When I am asked about my work with HART invariably the first questions to arise are:
- Do you get paid?
- Do you get expenses?
- How does it work?
Do you get paid?
In a word no – I (plus the other drivers) are all volunteers, we use our own car’s, our own time, and our own passion to do this.
Do you get expenses?
Also, no – as above money is not a motivation for me, and I assume the others, I am fortunate enough to have (at present) a well paid job, that is home based and allows me to disappear for a little bit around meetings to do this work. Any money that is given to me by people I collect animals from, goes straight into the donation pot at reception to go towards the work the charity does.
How does it work?
This is probably the most interesting question for me. The process has changed in recent years since the new manager took over from the old. But in essence it is the same.
The process looks a little like this:
- 3rd party (can be member of the public or very often a local veterinary surgery) contacts HART saying they have animal X in situation Y and can someone please pick it up. in
- HART puts a message on their Driver’s WhatsApp group stating the broad details
- A driver who is available to get to the broad location volunteers to pick the animal(s) up
- If the contact is a member of the public, HART then check with them to make sure they’re ok their details being shared, and assuming they are;
- HART will share pick up location, and contact details to the individual driver who is going to collect the animal
- Driver arrives at pick up location, and find the property (often harder than it sounds!) and then puts secures the animal in a animal carrier or box.
- They will then answer any questions the contact might have, whilst trying to ascertain if the animal has received any water, food or medication/treatment.
- They will take a leisurely drive to Medstead where HART is located and hand the animal over, and fill out a 1 page animal release form for legal reason.
- HART will return the carrier and give a brief triage assessment verbally to enable some form of closure.
More often than not that is the end of that. Very occasionally however I will contact HART later on to see how the animal is doing. Though in all my time think this has only happened twice.
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