The Stray Pets Rescue Club is our monthly pet profile of animals in desperate need of a loving home. This month’s selected pooches are Gracie and Boki with the addition of a six-foot Boa constrictor, Sssirius, and adorable kitten, Rosie…

English Bulldog, Gracie 

Age: 5
Gracie’s story: Gracie was rescued by Saving Yorkshire Dogs. She was used for breeding to make money and was abandoned after reaching the maximum age for reproducing. Gracie has given birth to around 30 puppies in her lifetime. As a result, she has been left with a large caesarean scar.
Temperament: Despite her rough life, Gracie gets along very well with humans and other dogs and she loves to give slobbery kisses.
Ideal home: She loves her food a little too much, so be sure not to leave any sitting on tables or counters. She is also very strong to walk with on a collar and lead, so she is currently being trained to walk on a harness. She will not be rehomed with families who have cats or children under 10 years old.

To find out more about Gracie and the adoption process, you can visit Saving Yorkshire Dogs‘ website by clicking here or contact them on 07562 986101.

Boa constrictor, Sirius – ADOPTED

Age: 8
Sirius’ story: Sirius was named after the Harry Potter character and is a staggering 183cm in length (6ft). He was rescued by K’rescue Knaresborough and was covered in sores after coming into direct contact with an unprotected heated bulb which has been treated.
Temperament: Sirius arrived at the rescue as a cautious and very cage-defensive (protective of the enclosed area) individual. He has since become passive and extremely inquisitive through hours of taming sessions. With his good-hearted nature and beautiful colours and patterns, Sirius would make a fine pet for any reptile-loving family.
Ideal home: Sirius will require a large enclosure. As these snakes are typically nocturnal, a hiding area should be provided. His new home must include a water bowl and a protected heat bulb or heat mat. Reptiles are ectotherms; they acquire thermal energy from the environment. A thermometer must be used to check that the temperature is at 25 degrees and he must be fed a large thawed rat every two weeks.

To find out more about Sirius and the adoption process, you can visit K’rescue Knaresborough‘s Facebook page by clicking here or give them a call on 07837 445352.

Golden Retriever/Collie, Boki

Age: 5
Boki’s story: Boki was saved by Miss Mollies Rescue from Romania when he was a puppy. He was run over by a car and left on the side of the road when the rescue found him. He has since made a full recovery and is now looking for a permanent home.
Temperament: When he first arrived at the rescue, he was quite a nervous pooch and didn’t like to interact with people. But after years of TLC, he has blossomed into a sociable pet and is ready to find his forever family. He is clean, non-destructive and a gentle soul – perfect for a family with children.
Ideal home: Boki needs a home that already accommodates a canine to be his companion and somewhere with a regular routine in a quiet area.

To find out more about Boki and the adoption process, you can visit Miss Mollies Rescue‘s website by clicking here or call them on 07585 324172.

Kitten, Rosie – FOSTERED

Age: 10 months
Rosie’s story: Celia, who owns Harrogate Cat Rescue, found Rosie abandoned on the street with her kittens after their carer died. So, she took them into foster care, but noticed that Rosie’s breathing was louder than usual. After taking three doses of prescribed antibiotics with no improvement, she returned her to the vet. She was diagnosed with Laryngeal Hemiplegia, a disease which causes paralysis of the voice box (larynx). This is rare in cats and usually affects horses. Her illness has now lead to lung inflammation. She is currently taking steroids to reduce the inflammation. She now needs a long-term foster home and Harrogate Cat Rescue will cover her veterinary treatments.
Temperament: Rosie is the most sweet-tempered, affectionate girl who loves human company. She is very family-friendly and would make a wonderful companion. She still has a full life ahead of her and is looking for some tender, love and care.
Ideal home: She is after a long-term foster family (rather than adoptive) and all she needs is dust-free cat litter, as dust exacerbates her noisy breathing.

To find out more about  Rosie and the foster process, you can visit Harrogate Cat Rescue‘s website by clicking here or call Celia on 07305 332961.

