I tried volunteering at St Francis Animal Welfare shelter

Staff and volunteers at St Francis Animal Welfare said they have a backlog of animals waiting to arrive at the shelter, but no available space.

The rescue shelter in Mortimers Lane homes several domestic animals, from dogs and cats to rabbits and even two pigs.

But the charity relies solely on donations and the hard work of volunteers to keep afloat.

(Image: Newsquest)

Yvonne Colville has volunteered at the shelter for around five years and said that in an ideal world, the shelter needs around £14,000 a month to keep on top of running costs and repairs.

She said: “The shelter means so much to me and I would be quite lost without it if it shuts down.”

She spoke while I spent a day volunteering at the Fair Oak shelter.

At the time of our conversation, I was in the exercise yard with seven-year-old chocolate Labrador Mabel who arrived at St Francis with her sister Poppie last month.

This was my second time in Mabel’s company, as I took her on a walk around the neighbouring fields with volunteer Lyn Sprake and greyhound Syd.

Lyn Sprake with Syd and Mabel, right (Image: Newsquest)

Lyn told me she started volunteering after retiring and spends at least three days of the week walking the in-house dogs.

“I only live 10 minutes away so I just come in when I can, and I particularly enjoy walking Syd”, she said, as Syd trotted besides us.

She said: “This is ideal for me as my husband and I were not ready to get another dog after ours died.

“By coming here often I can see the change in dogs like Mabel, she is so much calmer now than she was.”

Maya with Florence the kitten (Image: Newsquest) Fostering a strong relationship between volunteers and animals is key for the shelter's success.

The team is also a force to be reckoned with – everyone has jobs to do and tasks to complete and it is like a well-oiled machine (and I tried not to get in the way).

In a brief break between her busy schedule, shelter manager Katie O’Brien told me that above all else, the welfare of the animals is the most important thing.

After that comes funding the shelter and the teamwork.

Katie said: “I came to England from America six years ago and I did my first work experience placement here at St Francis while I was studying at Sparsholt.

“You really feel as part of the team here.

“We are currently making a lot of changes to the shelter and we aim to do anything we can to benefit the welfare of the animals.”

Katie O'Brien with Bruce (Image: Newsquest)

In its long and colourful history, the shelter has homed miniature ponies, peacocks, and even cockerels.

But now it takes a more domestic approach, with the aim of making rehoming easier and quicker.

At the end of September, the shelter welcomed 36 kittens – one of the highest numbers it has seen in recent years.

When I arrived, several of them had been adopted, but there are more than 15 cats and kittens still waiting for homes.

My first job is cleaning out two of the cat pens and I quickly fall into the rhythm of sweeping, wiping and replenishing stocks.

But I soon realise there are several more pens just like this, with even more cats and kittens that need to be cleaned, and I marvel at the efficiency of the volunteers moving much faster than me.

Befriending cats Florence and Daisy and cleaning their homes aside, I also shadowed the feeding of the animals (I have never seen so many Whiskas packets in my life) which was a sight to behold.

Bowls upon bowls of dog and cat food balanced in the crook of volunteers’ arms, quickly shared around the shelter, in a dinnertime frenzy.

The enthusiasm of the animals did not make any of the volunteers waver; they were organised, knowledgeable and speedy, knowing exactly which plate belonged to who.

(Image: Newsquest) Feeding and cleaning animals comes at a cost, which is something manager Katie is all too aware of.

“We have around 15,000 followers on Facebook, so if every person could donate just £1 that would cover our running costs for a month”, she said.

With Facebook not launching a like-for-pound algorithm any time soon, Katie relies on her fundraising team to help bolster the bank account.

She said: “It costs £500 a day to run the shelter, which is quite a shocking amount. We are in desperate need for people to support us.

“We have been running quiz nights about three times a year and they bring in about £3,000 each.

“We are holding another curry and quiz night on December 11 at the Concorde Club in Eastleigh which we would love people to attend.

“But we are really keen to find a more sustainable income. Some animals come in really unwell or needing a lot of veterinary treatment, and this is the biggest reason why we have to raise funds, especially as we don’t know if animals will turn up at our door.

“We receive grants from companies, but they can’t be used for the general maintenance of the shelter. Individual fundraisers would really help us as we receive no government funding.”

St Francis Animal Welfare welcomes donations to the shelter, with a particular need for cat litter and food.

The charity also has an Amazon wish list and a donation page at stfrancisanimalwelfare.co.uk/make-a-donation