A cancer patient has said a heartfelt thank you to supporters of a leading charity after they chose his four-legged friend as the next ‘Ambassadog.’
Three-year-old black German Shepherd, Teddi, was entered into the Beatson Cancer Charity’s contest by his owners Hazel Ann and Kevin Gilbert, both aged 57, following Kevin’s cancer diagnosis.
Poster dog Teddi now takes over duties from Milo, the 12-year-old bichon frise, who has served as the charity’s Ambassadog since September last year.
The loveable fluff ball was entered by his owner, Erin Phairs from Irvine, after Milo supported her over the years following the cancer treatment she received as a child. His “healing powers” were so effective in her recovery that Milo has since become a therapy dog who helps others through their health struggles.
Throughout last month’s National Dog Week, Beatson Cancer Charity celebrated its canine supporters, with hundreds of dogs and their owners taking part in the nationwide Paw Walk to raise vital funds.
The most coveted prize of the Paw Walk event is being selected as the charity’s Ambassadog – and becoming the face of next year’s Off the Beatson Track 10K walk, which last year raised £15,000 to help support cancer patients and their families across the West of Scotland.
Teddi’s owner Kevin, from Grangemouth, was diagnosed with stage three tonsil cancer and rang the bell signalling the end of his treatment in July this year.
Kevin still awaiting results of a positron emission tomography (PET) scan, which produces detailed three-dimensional images of the inside of the body. He hopes the results, which are expected in the next few months, will bring some positive news.
Explaining why Beatson has become a huge part of their lives, Hazel said: “Kevin’s never been to the doctor’s in his life – and then he was diagnosed.
“Originally, we went to Forth Valley and they said it was secondary cancer which was a bit of a blow because quite often, if people are diagnosed with cancer, they say: ‘Let’s hope it’s not moved to the lymph nodes and let’s hope it’s not spread.’
“I thought it was a wee cyst he had and they said: ‘No it’s secondary cancer, it’s in the lymph nodes, we need to find the primary cancer.’
“They ran loads of different tests and it was stage three tonsil cancer and he was referred very quickly to the Beatson hospital to start six weeks of treatment. He had two cycles of chemotherapy and six weeks of radiotherapy every day apart from at weekends. They’re just marvellous.”
Teddi came into the couple’s lives after their previous dog, Yogi, passed away.
They were certain their next dog had to be another black German Shepherd and brought Teddi home from a breeder in Cambridge.
Hazel said the Beatson Cancer Charity competition seemed like a perfect fit to maintain their connection with the hospital and the charity.
She said: “We felt lost without the Beatson so, when we saw the competition, I thought that was a way for us to keep connected with the Beatson and all the good work that they do and hopefully promote it and try and raise some funds for it.”
And she told the team at the Beatson: “Teddi likes dogs, but he’s very much a people person. He just loves meeting people. He’s just so friendly and I think any event that we had to take him to that we had to represent you guys at he would be very sociable.”
Kevin is in no doubt that he owes his life to the staff at the Beatson West of Scotland Cancer Centre.
He said: “They’ve saved my life because I don’t know how far I could have gone. Maybe 10 years ago this wouldn’t have happened. Maybe I could have died from this, whereas things have moved on so quickly.
“The nurses and radiotherapy staff and everybody else were absolutely superb. The nurses in the wards when I was in for overnight stays for chemo couldn’t do enough for you. What you’ve got is the network round about it. It’s not just the hospital, you’ve got the charity and everything else. Everything that they do is unbelievable.”
Thanking those who took part in last month’s Paw Walk, Charlene Low, corporate partnerships fundraiser at Beatson Cancer Charity, said: “Our dogs are just wonderful. Everybody who has a dog knows how important they are. I couldn’t live without my dog – she’s my everything and has got me through so many hard times, as has Milo, our previous Ambassadog with his lovely owner, Erin.”
Milo was nominated by 25-year-old Erin, who went through cancer treatment 15 years ago after she was diagnosed with Ewing Sarcoma when she was aged just nine.
Two years after her cancer treatment finished, she began to struggle with PTSD following her diagnosis. That’s when Erin’s mum presented her with Milo in an attempt to help her through difficult times.
Erin, whose grandfather was also treated at the Beatson, said: “I don’t think I’d be here without Milo. He’s saved my life numerous times. Milo has been there for me through everything and stayed by my side and literally licked away my tears during my journey, post-cancer.
“Without Milo, I don’t think I could have done it. Milo has been so vital in my recovery and we decided it wasn’t fair to keep his special healing powers to ourselves, so Milo became a therapy dog meaning he can help so many others.”
She continued: “It’s been such an amazing experience. Being able to spread the word and Milo being able to use his wee face to help promote the Beatson – it’s been amazing. To be able to do something to help raise awareness of the charity has meant so much, as it’s allowed us to give a little back.”
Dog owners can support the charity by purchasing dog accessories made using Beatson Cancer Charity Tartan from the online shop: shop.beatsoncancercharity.org
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