Around-the-World Big Dog Walk makes pledge to raise thousands for dog charities.
Who doesn’t love Walkies? Vinnie and the PAAW Crew are polishing their walking boots, and calling out to our PAAW friends and ambassadors to join us for a fun event throughout September, to raise much needed funds for our charities, StreetVet and The Wild at Heart Foundation.
Our friends Mr Binks and Prudence the proud owners of Anna Webb, host of ‘A Dogs Life’ will be joining us on our walkies, they will be doing their walk on behalf of another very noble charity ‘The Thin Blue Paw Foundation’ https://thinbluepaw.org.uk/ recently set up by Fabulous Finn, the brave police dog who came back from the brink of death, and went on to change the law, and his human Dave Wardell.
With support from the likes of Gemma Atkinson, Carley Stenson and Michaela Strachan, who will all be getting involved with their pooches – the organisers of the Big Dog Walk series are proud to announce the 2020 Virtual Dog Walk – the World Big Dog Walk Challenge, which will take place across the month of September 2020 and aims to raise thousands of pounds for dog-related charities, whilst not compromising the safety of those involved.
Dog walkers from all over the world will complete their walks independently, getting involved via the World Big Dog Walk Website: http://bigdogwalk.co.uk/world-walk Walkers can choose to walk wherever and with whomever they like.
It is free to get involved and all money raised will go directly to charities that support dogs in need. Dog walkers can make pledges to walk a certain distance or raise a target amount for one of our canine charities www.streetvet.co.uk or www.wildatheartfoundation.org. You can also choose a charity featured on the website.
Nicole Cooper, Managing Director of the Big Dog Walk series says:
“2020 has been a tough year for humans and dogs. Dog charities have been suffering throughout this world heath crisis and so we are asking our pawsome dog walking community to get out and about in their own environment – should that be in a field near your house or even around the block on your regular walkies – and pledge a distance you and your pup will walk during the month of September to raise money for the dogs we all love.
“According to The Institute of fundraising, charities are expecting a 24% reduction in total income for the year, which equates to a £12.4 billion loss, in total (between 23rd March and the 12th May). This loss of income could potentially devastate many animal charities, where lives are often, quite literally, hanging in the balance. The World Big Dog Walk aims to make a difference, by calling upon the dog walking community to come together to raise valuable funds for man’s best friend”.
Organisers are aiming to hit a total of 40,075km – the circumference of the Earth and are encouraging dog walkers to let their dogs take the lead, get out into the fresh air and clock the miles up!
Once the miles start clocking up, Pip, the walk’s Virtual Dog, will start his journey around the world map which is updated in real time on the website depicting the miles walked by fundraisers. His aim is to lap the entire world (at least once).
Following months of lockdown and continued social distancing, the next Big Dog Walk series will take place across several sites in the UK, including Hylands House, Loseley Park and Belvoir Castle, in spring 2021 but in the meantime, organisers are delighted to be able to raise money and get dog walkers involved in their own virtual dog walk challenge. Street Vet’s co-founder Jade Statt, states: “Like all charities this pandemic has affected our funding streams with StreetVet seeing a 60% reduction in donations. The need for our services has intensified with calls to our teams increasing by over 100%. Looking to the future, we have real concerns that as a consequence of the pandemic, the number of those experiencing homelessness is going to rise and the need for StreetVet will be greater. Consequently, we want to thank the Big Dog Walk series for their support, it is needed more than ever.” Nikki Tibbles & the team at The Wild at Heart Foundation team, says: “We are living through an unprecedented crisis, one that has a truly global impact. Its understandably a worrying time for all charities, and we’re doing all we can to support our partner shelters and projects overseas to ensure that they’re able to continue the urgent care of strays in their area. We know that in times of crisis, animals are the first to suffer, and we want to make sure that we’re doing everything in our power to continue our rescue work when its needed the most. We cannot do this without the support and generosity of our community. We’d like to extend a huge, heartfelt thank you to everyone who has reached out and helped during this challenging time. “ For more information and to sign up visit: http://bigdogwalk.co.uk/world-walk To donate to Street Vet or The Wild at Heart Foundation please visit: Street Vet https://www.justgiving.com/streetvet The Wild at Heart Foundation https://www.justgiving.com/wildatheartfoundation Thin Blue Paw Foundation – https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/thinbluepawfoundationfundraiser Big Dog Walk can be found on social media at: Instagram @big_dogwalk, Facebook @bigdogwalkuk and Twitter @big_dogwalk Join the conversation on socials using the hashtags: #joinourpack Don’t forget to tag us on your socials too, @paaw_house and make sure you comment PAAW Crew/Team on donation page. Lets do this friends!