Thank You Lovely People
On the District Line train into Edgware Road tube station in the morning I often have the same driver who, in his lilting West Indian English prefaces any announcement with, “Hello lovely people.” May I steal his phrase and say, “Thank you lovely people.” for the way you treat the team, especially those in Reception, at York Street.
Recently, someone visiting the clinic was not just unmannerly but offensively so to the Reception staff. Post-Covid, this is no longer a unique event. We used to take courses simply to improve our diagnostic abilities. It’s now necessary for us to take courses such as How to deal with abusive behaviour. We find we’re doing what Transport for London has to do, have our Anti-Abuse Policy on our website.
On the occasion in question two of you, waiting with your pets, instinctively and sympathetically intervened. The rude person stormed off. Thank you lovely people. You have no idea how comforting your kind actions were to the women in Reception.
Faith is her own Animal Rescue charity
When you meet Faith Bridges in Reception you know immediately that she’s on your pets’ side. What you don’t know is who she returns home to when she leaves York Street at the end of the day.
First of all there’s Poppy, a white and brown dog who was rescued from an abusive home by the charity All Dogs Matter. Poppy has become very chatty in her advancing years but she remains head of the Ealing Squirrel Police.
Joe, also from All Dogs Matter is a brown and black Jack Russell with a penchant to live at his own slow speed. He says ‘Absolutely not!’ to going outside in the rain. If you have a Jack Russell you’ll know he’s not the only Jack whose favourite words are ‘chicken’ and cheese’.
Mo, a white and black stray cat arrived at the vet clinic where Faith previously worked, limping on a broken toe. Faith describes Mo as half golden retriever and half parrot. He runs to the door when you come in, loves sitting on her shoulder and loves getting dirty!
Mushu is another stray tabby brought into Faith’s previous practice in Ealing. She says the older he gets the sweeter he is. Mushu demands cuddles by tapping on Faith’s forehead. Clever Mushu.
We’re going to the dogs worldwide
The international animal welfare charity Humane Society International (HSI.org), where I was Chairman for over 10 years, has been collecting dog population statistics for over 70 years. We learned that the best way to compare dog populations – worldwide – is as “dogs per 1000 humans”. And it’s known that the dog population goes down as human population density goes up. For example, here in London dogs per 1000 people is much lower than, for example, rural Yorkshire.
Here are some dogs per 1000 people numbers from HSI.
| Country | 1950 | 2020 |
| India | 250 | 300 |
| United States | 215 | 239 |
| United Kingdom | 125 | 140 |
| Mauritius | – | 190 |
| Sweden | 80 | 90 |
| Pakistan | – | 40 |
Over the last 70 years, in poor or rich countries, dog populations have increased by a consistent 9 percent. This has probably happened to cat populations too. In rich countries another more dramatic change happened. We humanised our pets. My dogs Plum and Honey are ‘members of my family’.
That’s why in the UK, private equity firms now own over 60 percent of our vet clinics. Because of the emotional investment we make in our pets, private equity sees vet clinics as profit centres and vets as ‘income generating units’. Not at York Street. We are here to care for and comfort our animal companions. Our simple approach remains as it always has been “Practice kind medicine.”
My children and grandchildren finally convinced me it was time to share some personal stories. I have recorded a few videos about my own experiences with pets, and I am pleased to say they are now live on Facebook and Instagram. They are deeply personal stories, each one shared straight from the heart. As fellow pet owners, I hope you find them meaningful.
In the coming weeks, I also plan to share plenty of practical advice on feeding and nutrition, as so many of you ask about food for your companions. I hope these tips will help you make the best choices for your much-loved pets.
On the topic of technology, we’ve introduced easier Online Pet Registration. You’ll receive a confirmation email within minutes. You can now self-refer to our Behaviour Service by completing the Canine or Feline Behaviour Questionnaire online. We plan to introduce self-referrals for our other specialist services too, for dermatology, ophthalmology, neurology, cardiology and internal medicine. This is technically more complicated so if you would like an appointment with one of our specialist vets please telephone the clinic on 02077232068.
Cordially
