A Miracle By Any Measure

We’re done. Done for another year. Schnauzerfest that is. Well, when I say another year, and done, that’s not quite true. For while it’ll be October 2019 before Schnauzerfest hosted walks once again happen over one weekend across the UK, miracles don’t have start and end dates. And Schnauzerfest is a miracle, a wonder, a marvel, an astonishing show of generosity and kindness. I don’t use these words lightly, I use them to describe what has just happened, which is that a miraculous £52,123.75 has been raised by supporters of Schnauzerfest 2018.

I’m awed by this dazzling, dizzying amount and know I’m not alone in feeling utter wonderment at just how good things can become when we put our minds to it. This brings the total donated since 2014 to a spectacular £126,496.

Five years of phenomenal fundraising. From a simple idea. And from this simple idea of walking with dogs over an autumn weekend, a movement has grown. A sensational, flourishing movement that’s sprung from a grassroots desire to bring goodness to the lives of dogs whose backgrounds are very far from miraculous. Although their survival and healing often is, as River and Twinklet, Merlin’s, Bronwyn, Mabel and Bella’s and many, many more shining tales show.

Tales with happy endings made possible only because people care enough to make donations of cash, skills, time or multiples of all three. Tales of damaged dogs who survive and thrive only because people choose to support what we do with Schnauzerfest for DBARC. Because they recognise that here’s a place of genuine sanctuary, which takes in the broken and with the help of many, heals these animals, loves them, treats them, helps those who need to, to learn that life is worth living. DBARC saves the discarded and dumped ones who nudge at death’s door after lifetimes of pain and suffering; their messed up minds and bodies broken on the rack of modern greed and inhumanity.

With the astonishing scale of fundraising that Schnauzerest is, the frightening costs of veterinary care becomes a little less terrifying for a small rescue wholly reliant on the generosity of donors for all it does. Two months’ of veterinary bills for DBARC can quickly become £20,000 and that’s without the specialist treatment required by dogs lifted from the misery of puppy farms.

So there’s every need for the stunning efforts of Schnauzerfesters to continue and so while the 2018 campaign is done and the funds are safely with DBARC, today I’ve opened the 2019 Schnauzerfest campaign. By miraculous, popular demand. I’ll take that as a sign of great things to come.