Wendover Beavers raise money for The Horse Trust

1st Wendover Beavers have raised £405 The Horse Trust by taking part in a sponsored run.

Members of the Beavers group, who are aged between 6 and 8, handed over a cheque to Liane Crowther, Welfare & Education Officer at The Horse Trust, on Wednesday 9 February.

Roy Coates, Assistant Beaver Scout Leader, said the 1st Wendover Beavers have been doing sponsored runs for 14 years and raise money for a different charity each year.

“We usually raise money for animal charities as the Beavers like anything to do with animals. This time we decided to raise money for The Horse Trust as we’d read in the paper about the work they’ve done with the Spindles Farm animals,” said Roy. “Some of the Beavers have visited The Horse Trust with their parents and we enjoyed hearing all about the charity’s work from Liane when she came to speak to the group before their event.”   Around 40 Beavers took part in the sponsored run in November 2010, which took place along a trail on Coombe Hill, near Wendover.

“The Beavers took about 15 minutes to complete the run. It’s quite an achievement for six year olds to run this far,” said Roy. “At the end of the run they were all given an orange drink and chocolate bar to celebrate them finishing it.”

Liane Crowther, Welfare and Education Officer at The Horse Trust said: “We would like to say a big thank you to the 1st Wendover Beavers for their fundraising efforts. The money they have raised will help us to continue our work with retired working horses and rescue cases, such as the Spindles Farm horses.”

The Horse Trust took in 14 of the horses, ponies and donkeys rescued from Spindles Farm in January 2008. Although some have since been found a new home, nine animals are still being looked after by staff at the sanctuary. The majority of these will never be rehomed due to their age or ongoing veterinary problems but The Horse Trust is still actively seeking homes for two of the ponies.

The 1st Wendover Beavers are part of the 1st Wendover Scout Group. The group is one of the largest in the area and is celebrating its centenary in 2011.