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Wednesday 14th December 2016 The Nugget
News
Give socks this Christmas not dogs By Elise Christian Writer Dog’s Trust Canterbury has changed its name to Socks Trust as part of a new campaign to encourage Brits to give socks this Christmas, not dogs. The company have designed a range of festive socks featuring a selection of loveable hounds abandoned over the festive season. The charity’s slogan, ‘A dog is for life, not just for Christmas’ remains relevant as the company highlight the huge number of Christmas gift pups given up by ill-prepared owners. Last year, Dog’s Trust Canterbury received 218 calls from new owners wanting to rehome their dog in the weeks following Christmas. Over 1000 unwanted dogs are handed in to rehoming centres around the country every year. Among reasons given to Dogs Trust rehoming centres for owners handing over their dogs were “He’s too fluffy” and “She grew too big to fit in my lap”. Adrian Burder, Dogs Trust CEO said “we are encouraging prospective buyers to make sure they’ve thoroughly thought about the reality of dog ownership before they impulse buy. Instead opt for a safe pair of cosy socks that their loved ones definitely won’t give back this year. After all, we can never have too many pairs of Christmas socks”. Socks Trust say that giving any pair of socks this year is a better al-
ternative to giving a dog, but their exclusive range aims to feed consumer desires for pups under the mistletoe by featuring eight pooches and their personal stories. One dog featured in the sock range is Parsnip, a 12-week-old cross breed who was taken in by Dog’s Trust Newbury after being abandoned in a stable before Christmas. Parsnip was one of three puppies bred to fuel the Christmas puppy trade. Dug the Lurcher was also found shivering and confused outside Dogs Trust West Calder in -5 degree winds with a note “too old now, good with kids, good nature”. The lovable pooch was given TLC from staff members before being rehomed. The Sock’s Trust campaign also aims to target people who may be looking to purchase a breeds of dog featured in Christmas adverts. Since the John Lewis advert featuring adorable Buster the Boxer was first aired, searches for Boxers on Kennel Club’s Find a Puppy website have shot up by 160 per cent. But Ms Burder says Dog’s Trust “find themselves picking up the pieces when the appeal of a cute puppy wears thin”. Animal shelters around the country are doing there best to permanently rehome as many abandoned dogs as possible. Denise Dawes, Trustee at Last Chance Animal Rescue said “we feel our homing policies are strong enough not to have dogs returned to us very often at any time of year”.
Dug: tied up and left to freeze
Parsnip: abandoned in stable at 12 weeks old
for families Migrant trailer rescue Hangover after Xmas splurge
By Sam Blewett Reporter
A group of suspected migrants were rescued from a lorry’s refrigerated trailer after calling police for help on the M25, officers have said. Surrey Police said 10 adults and three children were removed from the HGV in Chertsey at around 3.10pm on Tuesday. The force said it received calls from multiple people inside the vehicle. An officer spotted a lorry matching the description given by one of the callers and it was stopped. The people were given the allclear by the South East Coast Ambulance Service before being detained on suspicion of illegally entering the UK, the force said. The adults were detained in Dover, Kent, while the children were placed in the care of social services.
By Vicky Shaw Personal Finance Correspondent More than a quarter of families across England and Wales plan to borrow money to cover this year’s Christmas costs, according to a charity. A survey from the Children’s Society found 28% of families expect to borrow cash to get through the festive season, with those in London, the North East of England and Wales being particularly likely to do so. More than half (54%) of families who have already found themselves in problem debt this year plan to borrow more to cover the cost of Christmas, the research found. Families were considered to have problem debt if it had fallen behind on the repayments of bills or credit commitments. Families with debt,
but who were keeping up with payments were not included as being in problem debt. The research among 2,000 people found that, on average, parents spend £340 on Christmas presents alone. Matthew Reed, chief executive of the Children’s Society, said: “All parents - particularly those who are struggling - need to be aware how difficult it can be to shake off Christmas debt. “No one wants children to miss out on the fun and excitement of Christmas, but neither would anyone wish parents to wake up on New Year’s Day with a nasty hangover of debt.” The Children’s Society, as part of its Debt Trap campaign, is calling for more support for families with children who fall behind on bills and repayments.