Animal Agenda with the RSPCA WA: Call for nominations for the 2022 Animal Welfare Awards

There’s a new employee at the Perth’s Children’s Court. He’s got four paws, a wagging tail, and plenty of comforting cuddles to share with victims and witnesses who are having a “ruff” day.

Winston is WA’s first ever Justice Facility Dog. The black Labrador is in court every week, and intuitively knows whether a youngster needs a playful interaction or a just some quiet companionship.

Winston is also RSPCA WA’s first Animal Welfare Awards contender for 2022, after being nominated by the Commissioner for Victims of Crime earlier this month.

He is up for the Animal Award, which celebrates furry friends making a difference in their communities. The other five categories spotlight heroic and kind-hearted humans.

Last year’s ceremony brought together some of the State’s biggest names in animal welfare, including SAFE WA, Pets of Older Persons, and WA Wildlife. Getting so many animal lovers together in one room created an incredible buzz.

And furry friends didn’t go unrepresented. We celebrated a bevvy of incredible therapy dogs, inspiring medical alert pups, and even a wheelchair-bound goat with a touching message of hope.

The Animal Welfare Awards recognise groups, individuals, and young people, plus there’s one category to celebrate a daring animal rescue attempt.

We know these people and groups don’t do it for the recognition, but it’s important we pause and acknowledge their incredible efforts. Plus, highlighting this work has the potential to inspire others to treat animals with kindness.

Does a devoted group or volunteer from your region come to mind? Or perhaps you know of a daring rescue attempt, or an amazing animal, in your community?

We want to recognise kind hearts and cute faces from all across WA, so we encourage you to jump online, find out more, and nominate today at rspcawa.org.au/awards.

A MID WEST MESSAGE FROM INSPECTOR MANAGER KYLIE GREEN

The Mid West was represented for the first time at last year’s awards ceremony, with two wonderful groups awarded in the Community Action category. Geraldton Dog Rescue was acknowledged for their tireless work over the past 20 years, rescuing and rehoming more than 5000 dogs. Meanwhile, the Mid West Cat Shelter celebrated 2000 cats and kittens rescued over nine impressive years. Both groups rely on the tireless work of volunteers, many of whom devote all their spare time and weekends to the cause. It was wonderful to pause and acknowledge this, and I hope we can celebrate and meet even more people and groups from the region in 2022.