Get ready for a paw-some day at RSPCA Bryn-Y-Maen Animal Centre

Calling all dog lovers in North Wales! Make sure you don’t miss out on a paw-some fun day and dog show at RSPCA Bryn-Y-Maen Animal Centre on Sunday 19 May.

The annual event – held at the Upper Colwyn Bay centre – will take place between 11am and 4pm. Entry will cost £4 per car and each dog show class will be £3 entry.

Dogs can be registered on the day from 10am and the classes start at 11am. They include classes for puppies, a golden oldie class (seven years plus), happiest dog and rescue dog of the year – among others.

There will also be stalls from local venders, raffle, tombola, VIP tours of the centre for visitors to learn more about the RSPCA’s work and pre-loved pet goods for sale.

Centre Manager Vicky Williams said: “Our annual dog show is always one of those days we always look forward to every year.

“It is a fantastic chance for owners to socialise their dogs with others and take part in classes while giving a chance to our supporters and visitors to find out more about what we do at the centre.

“We also always look forward to the ‘rescue dog of the year’ competition with dogs being entered on the day.

“We hope that once again people come along to our fun event which will celebrate dogs of all shapes and sizes and also help to raise funds for the centre too!”

As always there are a large number of animals at the centre looking for forever homes after being taken into care by the RSPCA. One of their current long-stay residents is Apollo (pictured above)

Sadly he has been awaiting for his own forever home for some time.

Apollo was one of ten puppies that were brought into RSPCA care with their mum in a very poor state. Once they were weaned away from mum and everyone received their well deserved TLC, everyone but little Apollo was rehomed leaving him on his lonesome.

Apollo – a Belgian Shepherd (Malinois) – is a bright spark and picks up new tricks really quickly. He is a foodie focussed boy and will eat anything offered to him. He is able to respond to his name well so has time to run in short bursts on our free-run fields.

He would need an adult-only household and would not be able to live with a cat or small furries. You can find out more about Apollo on his Find A Pet page.

This month the RSPCA has launched its For Every Kind campaign with a new brand for the RSPCA – for the first time in 50 years – and a new advert which sees singing animals performing Aretha Franklin’s iconic hit to demand Respect.

Chris Sherwood, Chief Executive of the RSPCA, said: “All animals deserve our kindness and respect and the first step to changing the way we treat animals is changing how we see and feel about them. Which is why we are launching our For Every Kind campaign to mark our 200th year. A world that is better for animals, is better for us all.”

The changes for the RSPCA come as it celebrates 200 years of changing animals’ lives and the charity says the challenges facing animals are ‘bigger than ever’.

“This year marks our 200th anniversary – that means 200 years of changing laws, attitudes and behaviours towards animals,” said Chris. “But animals are now facing some of the biggest threats in our history, from climate change to intensive farming, from the cost of living to the effects of the pandemic. Unless we act urgently, we risk animals’ lives getting worse, not better.

“The RSPCA has a critical role to play, but we can’t do this alone. We need as many people as possible to join us to build a better world for animals, which means we need people to look again at the RSPCA and what we can all do for animals. We hope a new, bolder and brighter brand will inspire everyone, whoever they are, to get involved with animal welfare so we can rise to the challenges facing animals now and for many years to come.”

For more details about the dog show event on Sunday 19 May, please contact RSPCA Bryn-y-Maen Animal Centre via brynymaen@rspca.org.uk or visit their Facebook page. It will be a cash-only event.

To mark the RSPCA’s special anniversary the animal welfare charity wants to inspire one million people to join their movement to improve animals’ lives. To find out how you can join their million-strong movement for animals visit www.rspca.org.uk/200.