People's Dispensary for Sick Animals
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The People's Dispensary for Sick Animals (PDSA) is a
veterinary Veterinary medicine is the branch of medicine that deals with the prevention, management, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, disorder, and injury in animals. Along with this, it deals with animal rearing, husbandry, breeding, research on nutri ...
charity Charity may refer to: Giving * Charitable organization or charity, a non-profit organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being of persons * Charity (practice), the practice of being benevolent, giving and sharing * Ch ...
in the United Kingdom. It was founded in 1917 by
Maria Dickin Maria Elisabeth Dickin CBE (nickname, Mia; 22 September 1870 – 1 March 1951) was a social reformer and an animal welfare pioneer who founded the People's Dispensary for Sick Animals (PDSA) in 1917. The Dickin Medal is named for her. Ea ...
to provide care for sick and injured animals of the poor. It is the UK's leading veterinary charity, carrying out more than one million free veterinary consultations a year, and was until 2009 the largest private employer of fully qualified
veterinary surgeon Veterinary surgery is surgery performed on animals by veterinarians, whereby the procedures fall into three broad categories: orthopaedics (bones, joints, muscles), soft tissue surgery (skin, body cavities, cardiovascular system, GI/urogenital/ ...
s and veterinary nurses in the UK; only those living within the PDSA's catchment areas can use their services.


Foundation and development

During
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, animal-welfare pioneer
Maria Dickin Maria Elisabeth Dickin CBE (nickname, Mia; 22 September 1870 – 1 March 1951) was a social reformer and an animal welfare pioneer who founded the People's Dispensary for Sick Animals (PDSA) in 1917. The Dickin Medal is named for her. Ea ...
worked to improve the dreadful state of animal health in the
Whitechapel Whitechapel is a district in East London and the future administrative centre of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is a part of the East End of London, east of Charing Cross. Part of the historic county of Middlesex, the area formed ...
area of
London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
. She wanted to open a clinic where
East End The East End of London, often referred to within the London area simply as the East End, is the historic core of wider East London, east of the Roman and medieval walls of the City of London and north of the River Thames. It does not have uni ...
ers living in poverty could receive free treatment for their sick and injured animals. Despite widespread scepticism, she opened her free "dispensary" in a Whitechapel basement on 17 November 1917. She put out a sign that read: ‘Bring your sick animals! Do not let them suffer! All animals treated. All treatment free’. On its first day of opening, the dispensary only attracted four patients. However, among these patients, was the owner of a limping donkey, who was amazed at the PDSA’s free services for him. While trekking along many miles for his work, the donkey owner served as a publicity agent for the clinic and told everyone he met, what the PDSA had done for him, emphasising its free services. It soon became a success, and Dickin was soon forced to find larger premises. The clinic upgraded from a clergyman’s cellar into a shop and four rooms, opposite the People’s Palace. By 1922 the PDSA had opened seven clinics across London, treating up to 70,000 animals a year. Within six years, Maria Dickin had designed and equipped her first horse-drawn clinic, and soon, a fleet of mobile dispensaries was established. Further success allowed the PDSA to open their first clinic outside London in
Salford Salford () is a city and the largest settlement in the City of Salford metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. In 2011, Salford had a population of 103,886. It is also the second and only other city in the metropolitan county afte ...
in 1923. Following this, the PDSA Sanatorium was established in Ilford in 1928, with Dickin’s passion to train more PDSA practitioners. By 1926–27, the PDSA was operating 57 clinics and three travelling caravans, and had treated almost 410,000 patients in a year at a cost of £43,085 at its various premises across Britain. In 1931, an annual Christmas Market of the People's Dispensary for Sick Animals was held at the
Royal Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London. One of the UK's most treasured and distinctive buildings, it is held in trust for the nation and managed by a registered charity which receives no govern ...
on 24 & 25 November. A 10-ton Christmas pudding, the largest ever created up until that time, was featured. The recipe became known as the "Prince of Wales' Empire Christmas Pudding". ''
The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...
'' newspaper noted "The Lord Mayor of London has promised to give the pudding its first ‘stir’. He will be followed by the High Commissioners of the Dominions, and afterwards the general public will have the chance of stirring it". The
Prince of Wales Prince of Wales ( cy, Tywysog Cymru, ; la, Princeps Cambriae/Walliae) is a title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the English and later British throne. Prior to the conquest by Edward I in the 13th century, it was used by the rulers ...
(later Edward VIII) was then a patron of the charity. In 1973,
Princess Alexandra, The Honourable Lady Ogilvy Princess Alexandra, The Honourable Lady Ogilvy (Alexandra Helen Elizabeth Olga Christabel; born 25 December 1936) is a member of the British royal family. Queen Elizabeth II and Alexandra were first cousins through their fathers, King George ...
, became the charity's patron. By 1935, the PDSA had 11 motor caravan clinics travelling around the country. When the Second World War started, the PDSA had five animal hospitals, 71 dispensaries and the 11 mobile caravan dispensaries. Their rescue squads helped more than 250,000 pets injured or buried in rubble caused by the Blitz. Eventually, PDSA's role was defined by two
Acts of Parliament Acts of Parliament, sometimes referred to as primary legislation, are texts of law passed by the legislative body of a jurisdiction (often a parliament or council). In most countries with a parliamentary system of government, acts of parliament ...
, in 1949 and 1956, that continue to govern its activities today.


