Our findings have led us to understand that there is a gap of pet foodbank support in London and the south of England. Pet food isn’t always listed to foodbank clients as being available; some people can also be reluctant to ask for help to feed their pets and instead share their human food allocation with them. A balanced and nutritious diet is essential for the well-being of all family pets; so we’re stepping in to help ensure that this desperately needed resource is in place for those who are struggling to feed their pets during this crisis.

Norwood and Brixton foodbank serves the Lambeth and Croydon boroughs of London and is currently dispatching around 1,000 food boxes per month (of which around 100 include pet food), and is in dire need of pet food stock.

Boxes containing enough food for 3 meals across 3 days for all members of each household are picked, packed and dispatched to clients’ doorsteps from this warehouse. At the moment, support for family pets is more about what food donations they might have to hand to add to a box, rather than being able to provide what each pet needs.

Our team have visited both the warehouse and also an associated community hub, speaking with Project Lead Elizabeth Maytom and Hub Manager Mona Boateng.

This foodbank is aiming to be consistently able to provide separate pet boxes (at around £10 in value) containing enough food for 2 meals per day for 3 days, plus some extra dry food, dentals chews, treats, and perhaps a small toy.

A dog owner herself, Elizabeth will be doing everything she can to prevent pet owners from being in a position of having to give up their beloved companions as a result of the cost-of-living crisis; and we are committed, thanks to our sponsor and corporate partner Waggel, to supporting this initiative to help ensure that no pets go hungry and are able to remain in their loving homes.

Hostels are an essential part of the response to our rapidly rising level of homelessness, providing a temporary place to stay, along with offering additional support to find permanent solutions for housing and reintegration into society. However, research has shown that fewer than 10% of hostels are pet-friendly, which leaves homeless pet owners at a disadvantage, with an understandable fewer than 7% of homeless pet owners willing to give up their dog in exchange for housing.

Already offering veterinary outreach services since 2016, Street Paws have also developed a Dog Champion Scheme, which supports hostels to provide pet-friendly accommodation for those in need, allowing pets to remain with their loving owners.

The scheme encompasses staff training to ensure that they’re comfortable working with dogs, are able to help settle them into their new environment and provide canine first aid. A welcome pack of essentials, along with full veterinary care for the duration of their stay are also supplied to all residents as part of the initiative.

With the support of Waggel, we have committed to financially facilitate the onboarding of a new Dog Champion Hostel, along with providing additional funds to meet the veterinary costs of its residents.

Waggel have very generously sponsored Wild at Heart Foundation’s Pet Foodbank initiative, allowing us to reach dog owners who are struggling to feed their dogs due to the current cost of living crisis in the UK. By providing dog food to be distributed at foodbanks, Waggel’s support will help keep dogs and their owners together, at a time when there has been an alarming increase in people having to surrender their dogs due to rising costs.

Waggel are also financially supporting our partnership with Street Paws and their Dog Champion Scheme.

Ross Fretten, Co-Founder of Waggel – “We hope our donation will allow people to continue to support the livelihood of their pets without feeling ashamed for seeking help during this difficult time. In difficult times, many of us find ourselves sacrificing our own quality of life so that we can continue to provide for our pets. The unfortunate reality is that right now so many families aren’t able to provide for themselves or their pets. That’s why we’re so grateful to food banks for helping people in need and partnering with Wild at Heart Foundation to provide additional help to families and people with pets.”

1. Amazon wish list – Purchase dog food items from our wish list, which are labelled according to priority need, for direct delivery to the Norwood and Brixton foodbank warehouse.
2. UK Pet Foodbank Gift of Giving  – If you’re looking for an alternative Christmas gift, you’ll be helping to ensure that pets don’t go hungry, and are able to be kept in loving homes by purchasing via our shop.
3. Donate – We appreciate it’s a difficult time for all, but for those who can afford it, we’d be hugely grateful for a small donation to help us to support our wider emergency pet food bank initiative via the adjacent donation panel, so that family pets don’t go hungry this winter.
4. Spread the word! – The more people who join us to raise awareness of this crisis, the more family pets we’ll be able to help.

If a regular donation towards a specific project is set up and we subsequently cease to provide support in the future, any recurring donations will be allocated to the areas of our other work requiring the most support.