People's Dispensary For Sick Animals
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The People's Dispensary for Sick Animals (PDSA) is the UK's leading
veterinary Veterinary medicine is the branch of medicine that deals with the prevention, management, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, disorder, and injury in non-human animals. The scope of veterinary medicine is wide, covering all animal species, both ...
charity Charity may refer to: Common meanings * 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 sha ...
, carrying out more than one million free veterinary consultations a year. 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. Early lif ...
to provide care for sick and injured animals of the poor. Until 2009, PDSA was the largest private employer of fully qualified
veterinary surgeon Veterinary surgery is surgery performed on non-human animals by veterinarians, whereby the procedures fall into three broad categories: orthopaedics (bones, joints, muscles), soft tissue surgery (skin, body cavities, cardiovascular system, GI/u ...
s and veterinary nurses in the UK. Use of the PDSA's services are restricted to those within their
catchment area A catchment area in human geography, is the area from which a location, such as a city, service or institution, attracts a population that uses its services and economic opportunities. Catchment areas may be defined based on from where people are ...
.


Foundation and development

During
World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
, 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. Early lif ...
opened a clinic in
Whitechapel Whitechapel () is an area in London, England, and is located in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is in east London and part of the East End of London, East End. It is the location of Tower Hamlets Town Hall and therefore the borough tow ...
,
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
to improve the dreadful state of animal health in the area. She wanted a clinic where East Enders living in poverty could receive free treatment for their sick and injured animals. Despite widespread skepticism, she opened her free "dispensary" in a basement on 17 November 1917. She hung a sign by the door that read: "Bring your sick animals! Do not let them suffer! All animals treated. All treatment free". On its first day, the dispensary only attracted four patients. Among them was a limping donkey, and the owner was amazed by the PDSA's free services. The owner later served as a publicity agent for the clinic. He told everyone he met what the PDSA had done for him, emphasizing its free services. The clinic was soon swarmed with customers, and Dickin was forced to find a larger premises. The clinic moved from a clergyman's cellar to a shop and four rooms in
Mile End Mile End is an area in London, England and is located in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is in East London and part of the East End of London, East End. It is east of Charing Cross. Situated on the part of the London-to-Colchester road ...
, 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 of opening her first clinic, 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 status in the United Kingdom, city in Greater Manchester, England, on the western bank of the River Irwell which forms its boundary with Manchester city centre. Landmarks include the former Salford Town Hall, town hall, ...
in 1923. Following by a PDSA Sanatorium in
Ilford Ilford is a large List of areas of London, town in East London, England, northeast of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Redbridge, Ilford is within the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Greater London. It had a po ...
in 1928 used 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 being held at the
Royal Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London, England. It has a seating capacity of 5,272. Since the hall's opening by Queen Victoria in 1871, the world's leading artists from many performance genres ...
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" after the
Prince of Wales Prince of Wales (, ; ) is a title traditionally given to the male heir apparent to the History of the English monarchy, English, and later, the British throne. The title originated with the Welsh rulers of Kingdom of Gwynedd, Gwynedd who, from ...
(later Edward VIII) who was then a patron of the PDSA. 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 and the only daughter of Prince George, Duke of Kent, and Princess Marina of Greece and ...
, would become 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 a total of 5 animal hospitals, 71 dispensaries and the 11 mobile caravan dispensaries. Their rescue squads helped more than 250,000 pets injured or buried in rubble of
The Blitz The Blitz (English: "flash") was a Nazi Germany, German bombing campaign against the United Kingdom, for eight months, from 7 September 1940 to 11 May 1941, during the Second World War. Towards the end of the Battle of Britain in 1940, a co ...
. Eventually, PDSA's role was defined by two Acts of Parliament, in 1949 ( 12, 13 & 14 Geo. 6. c. xv) and 1956 ( 4 & 5 Eliz. 2. c. lxvii), 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 ...
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 decoration of the Orders, decorations, and medals of the United Kingdom, British decorations system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British ...
, 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 of ...
, 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 Courage, gallantry or gallantry not in the presence of an enemy. In the British honours system, the George Cross, since its introduction in 1940, ...
. 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 The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...
. , 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 t ...
Grace, and 20 dogs, the latest being Springer Spaniel
Max Max or MAX may refer to: Animals * Max (American dog) (1983–2013), at one time purported to be the world's oldest living dog * Max (British dog), the first pet dog to win the PDSA Order of Merit (animal equivalent of the OBE) * Max (gorilla) ...
, the first pet to receive the award.


