Coolest Canine Awards Gala Evening

Pollyanna was delighted to be a guest at the Drontal 'Coolest canine' gala awards ceremony. She is pictured above with former Olympic gymnast Suzanne Dando, who won the bidding war for Pollyanna's limited edition 'Animal Farm' auctioned during the evening.

The Drontal 'Coolest Canine' awards celebrate the contribution dogs make to society and in enhancing the lives of their owners, and the awards also recognise worthwhile animal causes and individuals who have contributed to the improvement of animal welfare in the UK and around the world.

Pollyanna enjoyed meeting this years inspirational winners - and their owners! - at the gala event on the 18th February. The coolest canine trophy was awarded to 'Tangle' a 2 year old cocker spaniel who is one of six dogs trained to detect bladder cancer, in a pioneering research study. He scored the highest marks in tests published by the British Medical Journal.

Other awards went to Greyhounds in Need for their work helping the Galgos, the Spanish greyhounds which often live in pitiful conditions, and to the Friends of Animals Rethymno, an organisation working to relieve the plight to stray animals in Crete. The contribution to Pet welfare award was presented to Clarissa Baldwin of the Dogs Trust (formerly the NCDL) which is the UK's largest dog welfare charity. Clarissa is the brains behind the famous slogan 'A Dog is for life, not just for Christmas'.

The evening also raised much needed funds for Wood Green Animal Shelters. Last year they helped over 6,000 animals find loving new homes. Pollyanna has been pleased to support Wood Green for many years, and has designed numerous Christmas cards for the charity. The Pollyanna Pickering Foundation was delighted to contribute £1100.00 on the evening towards the shelters, which will be used to buy special thermal heated pads for kittens which are found lost or abandoned, and also pay for vital medical treatment for rescued animals.

An auction was held during the evening, which included limited edition prints and books donated by Pollyanna, alongside celebrity memorabilia including a guitar signed by Brian May of Queen. The bidding war for Pollyanna's limited edition 'Animal Farm' was won by Olympic Gymnast and TV presenter Suzanne Dando, who was on hand to present two of the awards.

(added 21.02.05)