THE volunteer staff of the GSD 2000 shop in Holsworthy's Square were recently joined by visitors from all over the South West, members of the public and a number of canine friends to celebrate their 10th anniversary.

GSD 2000, devoted to the rescue of German Shepherd dogs and finding them good homes, gained charity status in January 2000 and on October 29, 2000, opened its first shop in Fore Street, Holsworthy. It transferred to larger premises in the Square in 2008 and is run by Yvonne Sweeney, the current manager, Tina Law (assistant manager) plus seven volunteer staff.

Annie Masling, national secretary, who had travelled all the way from Cheltenham, said in ten years they had rescued and homed 900 dogs and in the past year alone they had spent more than £20,000 on vets' bills. Gill James from Bristol, who is charged with the task of finding new homes for the dogs, explained how a behavioural and medical assessments as well as neutering were carried out on rescued dogs and prospective homes were checked before a dog was placed. Older dogs were placed in foster care with all their vets' bills paid.

Yvonne said they were always seeking good homes for the dogs and volunteers to help run the shop and fundraise. In a typical month they had a minimum of 12 dogs in kennels costing £3,000 per month. She can be contacted on 01409 254279. Anyone interested in providing a home for a dog can contact Gill on 01179 537124.