Case Study: Sally and Murphy
Sally, aged 57, had recently lost her husband. Grieving and lonely, she relocated to West Suffolk to be nearer to her partially sighted sister and her blind husband in Thetford, with the idea of working as their carer. However, this was not possible and, unbeknown to Sally, by relinquishing the keys to her previously rented accommodation, she had lost her eligibility to housing. With no address, no photo ID or references, she was unable to apply for jobs or tenancies, and had been living in a small, hot and cramped hotel room with her dog, Murphy for six weeks. Sally was quickly running out of money but could not apply for any benefits as she was homeless. When she asked for help, she was told to go online – but Sally did not know how to use a computer.
Murphy, a large Lurcher, was strong and quite a vocal dog who suffered from separation anxiety and fear aggression. He had not been socialised and had never been off the lead. Sally was taking Murphy out for walks six times a day, but could not leave him on his own nor take him with her when she needed to go to buy groceries, so was employing a dog walker to care for him at those times. Anxious and depressed, unemployed and unable to find a job with no fixed abode, Sally was worried about the care of her beloved Murphy, leaving her feeling desperate and at times suicidal. She couldn’t bear the thought of giving up her best friend Murphy, after already losing her partner and everything else she had endured in the last few months.
Luckily, Sally’s dog walker knew about Our Special Friends and suggested she contact us. Within days, Sally was matched to OSF volunteer Anne, who has extensive experience in housing, human and animal support. Anne put a huge amount of care into supporting Sally at such a low point in her life, going above and beyond our expectations of any volunteer. Anne arranged meetings, helped with advocacy, transportation and housing information. In order for Sally to move out of the hotel which she could no longer afford, initially OSF paid for Murphy to stay a local kennel, as no immediate foster home could be found. However, as the situation progressed, Anne made it possible for Murphy to be reunited with Sally by inviting them to stay in her own home, during which time she taught Sally some IT skills.
OSF completely transformed Sally’s life. Within four months she was able to start volunteering which led to her gaining employment at a local care home. With a steady job, Sally was able to apply for pet-friendly housing, which allowed her to stay with Murphy, the only friend she had during some of the worst months of her life.