The Stray Pets Rescue Club currently works with four different rescues on its monthly profiles; K’rescue Knaresborough, Miss Mollies Rescue, Saving Yorkshire Dogs and Harrogate Cat Rescue.

The Saint Michael’s community lottery is to double its jackpot as a way of thanking players for helping it raise £200,000 a year.

Established in 2000, money raised by the lottery helps the Harrogate hospice provide care and support to families affected by terminal illness and bereavement. 

To mark the lottery’s 20th year, Saint Michael’s has launched a Big Thank You Superdraw with a prize of £2,020. Its usual weekly jackpot is £1,000.

The superdraw will be held on November 4. Current lottery members will be automatically entered but newcomers are welcome to join.

Tina Hedges, deputy chief executive of Saint Michael’s said: 

“Regular and dependable income, such as the lottery, has never been more important, and in recent times has given us the ability to innovate and adapt to help our community throughout the pandemic.

“It is therefore apt that we offer our Big Thank You Superdraw during a year when we couldn’t be more grateful for the ongoing support of our community.”

Visit the charity’s website or call 01423 878628 to take part in the lottery.

Read more: 

• Light a candle for lost babies, urges Harrogate charity
• Harrogate Scrubbers steps in to help disability charity

Another 48 coronavirus cases have been confirmed in the Harrogate district in the last 24 hours.

The figure is double the daily rise of 24 reported yesterday.

Today’s figure from Public Health England takes the total amount of cases in the district since the start of the pandemic to 1,302.

A total of 133 cases have been confirmed county-wide today.

The weekly rate for North Yorkshire up to October 5 stands at 102.3 per 100,000 population.

North Yorkshire Local Resilience Forum, which is a partnership of agencies that tackle emergencies, has warned the county is at a “tipping point” amid increased infections.

Richard Flinton, chief executive at North Yorkshire County Council and chair of the forum, said in a newsletter today the county was in a “more serious position” than last week.

Read more:

• Harrogate to get permanent Covid testing site
• Harrogate Borough Council gets £58,000 for covid enforcement

He said:

“Infections of covid continue to rise across the county – as they do in many areas – and specifically in the north of England. 

“We are by no means in the perilous position of some of our close neighbours, but, unfortunately, without an urgent, sustained and collective effort from everyone – we are heading that way.”

Meanwhile, the government announced £60 million funding for police and local councils today to step up enforcement of covid restrictions as a result of increased cases.

Harrogate Borough Council has been allocated nearly £58,000, while the Office of the North Yorkshire Police, Crime and Fire Commissioner has been handed £291,987.

The Harrogate branch of the pregnancy crisis support charity Reflect is asking people to light candles next week to remember babies that died during pregnancy.

The candles will form a virtual wave of life during Baby Loss Awareness Week, which begins tomorrow.

The week raises awareness of pregnancy and baby death in the UK.

This year will focus on the isolation many people experience after pregnancy and baby loss – women, partners, other family members and friends, especially since the start of the coronavirus pandemic. 

To get involved, Reflect is asking people to light a candle at 7pm on October 15 and share a photo of it online, accompanied by the hashtag #WaveofLight.

Landmarks across the UK will light up blue and pink, and virtual services will be held as part of the week-long activities.

Tanya Allen, manager of Reflect Harrogate said: 

“We hope that Baby Loss Awareness Week will spark conversations about baby loss and give local bereaved parents and families an opportunity to talk about their precious babies.

“For some people Covid has meant that they have felt more isolated in their loss, and for others the slowdown has caused the past pain of loss to surface, which they may now need to process.”

Tanya Allen, manager of Reflect

Read more: 

• Harrogate charity Frank’s Fund moves comedy night online
• Friends conquer the hills for Ripley charity

Reflect provides free and confidential support services for individuals and couples to help them cope with their bereavement. 

For further information about Baby Loss Awareness Week visit: www.babyloss-awareness.org

There appear to be no plans to reopen Las Iguanas in Harrogate, six months after the restaurant said it would close temporarily.

Las Iguanas, on John Street, remains closed with chairs stacked on tables. A notice in the window from staff still reads “we can’t wait to see you very soon”.

