Member Article

Aspers Casino makes ‘top’ donation to Newcastle Dog and Cat Shelter

Aspers Casino is turning would-be rags into cosy beds for abandoned animals at the Newcastle Dog and Cat Shelter.

The Newcastle-based casino is donating 275 t-shirts left over from a promotion to the charity, which cares for more than 3,000 lost and abandoned animals every year at its centres in Claremont Road and Benton North Farm.

The charity will shred the t-shirts to make bedding for the animals it cares for. According to the national recycling organisation WRAP, around 100 million tonnes of textiles are thrown out by homes in the UK every year and end up in landfill, when much of it could be reused.

Aspers Casino spokesman Darren Hedley said: “We were touched by the recent terrible news about the fire at Manchester Dogs Home, and our thoughts turned to the thousands of animals cared for here in the North East.

“Rather than adding to the landfill problem with our left over t-shirts, we discovered that they could be recycled as beds, helping with the sterling work the Newcastle Dog and Cat Shelter does every day.”

As a private registered charity, Newcastle Dog and Cat Shelter does not receive any public money towards its essential work and relies on donations and legacies from members of the public, plus income from the cattery and kennels it runs to provide boarding facilities for pets while their owners are on holiday.

All money donated to the charity is used to feed, house and provide veterinary care at its two centres. As well as cats and dogs, the Shelter’s Benton site also looks after unwanted and abandoned horses, donkeys, sheep, goats and pigs.

Claire Tucker from Newcastle Dog and Cat Shelter said: “We work to reunite missing pets with their owners and to find new forever homes for unwanted animals, but the bill for feeding, housing and meeting their veterinary needs runs into tens of thousands of pounds every year.

“We are grateful that Aspers Casino thought of us and we will be able to use these t-shirts to make warm, comfy bedding for our animals. As a charity, we are unable to accept promotional clothing for resale but by recycling the t-shirts, we will be saving money that would otherwise have been spent on buying bedding.”

Aspers Casino is building a strong reputation for helping out in the community. Earlier this year, it stepped in with last-minute sponsorship to allow County Durham bobsleigher Mica McNeill to travel to the British Bobsleigh Championships in Austria, where she won the overall title. The Aspers Group also sponsored Team Boatylicious, which recently successfully became the first all-women rowing team to cross the Pacific Ocean from California to Hawaii.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Sarah Waddington .