Awards

Maria Dickin instituted the
Dickin Medal The PDSA Dickin Medal was instituted in 1943 in the United Kingdom by Maria Dickin to honour the work of animals in World War II. It is a bronze medallion, bearing the words "For Gallantry" and "We Also Serve" within a laurel wreath, carried o ...
in 1943 to acknowledge outstanding acts of bravery by animals serving with the Armed Forces or Civil Defence units. It has become recognised as the animals'
Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previously ...
, and is administered by PDSA. The PDSA created a second animal bravery award, the
PDSA Gold Medal __NOTOC__ The PDSA Gold Medal is an animal bravery award that acknowledges the bravery and devotion to duty of animals. It was created by the People's Dispensary for Sick Animals (PDSA) in 2001, and is now recognised as the animal equivalent o ...
, in 2002, which is now recognised as the animal equivalent of the
George Cross The George Cross (GC) is the highest award bestowed by the British government for non-operational gallantry or gallantry not in the presence of an enemy. In the British honours system, the George Cross, since its introduction in 1940, has been ...
. In 2014, the PDSA Order of Merit was instituted to recognise outstanding examples of animal devotion to their owners or society; it is the animal equivalent of the OBE. , it has been awarded to 12 horses, the first being
police horse Mounted police are police who patrol on horseback or camelback. Their day-to-day function is typically picturesque or ceremonial, but they are also employed in crowd control because of their mobile mass and height advantage and increasingly in the ...
Grace, and 20 dogs, the latest being
Springer Spaniel Springer Spaniel refers to two different breeds of dogs, both of which are commonly called simply ''Springer Spaniel'': *English Springer Spaniel *Welsh Springer Spaniel The Welsh Springer Spaniel (''Welsh'': ''Llamgi Cymru'') is a breed of ...
Max, the first pet to receive the award.


Eligibility requirements

Today, treatment is only available to the pets of those in receipt of
Housing Benefit Housing Benefit is a means-tested social security benefit in the United Kingdom that is intended to help meet housing costs for rented accommodation. It is the second biggest item in the Department for Work and Pensions' budget after the state ...
or
Council Tax Benefit Council Tax is a local taxation system used in England, Scotland and Wales. It is a tax on domestic property, which was introduced in 1993 by the Local Government Finance Act 1992, replacing the short-lived Community Charge, which in turn repla ...
, and who live in one of the charity's 'catchment areas'. For those eligible, treatment for sick and injured animals is free of charge. Recently, the PDSA started providing eligible pet owners with preventive services such as
neutering Neutering, from the Latin ''neuter'' ('of neither sex'), is the removal of an animal's reproductive organ, either all of it or a considerably large part. The male-specific term is castration, while spaying is usually reserved for female animals. ...
,
vaccinations Vaccination is the administration of a vaccine to help the immune system develop immunity from a disease. Vaccines contain a microorganism or virus in a weakened, live or killed state, or proteins or toxins from the organism. In stimulating ...
, and
microchipping A microchip implant is an identifying integrated circuit placed under the skin of an animal. The chip, about the size of a large grain of rice, uses passive radio-frequency identification (RFID) technology, and is also known as a PIT (passive i ...
. These services are the only treatments that are not free, but are offered at cost. Although free for all treatments except for those of a preventive nature, PDSA asks clients to make a donation of whatever they can afford towards the treatment of their animals. , PDSA was able to offer its services to 75% of eligible people, and planned to increase this to 80% over the next year. In May 2009, the PDSA began requesting a donation on checking in an animal for treatment.


