Mel’s Crate Escapes

04/01/2025

Happy new year to past, present and future clients. Due to the busyness of Christmas and New Year, not to mention pet-sitting for the past fortnight, I’ve yet to do my December invoices. I asked my purrsonal (see what I did there?!) assistant to do them but she declined!

20/12/2024

Instead of Christmas cards and gifts this year I’m making a donation to this worthy cause. Currently every donation made is being matched by an anonymous donor.
Our youngest grandchild collected a Wizzybug last month, just a couple of weeks after her first birthday. It’s amazing. She managed to make it go the first time she sat in it. She can choose which way to go and what she’d like to play with, like other children her age can (though they do it by crawling or walking).

We’ve raised a quarter of our £25,000 fundraising target so far and there’s only one week left to give!

If you can, please support our Christmas Appeal today: https://bit.ly/ChristmasAppeal_2024

Every £1 we receive will be doubled by an anonymous donor.

We want to support more disabled children and adults like Bobby, Ollie and Harry to live with greater independence, freedom and FUN in their everyday lives.

With Wizzybug, Bobby has become the cheeky chatterbox he is today. Now 6, his mum said that “It’s the reason why Bobby is the way he is today. Without it, I don’t know where Bobby would be – physically, and socially and emotionally.”

With Wizzybug, Ollie has been able to get the most of fun, festive activities and could drive over to the lights, the reindeer and Santa all by himself! His mum told us: “Without Wizzybug, Ollie was constrained to a pushchair and not able to explore on his own.”

With Wizzybug, Harry was able to make the most of being out of hospital in time for Christmas last year. His mum said: “Not only is he stronger than ever but we watched him drive his Wizzybug to take himself for his own Christmas photo and we watched on so proudly on how far he has come.”

If you are unable to donate, we would love you to share our appeal to try and encourage more support for people like Bobby, Ollie and Harry in the future.

Thank you.

09/11/2024

This is what my Saturday looks like today (with some cat feeding and dog sitting when I’m done here). 🐾

08/09/2024

I have to say I’m surprised the heron stayed there rather than flying away, but I’m delighted by how beautifully both dogs walked past it. 🐾

02/09/2024

Such a happy gang to walk with. 🐾

30/08/2024

That Friday feeling! 😂

04/07/2024

09/06/2024

Let’s play a game of guess what two breeds of dog I pet-sat from yesterday evening until this afternoon.
Obviously anyone who knows the answer isn’t allowed to guess!

08/06/2024

I’m very proud to say that my son-in-law was among those who did a skydive today for this very worthwhile cause. Our youngest grandchild (baby Florence, who is being held by him in the fourth photo) spent time in the neonatal unit at The John Radcliffe Hospital when she was born in November last year, and the SSNAP (Support for the Sick Newborn and their Parents) charity are an amazing support to the babies, parents and staff there. If anyone feels they would like to donate, I’ll add the fundraising link in the comments. 🪂

07/06/2024

Surprise! From now until the end of August, you can find a selection of my products in the retail area at The Hub in the town centre!
If you're close by, please do pop in for a browse, you can also find items from five other small businesses while you're there!

https://www.facebook.com/hubswindon

06/06/2024

Due to technical issues (far too many photos and videos stored on my phone, resulting in some not wanting to show up!) I had to postpone posting this and other things the other day. So (better late than never) it’s a post in honour of the greyhounds. Those chilled out dogs who can be very fast but generally prefer a good old plod, a tasty snack and a snooze on a sofa or comfy bed.

01/06/2024

Cats have been a HUGE part of the Mel’s Crate Escapes journey so far, so here is a selection of the cats I’ve had the pleasure to care for so far. I reserve the right to add more when I find any photos of cats I may have missed! They’re all so different but all so lovely. My cat feeding pop-ins can be once or twice per day and for anything from just the one visit to a long period of time (the longest so far was three months while the humans were abroad).

01/06/2024

If anyone ever sees this window display and wonders about it, it’s one I did for a local Window Wanderland trail a couple of years ago. After all the work that went into it we decided to leave it there. 🐾 It seems to cheer some people up when they see it, which is an added bonus.

01/06/2024

This is the first litter of puppies I cared for (there were seven in total, but I could never quite manage to get them all in a photo together). One of the loveliest things about this photo is that a couple of months later I was contacted by someone who had bought one of them, and I’ve done pop-in visits and walks with her once a week ever since. It’s been lovely seeing her from her puppy days and watching how she’s changed.

01/06/2024

This little lady is Mia and she was my first Mel’s Crate Escapes pet-sit and I loved every minute of it. Puppies are entertaining and exhausting in fairly equal measures.

01/06/2024

To mark three years of Mel’s Crate Escapes I have decided to share some memories. So to get started, here’s an adorable miniature Dachshund named Taco. He was the very first dog I did a meet and greet with for Mel’s Crate Escapes, back in June 2021.

For anyone who doesn’t know, I do a free meet and greet before taking on a new animal.
It enables us to get to know each other and discuss the pets and their needs. In most cases it takes place in the animal’s own home, but for dogs it can also happen outside, in which case I would meet them and their owner somewhere where they can walk while we chat.

01/06/2024

🐾 Mel’s Crate Escapes is 3 years old today. 🐕 🐈‍⬛ 🐓 🐀
They say time flies when you’re having fun. I can honestly say it’s been amazing and I’m looking forward to seeing what the next year brings. 🐾