Eligibility requirements

Recently, the PDSA started providing eligible pet owners with preventive services such as
neutering Neutering, from the Latin ('of neither sex'), is the removal of a non-human animal's sex organ, reproductive organ, either all of it or a considerably large part. The male-specific term is castration, while spaying is usually reserved for female ...
,
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, the PDSA does asks clients to make a donation of whatever they can afford towards the treatment of their animals. In 2009, the PDSA began requesting a donation on checking in an animal for treatment. , the PDSA has been able to offer its services to 75% of eligible people, and has plans to increase this to 80% or more over the coming years.


Areas of operation

PDSA operates throughout
Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...
through animal hospitals and practices; a vast network of
charity shop A charity shop is a retail establishment run by a charitable organization to raise money. Charity shops are a type of social enterprise. They sell mainly used goods such as clothing, books, music albums, shoes, toys, and furniture donated by ...
s supports the organisation. It has one animal hospital in
Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...
, 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 t ...
. The charity's head office is based in
Telford Telford () is a town in the Telford and Wrekin borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in Shropshire, England. The wider borough covers the town, its suburbs and surrounding towns and villages. The town is close to the county's eastern b ...
,
Shropshire Shropshire (; abbreviated SalopAlso used officially as the name of the county from 1974–1980. The demonym for inhabitants of the county "Salopian" derives from this name.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West M ...
. In 1937, a branch of the PDSA was founded in
District Six District Six (Afrikaans: ''Distrik Ses'') is a residential neighborhood in Cape Town, South Africa, located next to the city's Cape Town CBD, CBD. In 1959, people of color were banned from the area and most of them were resettled in Gugulet ...
,
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
, which at the time was a poverty-stricken area of
Cape Town Cape Town is the legislature, legislative capital city, capital of South Africa. It is the country's oldest city and the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. Cape Town is the country's List of municipalities in South Africa, 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 located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
(Mr Horne),
Dutch East Indies The Dutch East Indies, also known as the Netherlands East Indies (; ), was a Dutch Empire, Dutch colony with territory mostly comprising the modern state of Indonesia, which Proclamation of Indonesian Independence, declared independence on 17 Au ...
(Mr Cronin),
Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...
(Mr Smith), and
Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...
(Mr Hurle).


Roobarb and Custard partnership

In 2012, Bulldog Licensing, the brand licensing agency for
Roobarb ''Roobarb'' (also known as ''Roobarb and Custard'') is an animated children's television series, created by Grange Calveley and originally shown on BBC1 just before the evening news. Each cartoon of the original series, written by Calveley and d ...
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 rose to prominence in the early 2000s as a member of the R&B / UK Garage group Mis-Teeq, who had seven UK top 10 hits, ...
.


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, considered by multiple organizations to be a disease, in which excess Adipose tissue, body fat has accumulated to such an extent that it can potentially have negative effects on health. People are classifi ...
. 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.


Patrons

* Princess Alexandra (1973-present) *
Princess Marina, Duchess of Kent Princess Marina, Duchess of Kent (born Princess Marina of Greece and Denmark, ; 27 August 1968) was a Greek and Danish princess by birth and a British princess by marriage. She was a daughter of Prince Nicholas of Greece and Denmark and Gran ...
(1940s)


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