Areas of operation

PDSA operates throughout
Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...
through animal hospitals and practices; a vast network of charity shops support the organisation. It has one animal hospital in
Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
, the catchment area of which covers much of the area east of the Bann. Although further hospitals are not currently planned for that region, some services through private clinics may be offered, and a charity shop was due to open in March 2007 in
Lisburn Lisburn (; ) is a city in Northern Ireland. It is southwest of Belfast city centre, on the River Lagan, which forms the boundary between County Antrim and County Down. First laid out in the 17th century by English and Welsh settlers, with ...
. The charity's head office is based in
Telford Telford () is a town in the borough of Telford and Wrekin and ceremonial county of Shropshire, England, about east of Shrewsbury, south west of Stafford, north west of Wolverhampton and from Birmingham in the same direction. With an est ...
,
Shropshire Shropshire (; alternatively Salop; abbreviated in print only as Shrops; demonym Salopian ) is a landlocked historic county in the West Midlands region of England. It is bordered by Wales to the west and the English counties of Cheshire to th ...
. In 1937, a branch of the PDSA was founded in
District Six District Six (Afrikaans ''Distrik Ses'') is a former inner-city residential area in Cape Town, South Africa. Over 60,000 of its inhabitants were History of South Africa in the Apartheid era#Forced removal, forcibly removed during the 1970s ...
,
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
, which at the time was a poverty-stricken area of
Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...
. In 1988, the organization became autonomous, but maintains a strong link with the mother society in the United Kingdom and a great deal of information is exchanged between them. In October 1938, the PDSA held a Twenty-First Birthday Dinner at the Holborn Restaurant in London, attended by Mrs Dickin. There were words from abroad from
France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
(Mr Horne),
Dutch East Indies The Dutch East Indies, also known as the Netherlands East Indies ( nl, Nederlands(ch)-Indië; ), was a Dutch colony consisting of what is now Indonesia. It was formed from the nationalised trading posts of the Dutch East India Company, which ...
(Mr Cronin),
Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...
(Mr Smith), and
Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...
(Mr Hurle).


Celebrity ambassadors

*
Joanna Page Joanna Louise Page (born 23 March 1977) is a Welsh actress and presenter. She appeared as Stacey Shipman in the BAFTA-winning television series ''Gavin & Stacey''. She played Dora Spenlow in the 1999 adaptation of ''David Copperfield'', and ...


Roobarb and Custard Partnership

In 2012, Bulldog Licensing, the brand licensing agency for
Roobarb ''Roobarb'' (also known as ''Roobarb and Custard'') is a British animated children's television series, created by Grange Calveley and originally shown on BBC1 just before the evening news. Each cartoon, written by Calveley and directed by Bob ...
and Custard, pledged
long-term link with PDSA
to help raise £1M. The characters have already appeared on a range of PDSA T-shirts, modelled and supported by singer and TV presenter
Alesha Dixon Alesha Anjanette Dixon (born 7 October 1978) is an English singer, rapper, dancer, television personality, and author. She gained recognition in the early 2000s as a member of the R&B, garage and hip hop group Mis-Teeq. The group disbanded in ...
.


Pet Fit Club

In 2005, the PDSA launched its Pet Fit Club competition, to help battle the problem of pet
obesity Obesity is a medical condition, sometimes considered a disease, in which excess body fat has accumulated to such an extent that it may negatively affect health. People are classified as obese when their body mass index (BMI)—a person's we ...
. The annual contest has a group of overweight dogs, cats, and rabbits embark on a strict, six-month diet and exercise programme, specially tailored by PDSA vets and nurses. At the end of the programme, the best-performing pet is crowned slimmer of the year. In 2015, small furry pets such as guinea pigs, hamsters, rats, and mice were allowed to take part in the competition for the first time.


References


External links


PDSA Web site
* {{Authority control Animal charities based in the United Kingdom 1917 establishments in the United Kingdom Animal welfare organisations based in the United Kingdom Organisations based in Shropshire Organizations established in 1917 Telford and Wrekin Veterinary medicine in the United Kingdom