Full Steam Ahead

More fuel has been added to the fire

Fixing the global street problem was never going to be easy. It’s a huge problem to tackle at scale but perhaps the biggest challenges come not with saving millions of dogs but in trying to save the one or two I know best.

Recently I’ve had a couple of painful losses but they only help inspire me to move faster and fix things so less dogs suffer. Losing dogs like Snoop, Derek and Tina is a brutal part of the reality I face but it also helps add fuel to my belly despite the pain…

Tina’s Hospital

Time passes so quickly and it is hard to believe that Tina has been gone since August. There are some super positive updates on “Tina’s Hospital for dogs who aren’t doing so good”…

• More than half the money has already been raised for the hospital to be built

• On track for opening in August 2024 on the 1 year anniversary of her passing

• Land secured to build the hospital on

• Now the work starts on permits, permissions and local logistics

The money has come from the following sources and I can’t believe the support from around the world…

• Royalties I’ve made from selling the book I wrote. 50,000+ copies sold and I will donate every single cent from that to the hospital.

• Money from the merchandise we sold at Christmas

• Some kind people have already pledged donations specifically for the hospital

• Other kind folk are lining up fundraising and helping with campaigns in 2024

I’ll post the exact numbers early in the New Year and I’ll share them here along with costs and a full plan on how we get the hospital opened. It’s all a little bit big and scary now as I can’t say I’ve ever built a hospital for dogs before but it’ll be done in record time.

2200 Operations Per Month in 2024

People are already asking me if I have any New Year’s Resolutions and the answer is that yes I do and I’ve had a big one for some time. It is so big that its not the sort you can just decide to action on the 31st December…

• A minimum of 2200 dogs will be sterilised every month in 2024

• This means 25,000 dogs will get sterilising operations next year if all goes to plan

• Funding, partnerships and agreements are all already in place for the year

If you take the very simplistic number of 10 puppies stopped per operation that means a quarter of a million dogs will not be born into suffering. Fairly easy to write down here in an email update but a lot harder to achieve in the real world. The planning with the team and partners has been happening for months already. Being greedy I’m actually hoping we might be able to double those numbers if we get off to a good start and I can find more support along the way.

The 2 Kindest Old Gentlemen There Ever Were

Derek sadly passed last night. The outpouring of love he has received has blown me away. I probably shouldn’t be surprised though as I think his humble nature, kindness and gentle ways that I saw on a daily basis shone through on phone screens around the world. As I write this and look at his pile of gifts people gave me on my travels it’s hard not to be sad. I’m also happy he led such a dignified and loved filled end of his life.

Jumbo is still with us but he has late stage kidney failure. He probably won’t make it to the end of the year. He’s happy though sitting here at my feet sleeping and eating sausages. I’ll make sure he doesn’t suffer.

It’s brutally hard losing the older sick dogs but I wouldn’t change what I do for anything else. They are the ones who are forgotten and passed by in life. To give them comfort and dignity is what gives me meaning in my own life. Along with Snoop and Tina passing it’s been a tough 4 months but there is a lot of work to do with the mission in their names.

The Only Way I Know How To Say Thanks

The amount of kind messages and support I’ve been getting in the last 2 days especially has been quite overwhelming. I can’t possibly get back to them all but it shows what an insanely kind and generous community there is out there.

All I can do is share this video of the dogs getting their Christmas dinner. I do this not just for the dogs, but also for the people who help me as it can be a very tough and soul destroying gig at times. I also do it for you guys. Just watch the 8 minutes here and I hope it is the best way I can show you just how much your support and help means for these dogs. I never ever take it for granted. Full video.

My heart is hurting at seeing Derek go and knowing that Jumbo will join him soon. I’m not despondent though because with their memory and the support of so many people comes huge responsibility. I can use the sadness and pain to drive me on to make things happen even quicker. I promised Derek two things as he was dying…

• I’d continue to stay sober even in tough times and even though I have nearly 3 years done already.

• I’d make sure the new year resolution is done in 2024 in his name

It doesn’t get more serious than promising something to Derek when he’s dying as far as I’m concerned. It might sound silly as he was only an old street dog but I don’t want to let him down.

I hope wherever you are you can rest a little at this time of year and be with loved ones. Thank you for being there for me in so many wonderful and surprising ways.

Big Love

Niall

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