Animals In Need celebrates 35 years of rescuing, rehabilitating and rehoming thousands of animals across Northamptonshire

Animals In Need in Little Irchester, near Wellingborough, has spent more than three decades helping animals in need.

Come rain or shine, night or day, they regularly come to the rescue of creatures of all shapes and sizes across the county.

From small beginnings, the charity has grown and the numbers coming to them for help just grows year on year.

As the charity celebrates its 35th anniversary this month, sanctuary manager Annie Marriott says it is a life choice rather than a job and she can’t see herself ever stopping.

Annie, who recently got a tattoo of the charity’s logo on her arm, said: “I've been doing this for the last 26 years with Roy.

"It's all about the animals - rescue, rehabilitation and release.”

Animals In Need first started in a house in Northampton, but a legacy left to them by a supporter meant they were able to move to their current home at Pine Tree Farm in Little Irchester.

They have been there for about 18 years, but the ever increasing number of animals coming to their door means the site just isn’t big enough.

Annie said: "We need more land, we have three acres here.

"We have been trying for years to expand.

"We need an extension to our car park but mainly it's grazing land that we need."

Until a more permanent solution can be found, Annie is moving a number of their farm animals including dozens of sheep to another site kindly offered to them by a friend.

She said: “We will still have the domestic and wildlife units here, this will be the main public site.

"We can manage it with two sites."

The need for more space is not surprising given the number of animals they help on a daily basis.

Annie, who says they still class themselves as a ‘small’ charity, said: "We can have 500 animals here at one time.

"Back in the day, we used to help 200 to 300 animals a year, but now we help 2,000 to 3,000 animals a year.

"We rehome 800 hens a year.

"There are 70 dogs here at the moment.

"We took 15 pound dogs in last week but the pounds are still busy and our kennels are full to capacity.

"But if it wasn't for everybody’s support, we couldn't do it.

"It started off with Roy and me and a couple of volunteers, then we moved here and took on some staff.

"It's a life choice, it's not a job, but it’s all consuming, it's 24/7.”

While Animals In Need has less than 10 members of staff, the team is hugely boosted by about 100 volunteers who help out with a range of tasks.

It can be dog walking, feeding the animals, cleaning out the kennels or fundraising to help with the charity’s running costs and bills.

A normal day at Animals In Need starts early at 5am with staff and volunteers arriving anytime from 7am onwards.

And for some, including volunteers, they may not be heading home until at least 7pm or later.

Annie said: "We are set up as a charity, not a business.

"It's relentless, but we are well supported in the local community and I am really thankful for that.

"We get out at the weekend and work hard for it, we are at the supermarkets every weekend fundraising."

And she added: "It's amazing to get to 35 years but the credit is down to everyone in the community and all the volunteers for all their work.

"It's that which keeps us going, no one person can take credit for all this.

"It's a massive team.

"If we ever need anything, I just put a shout-out and it comes."

This was clearly evident when this newspaper visited Animals In Need – while we sat and chatted with Annie, the phone kept ringing, a supporter dropped off proceeds from a raffle and some pet food before a local logistics firm then arrived with a car-full of items for the animals.

A company also came to the rescue recently when the charity needed a laptop and businesses regularly come in to volunteer at the site.

It’s this support from the local community which shows how hugely loved and valued Animals In Need is.

And with the charity reaching the milestone of 35 years, they decided they should start reaching out into the community more.

They are doing talks with local groups like the WI and Scouts, and they launched a food bank and cat neutering clinics earlier this year.

Annie said: "The neutering clinics have blown me away - I stopped writing down all the names when I got to almost 1,000.

"I knew there was a need for it but we were absolutely inundated."

Two vets from London regularly travel to help out with the neuturing sessions, as well as support from local veterinary practices.

And while life can be a rollercoaster at times, Annie says they can ‘transform’ animals’ lives and this is what drives them on.

For anyone who wants to help, Annie has just one request: “Please adopt because that's the number one on my list.

"If people come to adopt a dog, they have saved that dog so they can have an amazing life and that's also created space for another dog here."

But it’s not just dogs as there are plenty of other animals hoping to find their forever home.

The charity will be celebrating its 35th anniversary with a party on March 28 and then on April 1, Annie is doing a sponsored bungee jump in Scotland.

For more information about Animals In Need and its work over the years as well as this year’s forthcoming fundraisers, visit the website.