Big Table Group acquired Casual Dining Group in August and took on 150 of its restaurants trading as Las Iguanas, Bella Italia and Cafe Rouge.

But Las Iguanas in Harrogate was not included in the deal, which has left its future uncertain.

Read more:

• Questions surround future of Harrogate’s Jaeger store
• Harrogate family pet shop to close after more than 50 years

The Stray Ferret asked Big Table Group whether the restaurant will reopen but a spokesperson said it would not comment on individual sites.

James Spragg, chief executive of The Big Table, said of the takeover in August:

“We inevitably emerge from this process as a leaner business, and one that is now equipped to navigate the challenges the industry faces, safeguarding thousands of jobs.”

Harrogate and Knaresborough MP Andrew Jones today urged Prime Minister Boris Johnson to commit to a support package for the conference and exhibition industry.

Speaking at Prime Minster’s Questions, Jones said Johnson had recognised the difficulties facing the industry last month when he revealed ministers were working urgently on a support package for sports clubs that rely on paying spectators.

Jones said the the exhibition industry was “really important in Harrogate and Knaresborough”, adding:

“Could he tell the House when that package will be coming forward, and will it include the conference and exhibition industry?”

Read more:

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Johnson said the conference and exhibition industry was worth about £90 billion to this country and of “massive importance” but did not commit to any firm support.

He added:

“It was a very difficult decision to take to pause conferences and exhibitions. We want to get them open as fast as possible.

“Of course, they have had a lot of support, as I indicated earlier—the £190 billion package is there to help businesses of all kinds—but the best way forward is to get the kind of testing systems that will enable not just conferences and businesses of that kind but all types and even theatres to reopen and get back to normality. That is what we are aiming for.”

More than 300 people have signed a petition calling on Harrogate Borough Council to make the Stray more bee-friendly.

Harrogate and District Green Party wrote to the council last month urging it to plant native wildflowers rather than its stick to its current plan to plant 60,000 crocuses on West Park Stray.

Rebecca Maunder, chair of the Harrogate and District Green Party, has now set up a petition after the council wrote back to say it did not intend to change its plans.

A week later the online petition, which is on the 38 Degrees website, has reached 327 signatures.

Read more:

• Plant wildflowers on the Stray, says Green Party
• Call for volunteers to plant 60,000 crocuses on Harrogate Stray

Ms Maunder hopes that, with enough support, the petition will sway the council’s decision and lead to a more bee-friendly Stray,

A spokesperson for Harrogate Borough Council said it had nothing to add to its previous statement on the matter, which said:

“We are also looking at biodiversity as part of our wider horticultural plan for the future. We understand the need to encourage biodiversity and already manage a number of native wildflower meadows across the district. The thousands of plants and flowers in our numerous parks and gardens also support this.”

The council called for volunteers last month to dig 60,000 holes in the hope that the crocuses will bloom better than ever next spring.

Harrogate Bus Company is to plant more trees in Harrogate as part of its commitment to cutting carbon emissions.

The company introduced fume-free buses in 2018 after it won £2.25 million of government funding.

Last year it pledged to plant one tree for every 10,000 miles covered by its fleet of eight electric buses.

To celebrate Clean Air Day tomorrow, the company has announced its buses have together covered over 400,000 miles.

It has already planted an oak tree on West Park and has now revealed another 39 trees will be planted in three areas served by the buses – Nidd Gorge, close to Bilton, Jennyfield and in the pine woods near Pannal Ash.

Alex Hornby, chief executive of Harrogate Bus Company, said:

“Every year, air pollution causes up to 36,000 deaths in the UK so our Harrogate Electrics buses play a vitally important role in clearing the air and protecting our local environment.

“Alongside our electric buses, trees help by absorbing even more carbon dioxide emissions.”

Clean Air Day is normally held in June but was postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Read more:

• Local lib dems have proposed a citizen’s assembly to tackle climate change. 
• More buses are in place as pupils return to school in an attempt to limit contact between pupils and the public.

