RSPCA Burton upon Trent & District BranchRSPCA Burton upon Trent & District Branch
News articles are courtesy of the Burton Mail
In 1971, Major Langham opened the RSPCA kennels in Green Lane, Tutbury after a short spell operating from kennels in Hoar Cross. Green Lane was operational until our current purpose built kennels and cattery were opened on November 7th, 1989 at Hillfield Lane.
The 1980’s was a busy time for RSPCA fundraisers and volunteers as they worked hard to raise the money to begin building at the Hillfield Lane site. Although the land was purchased in 1979 it was ten years before the first animals took up residence in November 1989.
The RSPCA Animal Home was officially opened on July 14th, 1990, by Mr Joe Young, former Burton & District Inspector from 15/4/77 to 30/4/90. This original building now houses the staff room.
For several years the rabbits were housed in individual hutches, open to the elements. Imagine cleaning a dozen hutches in the pouring rain, wind and snow!!! The staff and small animals were relieved when, in November 2001, the SAU was opened by the Mayor of East Staffordshire Mr Peter Davies.
In 2001 Foot and Mouth swept the country devastating farming and tourism. Over 6 million cows and sheep were destroyed in an effort to contain the disease. Due to having goats on the premises we had to close the Animal Home and keep the goats indoors until it was safe. No volunteers or public were allowed on site and staff kept overnight bags in their cars in case of worsening conditions. Who would have thought that in 2020 another virus would close our doors again?
After an appeal to the public in 2001 the new goat shelter was finally built in August 2002 thanks to the generosity of local people. We were grateful to Paul Asker, Paul Hirst and Inspector Jason Fletcher who gave up their precious time to build this goat-proof shelter. I’m sure that the goats appreciated their efforts!
Our new reception, office space, disabled toilet and meeting room were officially opened by Burton Albion’s Manager Nigel Clough and captain and striker Darren Stride on 22nd March 2008.
The Aviary was kindly donated by June and Alan Fearn and Sharon and Robert Shorthose whose daughter Mel worked at the Animal Home for many years. Now no longer used as an aviary it is still a useful storage area.
This summerhouse, generously donated by Mrs Muriel Pitchfork, is the ideal place for cats to chill out and relax. Its layout gets cats used to being in a home environment making the transition between pod and home less stressful. Who wouldn’t want to lie around on a cosy cushion?
In 2007 and 2008 Victorian Markets proved worthy fund raisers for the Animal Home and gave our volunteers a good excuse for getting dressed up!!
In 2019, we celebrated 30 years at Hillfield Animal Home. But this was not the beginning of the RSPCA Burton upon Trent & District Branch, in actual fact, it began right back in 1876!
Most Recently we held a 30th Birthday event with a dog show to celebrate and raised lots of much needed funds. Our 30th birthday also signifies the fact that our kennels and cattery are now 30 years old and seriously in need of renovation.
Boris, our Vietnamese Pot-bellied pig, came to us as a little piglet via Inspector Dawn Burnett on the 25th of June 2003. He had been found in a field of sheep in Audley, Stoke on Trent. He passed away on 31st of January 2020. He was a firm favourite with staff and visitors alike and is sorely missed. Boris’s party trick of peeling a banana before eating it had to be seen to be believed!
On the 23rd March 2020 Boris Johnson, British Prime Minister, announced that all non essential shops and services must close.
We had to close our gates and shops to our loyal volunteers, adopters and supporters.
This impacted greatly on our finances as we could no longer rely on our shop income and fundraising events.
We are extremely grateful to our animal home staff who, classed as key workers, worked tirelessly to keep our animals safe.
It was with great excitement that we opened our gates in October for our first Post Lockdown Fundraising Event heralding the return of our popular Dog Show, Cakes, Raffles and Shop Stalls.
We also welcomed our first online pet competition including; Cats, Rabbits, Guinea Pigs and Tortoises.
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