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Domestic abuse support service appeals for more dog fosterers
Volunteers for the charity have fostered 211 dogs so far this year.

Dogs Trust’s Freedom Project has seen demand grow for its services.

A charity scheme which supports people fleeing domestic abuse by providing temporary foster homes for their dogs has issued an urgent appeal for more volunteers after seeing a significant increase in demand for its services in the last 12 months.

The Freedom Project, run by the charity Dogs Trust, helps people fleeing domestic abuse by providing a safe home for dogs while their owners are staying in temporary accommodation. Many refuges do not have the capacity to accommodate pets.

Once the owners have found new homes, their dogs are returned to them. So far this year, Freedom Project volunteers have fostered 211 dogs, helping 163 people to escape from domestic abuse.

However, more fosterers are needed to help the charity cope with a 23 per cent increase in demand for its services in the past year. 

All fostering costs are covered by the Freedom Project, including food, treats, grooming, bedding, and veterinary treatment. To protect both the dogs and the foster carers, dogs are not fostered in the area where the owner is from and the foster carer will not know who the owner is or where they live.

Laura Saunders, Freedom Project manager at Dogs Trust, said:  “We’ve seen first-hand the ways that perpetrators use dogs to coerce, control, physically harm and threaten within abusive relationships. This is incredibly frightening for survivors and is often aimed to leave people isolated.  
 
“By providing temporary foster homes for dogs, we support survivors to access safe accommodation with the reassurance that their dog will be taken care of until they can be reunited.  
 
“Whilst we are pleased to have been able to help so many people, there is still very much a need for our service, and we urgently need more foster carers across the UK so that we can continue this life-saving work.”  

Anyone looking to become a fosterer, or wanting to find out more about it, can either visit the Freedom Project’s website or call 0808 196 6240.

 

Image (C) Shutterstock

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Equine Disease Surveillance report released for Q4 2025

News Story 1
 The latest Equine Disease Surveillance report has been released, with details on equine disease from Q4 of 2025.

The report, produced by Equine Infectious Disease Surveillance, includes advice on rule changes for equine influenza vaccination.

Statistics and maps detail recent outbreaks of equine herpes virus, equine influenza, equine strangles and equine grass sickness. A series of laboratory reports provides data on virology, bacteriology, parasitology and toxicosis.

This issue also features a case study of orthoflavivus-associated neurological disease in a horse in the UK. 

Click here for more...
News Shorts
NSA webinar explores sheep tailing and castration

The National Sheep Association (NSA) is to host a free webinar on the castration and tail docking of lambs.

The webinar, 'Understanding the tailing and castration consultation: A guide for sheep farmers', will be hosted online on Monday, 2 March 2026 at 7.30pm.

It comes during a government consultation into the methods used for these procedures. Farmers are encouraged to engage before the consultation period closes on Monday, 9 March 2026.

The webinar offers clear and actionable guidance to support farmers to contribute meaningfully to the consultation and prepare for potential changes.

On the panel will be former SVS president Kate Hovers, farmer and vet Ann Van Eetvelt and SRUC professor in Animal Health and Veterinary Sciences Cathy Dwyer. Each panel member will utilise their own specialism and expertise to evaluate risks and outcomes to sheep farming.

Find out more about the webinar on the NSA website.