24 hours with Sharon Beckett
Room at the inn
Looking after Nicosia’s unwanted dogs is a full-time occupation
It was late in the afternoon when I met Sharon Beckett in the UN buffer zone, near the disused Nicosia aiport. She had two ‘prospective parents’ with her, a young couple from Larnaca. The peeling RAF Nissan huts were a faded ochre in the late day sun; footballs and beaten-up sofas were strewn about. Bath tubs filled with water, climbing frames: it looked liked a much loved but rather run down playground. In a way, this is exactly what Sharon, with her team at the Nicosia Dog Shelter, is trying to achieve. Somewhere for rescued dogs to feel secure, loved and happy.
I’m met by Rover, a large black dog, who has been at the shelter all his life. He nudges me for a stroke and we set off to look round. There is a sign on the gate that says, ‘All our dogs are neutered and none are suitable for hunting’.
The dogs are all in large pens, attached to different huts; rather like the airmen who once lived there. Sharon takes real care to make sure that they are put in “family” groups with the right personalities. They all look happy and healthy, bright-eyed and waggy-tailed: but like children left at the child minder’s, desperate for attention.
She sends the couple from Larnaca off to look at the dogs, there are so many to choose from it would seem an impossible choice. Sharon says they have a maximum capacity for 200 but she will never turn a dog away. Sharon started as a volunteer 12 years ago and now runs the charity, taking no pay. The charity relies on donations and fund raising from its shop. It is desperate for committed volunteers. Because of the generous provision of premises from the UN they are able to keep their running costs to about £1,500 a month to pay for their rescue van, vetinary bills, food and the employment of some cleaners. But they are constantly in need of more funds.
They have many more dogs coming to the shelter than can ever be rehoused. Inevitably, many have to be put down humanely, but Sharon says, “I don’t have a problem with death, only suffering”. Most of the dogs in the home would make good pets, sadly without more ‘parents’ only 25 per cent of them will have that opportunity: the other 75 per cent will eventually be “euthanised”, but at least they will have known care and compassion towards the end of their lives.
The truth is that without the dog shelter the streets of Nicosia would be full of gangs of stray dogs. The charity is doing us all a good service.I bump into the couple from Larnaca, the woman is in tears, “So many lovely dogs,” she says “How can I choose?” Sharon admits that it is hard. She herself has 11 dogs, over 20 cats, and numerous guinea pigs, rabbits and birds at home. “I could never turn my back on an animal that needs help”.
She must have an understanding family, I suggest. “Yep” she laughs, “My husband is a star, though sometimes my teenage children groan, ‘Oh no, Mum,’ when yet another dog appears”.
Much of Sharon’s day, when she is not at the shelter walking, playing and caring for the dogs, is spent on the phone fundraising, arranging to rescue dogs and spreading the word through education and the media. For the first time this year, they have produced a calendar, on sale at AlphaMega and from the Shelter. She is keen to encourage school visits, to educate children about caring for dogs. The message she wants to get across is: that dogs should be neutered, they should wear collars with their owners’ details and that before you have a dog you should be aware of the reponsibility.
Recently, they were inspected by the government vet, who was very pleased with the standard of care. It is hard not to be impressed. As I leave, a young Nicosian business man arrives, in a new smart car. He’s brought some dog biscuits. “I try and come up once a week,” he says. “She’s an absolute angel, you know”.
It’s hard not to agree, although I don’t think Sharon could imagine a heaven without dogs. As I leave she is picking up a particularly scruffy one and giving its tummy a rub. “When she came she was nervous been badly treated, now look at her”. I do, its tail is thumping with delight.
The couple from Larnaca are leaving to return another day. The sun is setting, the dogs will be locked up for the night, in the morning Sharon’s day will begin again. They will all need feeding, walking, brushing, loving. “My phone will be on 24 hours, though, we never let a dog down.” At this particular Inn there will always be room.
Sharon Beckett, Tel: 99 868512, www.dogshelter.org.cy
