My article in the Withernsea & District Community News
Poppy’s Pets
(distributed to 9000 homes in East Yorkshire)
Keeping the elderly & their pets together
“Peace of mind and practical help for people – love, care and safety for pets.”
Cinnamon Trust
The Cinnamon Trust is a national charity designed to assist people in their twilight years with a team of volunteers helping to exercise or feed their devoted pets. The Trust aims to keep elderly people and their faithful pets together for the rest of their lives.
The charity relies on nationwide volunteers. Help varies – it may be dog walking, feeding animals, fostering or transporting animals to a veterinary practice. And at Christmas, volunteers may receive a blanket email from the Trust regarding the possibility of fostering over the festive season but this is only if you have signed up for fostering an animal in need. The Trust frequently highlights locations they need volunteers for but even if your location is not listed, please still contact them.
Volunteering for the Trust is a rewarding experience. The time you offer can fit around your own life. Even one hour a week would be a massive benefit to them. Just telephone them or download the Volunteer Registration Form. The application form is self-explanatory, but you must provide details of three people willing to give you a reference. In addition, you need a passport photograph for your identification card. Most supermarkets and post offices have a photo booth and the charge is normally £6 for a set of photos.
If you are elderly or housebound and need support, contact the Trust, and they can confirm if there is a volunteer in your area. Support can even be temporary foster care during a hospital spell.
The Trust can help your pet now and in the future. It is a sad fact, but dementia or your death can leave your pet bereaved, alone or transferred to a rescue. The Cinnamon Trust provides long-term care in a home-from-home environment. For example, sofas, armchairs, rugs and homely sounds are standard at either sanctuary (Poldarves Farm in Cornwall or Hillside Farm in Devon). Or they may place your pet in long-term foster care with a volunteer or to live with an elderly person whose own animal has died.
Most animals that come under the Cinnamon Trust’s care after your death are old. The charity does not discriminate against a pet’s age; animals live out their lives with love, happiness and security. I recommend visiting the website and reading heartwarming stories at Case Studies – you will see what I mean.
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What if you need to move into a care home and they do not accept pets? The Trust has a Pet-Friendly Care Home and Retirement Housing Register that accept different pets including birds and fish. The volume of care homes on the page will surprise you! The register is there for you, your family, the NHS, social services and other professional services in the healthcare industry. If you run a care facility and accept pets, please call the Cinnamon Trust on 01736 757900 to be added to the register.
The Trust now offers a Pet Profiling Service for anyone of any age. Once registered, they become your pet’s legal guardian after your death. It gives you peace of mind and the knowledge that your beloved pet will not be transferred into a kennel or cage and suffer emotional trauma because it cannot cope with this environment.
Remember, arrangements and plans must be put in place now regarding the long-term care of your pet.
Visit the Cinnamon Trust website.
Tel: 01736 757900
Email: admin@cinnamontrust.org.uk
Registered charity No.: 1134680
Charity patrons are Virginia McKenna and Sir Paul McCartney.
Join Cinnamon Trust on Facebook for the latest requests for volunteering.
Article published in Withernsea and District Community News – 2021