Success for Small Furries

In March we ran a Crowdfunder campaign to raise money to build a new small animal unit. 122 amazing people and businesses donated an incredible £10,357, including online and offline Gift Aid, which exceeded our target! Here is our Save Our Smalls story.

View the Save Our Smalls Wall of Fame

Save Our Smalls - help us build a haven for tiny paws! 

Our centre has been a sanctuary for countless animals for over 150 years. We are a self-funded, independent charity, but we are licenced by the national RSPCA to take in animals that their Inspectors have saved from cruelty, neglect and abandonment, including a whole range of small furries who need our help. 

This is now in jeopardy... We have to build a dedicated Small Animal Unit for small furries to continue to fulfil our licence conditions. 

Why Small Animals Matter: While cats and dogs often take the spotlight, our small furry friends are among the most neglected pets in the UK. Small furries like guinea pigs, rats, mice, hamsters and gerbils are intelligent animals that experience pain, fear, and stress just like cats and dogs do. They may be small in stature, but their capacity to suffer is immense. Across England, rescues that take in small furries are few and far between - we are the only RSPCA licenced animal centre within 45 miles that takes in small furries. We need to be here so they can continue to be rescued from heart-breaking situations and have a safe place to recover.

Our Vision: To build a dedicated space where small furries can live, explore, play, and feel secure, surrounded by the love and care they truly deserve until they find their forever homes. We are currently only able to care for 8 small furries at a time, mostly thanks to our fosterers, but our new Small Animal Unit will enable us to take in up to 40! 

The Build: This is a big project, and we can’t do it alone. We need to construct the Small Animal Unit and build a new boundary wall, which will cost £60-80,000, and we also need to purchase new housing for the small furries. Being a separate organisation to the national RSPCA, we have to fund this ourselves. We’ve been saving hard to afford this project, and this Crowdfunder will make a huge difference in turning our plans into reality. 

The Fundraiser: Our aim was to raise £10,000 with the fundraiser running from 1st-31st March. At 11.59pm on 31st March, our Crowdfunder closed with a grand total of £10,357 including all online and offline donations and Gift Aid.

Follow our progress: Do keep an eye on our social media as we share updates on the progress of the build project over the coming months. Facebook | Instagram | Twitter

Our biggest thanks to everyone who came together as a community of animal lovers to create a haven for the often-overlooked tiny paws that bring immense joy to our lives.

With heartfelt gratitude, The RSPCA Derby Team x