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STROKE CLUB CLOSES ITS DOORS – Page 3
DELAY IS A BRIDGE TOO FAR – Page 4
HUSBAND’S FIGHT FOR SUFFERERS – Page 6
Dogs left fighting for life after shotgun attack By Petra Silfverskiold TWO dogs were left fighting for their lives after being deliberately shot in their kennel. Lurchers Jess, five, and her father, eight-year-old Pointer, were attacked overnight last Monday on an allotment in Ashington. Staff treating the dogs at Cramlington’s Croft Veterinary Hospital initially thought the pair had been used as bait to train fighting dogs. It was only when they were well enough to be X-rayed last Wednesday, that vets discovered their bodies were riddled with lead shot. Jess was shot from above, shattering her shoulder blade and causing widespread muscle damage. She still has around 50 pieces of shot in her upper torso. Pointer was hit in the leg, destroying his elbow joint as well as causing a horrific gaping wound. Veterinary surgeons were forced to carry out emergency surgery to save his leg. Both dogs were on the verge of hypothermia when they were found by their distraught owner the morn-
Young and old stood shoulder to shoulder to pay their respects to those who have made the ultimate sacrifice as services were held across the region on Remembrance Day. Full story and more pictures, Pages 38 and 39.
Youngster to get pioneering surgery to help him walk By Tegan Chapman LITTLE Callum Brown’s dream of walking tall is a step closer to reality, after a date for his life-changing operation was confirmed. The eight-year-old cerebral palsy sufferer, and his parents, Sharon and Neil Brown, have raised more than ÂŁ50,000 to pay for the surgery in America which they hope will enable him to walk unaided. The youngster, from Derwent Road in Seaton Sluice, isn’t able to walk far on his own, and it is hoped the Selective Dorsal Rhizotomy surgery performed by Dr Park at St Louis Children’s Hospital in Missouri, will increase the muscle tone in his lower legs. Thanks to the fundraising efforts of the local community and umbrella organisation the Angels of the North, the money raised will allow him to undergo the surgery – and a further operation to lengthen hamstrings and heel chords – and then continue with vital physiotherapy on his return to the UK. Mum Sharon is now busy making the arrangements for the trip, with the surgery due to take place on January 22. Sharon said: “I am excited
Date set for Callum’s life changing op
Callum Brown and mother Sharon..
his
for him, but really nervous. When I got the date I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. “It’s been two years of fundraising so I just can’t believe it’s really happening.� A pupil at New Hartley First School, until recently Callum has had to rely on a wheelchair to get him around. “He’s done such hard work to get to the stage where he can have this operation, and he’s now using the sticks, but the hard work really begins when
we come back,� said Sharon. Callum will need intensive daily physiotherapy when he returns after the surgery, and may need to return to St Louis. Sharon added: “The fundraising will continue so we can get physiotherapy for Callum when we come back. “It’s been tough, and it’ll be a hard year next year, but hopefully it will all be worth it. “Thank you to everyone who has helped make it possible.�
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COLLIERS HIT THE OPPOSITION FOR SIX AS GOALS KEEP COMING ... Back Page
ing after the attack and were barely breathing. Vet and hospital co-owner Judith Joyce said: “When Jess came in she was just flat out on the trolley. She had lost a lot of blood. “Pointer was similar but not quite as a bad.� When the team started treating the dogs, their organs had begun to shut down. Their circulation was so poor it was a struggle to even put them on a drip. Having had fluids and two types of intravenous pain relief, Jess and Pointer were finally able to be properly examined. “They had fluids and antibiotics and have been drugged up for the pain,� Judith said. “They were too poorly for Xrays when they first came in. “We had to wait until they were stable and we knew they could breathe.� Two other dogs, in the kennel at the Woodhorn Road allotments at the time, were unharmed but remain at Croft for their own safety. n Continued on Page 2