Pet Idol inspires pupils to launch own animal charity
Published: October 12, 2005
PRIMARY school pupils were so bitten by the Pet Idol bug they set up their own charity to help animals across Scotland.
The youngsters in P2 and P3 at Cumbernauld Primary launched PAWS, which stands for Pets Are Wanting Stuff, and got the whole school involved in collecting and donating animal food, toys and blankets.
Teacher Ann Gibson said the children, aged six and seven, were inspired by the Evening Times’ Pet Idol competition, sponsored by the Scottish SPCA, with every child voting for their favourite pet.
But they decided to go further by setting up their own company.
And they roped in pupils and teachers from throughout the school and even children from St Andrew’s Primary School, which is based on the same campus.
Their massive push to help animals came after a class topic on pets.
Mrs Gibson said: “The children are very proud that they have got so many people involved.
“It started off just a small project but it has really grown.
“They are very focused on making sure as many animals as possible have a good Christmas.”
She said that before they started on the pet project, most of the children hadn’t thought about animals not having essential things they need.
Mrs Gibson added: “The SSPCA sent us out copies of their junior magazine and the pupils were quite focused on the stories of cruelty and abandonment.
“But we had a talk from a worker from the SSPCA last week and he told the children that most cruelty is accidental. He said a lot of people don’t understand the level of care animals need.”
The children will continue collecting toys, blankets and food for pets until November, when the collection will be given to the SSPCA, which will distribute it to its shelters.
As part of their topic, Mrs Gibson asked her pupils to bring in pictures of their favourite pets from the Evening Times’ Pet Idol contest and every pupil voted for their favourite.
The children’s votes were among almost 10,000 we’ve received for the hundreds of pets which were entered for the competition.
Voting is now closed and the competition couldn’t be closer.
There are three categories - best dog, cat and best other pet. The three winners will each receive £1000 and the overall Pet Idol, picked from these three winners, will get an additional £1000 and other great prizes.
The overall winner will receive their prizes from former Miss Scotland Nicola Jolly at a glittering event on Thursday at the People’s Palace Winter Gardens.
A spokeswoman for the SSPCA said it was delighted at the initiative by the young children.
She added: “Cumbernauld Primary School has donated to us in the past and we appreciate its support.
“We think this is a fantastic initiative by the kids and we look forward to receiving their latest donation. Collecting toys and blankets is a fantastic way to support the SSPCA.”
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