Meet the North East Charity Feeding Hungry Pets in Need
Pet food bank and registered charity A Helping Paw work hard to ensure that no pet goes hungry in Northumberland and North Tyneside
Across the region, pets are treasured family members. But for some, when money gets tight, feeding furry friends is no longer financially possible, and they have to consider the devastating option of giving up their adored animal. This is where A Helping Paw step in, aiming to make sure that no pet goes to sleep hungry through their four hubs in Ashington, Blyth, Cramlington and Whitley Bay. ‘We help keep pets in homes,’ says founder Tyesha Muncaster. ‘We provide pet food to owners who would otherwise have to give up their pets.’
The charity began with Tyesha, who is a self-confessed animal lover and owner of two cats, Oreo and Milo. ‘I got them when they were kittens. When they turned one and were moving from kitten to adult food, I had a lot of spare kitten food left,’ she says. ‘I thought it was a shame to bin it, so I posted it on my local Facebook group to see if anyone wanted it to use for their kittens and the response that I got back was just ridiculous. It spiralled from there.’
That was two and a half years ago. Since then, A Helping Paw have become a registered charity and have helped to feed thousands of much-loved pets with their food parcels. It’s not just cats and dogs, either. ‘We can help any pet,’ says Tyesha. ‘We fed a bearded dragon once, we feed fish. We get donations through PayPal, so we can always buy food in if we have the funds.’
Pet owners who need help simply need to message the charity via their Facebook page. ‘We then send them an application form to fill in. We review it, ask any questions we need to, and arrange for them to collect from their preferred hub, supplying them with a week’s worth of pet food,’ Tyesha explains.
The food parcels are a huge help, giving people the time to save up the money for further food and often making the difference between keeping a pet or being forced to give it up. ‘People have literally told us that if it wasn’t for us, they’d have had to look at rehoming their pets and that it’s been a massive weight off their shoulders. They’re so grateful for the support,’ says Tyesha. ‘It’s quite surreal to be honest, but it’s really fulfilling and it’s heartwarming knowing that we’ve genuinely helped.’
The charity see an increase in demand for their services around Christmas time. ‘The reason we see an uptick around Christmas is because of the cold weather,’ says Tyesha. ‘A lot of people are choosing between heating their homes and feeding themselves or feeding their pets. No one should have to choose.’
However, the charity don’t offer help to new pets, such as those that may have been bought as an ill-thought-out Christmas gift, as they believe rehoming services are more appropriate in such cases. ‘We don’t help new pets, just pets that have been in the household for a while. If someone’s getting a new pet and is immediately asking for our help, it’s not responsible pet ownership.’
Other than donating monetarily via PayPal and giving food at their drop-offs across Northumberland and North Tyneside, the best way to help is to spread the word. ‘The more people know about us, the more we can help and the more donations we can get, too.’
For Tyesha, the future of the charity means helping as many hungry pets as possible. ‘Ideally, we want to keep growing as long as anyone needs us,’ she says. ‘We want to help even more pets as time goes on. We set this up because we noticed a lack of support for existing pet owners, and we’ll be here for as long we are needed.’
