Charity kennels reopen six years after closure
BBCA dog charity has reopened its kennels six years after it said it was forced to close them.
The St Francis Dogs Home, near Newquay, Cornwall, said it had to close the kennels because they needed urgent redevelopment.
The charity continued to find homes for rescue dogs in that time, but now has 10 new kennels and two isolation rooms which centre manager Beverly Dobson said would complement the organisation's dog fostering programme.
Jeremy Varcoe, former trust chairman, who cut the ribbon on Saturday, said: "For me it's a real red letter day. I feel very excited about it - I'm sure the home will prosper."
The kennels needed repairs and had drainage issues which meant they were not fit for purpose, bosses said.
They added the new kennels now provided a temporary alternative for animals that were not in a fit state to go straight to a new family.
On Sunday on Facebook, the charity said: "Thank you so much to everyone who came to help us celebrate the opening of our new kennels yesterday.
"We were so lucky with the amount of people who came, the weather was amazing, everything went to plan and we couldn't be happier."
Dobson said: "Our default is always going to be putting a dog into foster because it's much better welfare for them.
"We get to know the dog better and work out what is the best home for that dog."
The charity said "having the kennels will allow us to look after even more of them and will be especially useful for emergencies, when a dog has no other place to go".
Michelle Barley, who fosters a dog called Prince, said: "You create fantastic bonds with them and you get to see them in a nice home environment.
"You are giving something back basically."
Follow BBC Devon on X, Facebook and Instagram. Send your story ideas to [email protected].