The local campaign group, Zero Carbon Harrogate, welcomed the news. Chair Jemima Parker said:

“We are dedicated to making Harrogate a zero-carbon community by 2030 to secure a sustainable future, and The Harrogate Bus Company’s electric buses are making a vitally important contribution towards realising that ambition.

“As we begin rebuilding our local economy beyond the pandemic, we can’t just go back to congested streets and traffic jams.”

Harrogate’s Nightingale hospital could be used for routine operations, flu jabs and patient recuperation, a local councillor has suggested.

Cllr Jim Clark, who represents North Yorkshire on the West Yorkshire Joint Health Overview Scrutiny Panel, suggested the 500-bed hospital could be used to relieve pressure on other health services.

The contract for the Nightingale was extended in August until March 2021.

A report to the panel said the hospital is currently on stand-by for any patients that need to be admitted amid the second wave of coronavirus infections.

Read more:

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• Harrogate Nightingale contract extended until March 2021

The hospital has been used for outpatient CT scans since June but Cllr Clark suggested it could be used for wider purposes.

Cllr Jim Clark, North Yorkshire county councillor and Harrogate borough councillor.

The Conservative, who represents Harrogate Harlow on North Yorkshire County Council, told the Stray Ferret it was a pity the hospital could not be used for other medical purposes besides coronavirus:

“It could be used for other things, such as flu vaccinations, routine operations or to give opportunities for people to recuperate.”

Cllr Clark added he had been assured the Nightingale would be ready for any patients that needed care during the second wave of the pandemic.

A report before scrutiny councillors last week said the hospital “could be reactivated at short notice” if critical care was needed.

NHS England took over Harrogate’s Convention Centre in April but so far the hospital has not been used to treat coronavirus patients.

Government figures last month showed the Nightingale cost £27 million to set up, the third highest of the seven hospitals set up during the pandemic.

The total cost of the seven hospitals stands at £220 million.

Harrogate Borough Council has not charged the NHS any rent for the town’s Nightingale.

But, figures published in August showed the authority had billed £126,000 a month for gas, electric and water.

A woman has called for tighter cycling controls on the Stray after her dog was hit.

Sara Clark said her chihuahua Milo was lucky to be alive after being struck by a cyclist on part of the south Stray where cycling is prohibited.

Ms Clark, who was walking Milo on Friday evening, said:

“He went under his wheel and I heard his scream and he ran towards the road. The vet said he was surprised he wasn’t killed.”

Ms Clark said Milo was badly bruised and required a painkiller injection.

Cyclists are supposed to dismount on this stretch of the Stray but Ms Clark said they often ignored the rules. She added:

“There was a sign 10 metres from us saying cyclists aren’t allowed. I know of three dogs, including Milo, and two elderly people that have been hit.”

“The cyclist just said, ‘What could I have done he should’ve been on a lead?’ My dog should be able to be off a lead, we should feel safe, but now I feel like I can’t let him off a lead. They have ruined it now.”

All of these cyclists were pictured on the south Stray by Sara Clark within the same hour on Monday.

Ms Clark said Harrogate Borough Council should do more to tackle the problem:

“Accidents like this are happening but they are washing their hands of it rather than dealing with it. It is their responsibility to enforce it, even just by doing something to say they are taking it seriously, like using cameras or fines.”

A council spokesman said:

“Our staff will always challenge cyclists who ignore the rules if they witness it happening. Unfortunately, as the Stray covers 200 acres and is accessible 24/7 it is incredibly difficult to witness anyone breaching these rules. Thankfully, the vast majority of cyclists in Harrogate dismount when they should. ”

Ms Clark disputed the claim that the vast majority of cyclists dismounted.

Read more:

• WATCH as dog rescue owner discusses her concerns following the lockdown puppy boom. 
• Harrogate cat went missing for four months and was found 20 miles from home. 

“There’s no excuse for a cyclist being on a footpath where it’s banned. I am of course sorry about the dog being knocked over and the upset to the owner. I don’t agree with cyclists ignoring the rules. I also don’t agree with drivers ignoring the rules, which they do more often and with far more serious consequences.”