviour.
More information about the PetCheck tour is available on PDSA’s website, www.pdsa.org.uk/petcheck.
About PDSA’s PetCheck vehicles
PDSA’s two custom-designed PetCheck vehicles have been kindly donated to the charity by benefactors Julie and Robert Breckman. The vehicles are named after Robert and his late wife Julie, whose love of animals and support of PDSA has helped to make the PetCheck tour a reality.