The National Pet Service

In Scotland, half of all homes have a pet.

Here, boy.

And behind every animal...

Do you want it?

..lies a very human story.

A lot of people say it's wrong.

They don't know my dog, they don't know my daughter,

they don't know nothing.

People are always judging you. Animals never judge you.

No, I don't want you to get bitten.

If they weren't here, I'd rot. I wouldn't get out of bed.

If you've never had a pet, you don't appreciate how important they are.

For some people, their wee dog or their wee cat is their life.

If their pet gets sick and they don't have the funds

to kind of get their pet better, you know,

that could mean them potentially losing

their only friend in the world.

I want to bring him back home.

We cannae bring him home tonight.

You couldnae buy Sophie off of me for £10 million.

See if you pulled a cheque out for £10 million the now

and said, "I'll buy Sophie off you,"

I'd probably crack you right in the nose.

I think a lot of people think being a vet's just about helping animals,

and it's not, it's about helping people.

The People's Dispensary for Sick Animals, or PDSA,

was founded 100 years ago by social worker Maria Dickin.

Horrified by the plight of animals in London's East End,

she resolved to take action.

-RECORDING:

-'We must get everywhere, all over Britain with our message.

'Bring your sick animals, do not let them suffer.'

'All animals treated, all treatment free.'

By 1942, her mission had reached Scotland.

-NEWSREEL:

-This was the first PDSA dispensary to be opened in Scotland

and the reason for its being here is solely to carry out the purpose for

which the charity was founded -

to provide a free veterinary service for people, like this little girl,

who genuinely cannot afford private veterinary treatment for their pet.

Today there are five PDSA hospitals in Scotland,

providing 300,000 treatments every year.

Morning.

To qualify, owners must be able to prove that they're on benefits.

I had my pet before I was ever on benefit.

You know, the fact that I was in hospital last year,

I took a bilateral stroke,

which means a stroke on both sides of your brain,

which basically put me out the game.

Through benefits, we're allowed to come here and use this service.

Without that, we wouldn't be allowed to take our dog to the vet.

Shamrock Street in Glasgow is Scotland's biggest

and busiest PDSA hospital, with over 30 employees.

The reception staff, they're the first person to see the clients.

Some of the clients could be crying or upset

and you try to calm them down.

Then we've got VCAs, they're not nurses, they're just below a nurse,

then you've got the nurses, then you've got the vets,

then you've got the head vet

and then you've got the big people up the stairs.

I don't know what they do up there - have a party, maybe, who knows?

I'm the bottom of the pile, I'm the scrubber.

You want it?

Stefan Day lives in Govan with his two Chihuahuas, Lulu and Coco.

Good girl, Lulu.

His involvement with the PDSA

began 11 years ago with a poodle named Charlie.

Charlie got sick one night and I wasn't working at the time,

so I phoned the PDSA and they told me to bring him down and sadly,

they couldn't do anything for him,

but the bill would have been about £2,500,

so I couldn't pay that to them,

so that's why I decided to volunteer, to give something back.

Oh, are you sore, darling? Are you sore?

-Are we going to make you better?

-Yes.

I thought when I took the job I'd be going in there to cuddle the pets

and just sit and play with them, it was all animals to me -

I came right down to earth with a thud.

This is one of the jobs that I hate.

It's just horrible picking up somebody's poo.

It's bad enough your own, never mind some dog's,

you know what I mean?

When it's hard like that, it's fine.

When it's...

..the skids, no, no thanks.

Treatments can range from major surgical procedures

to a simple checkup.

One of the most common problems is obesity.

-She gets a cone and sweeties and that.

-Oh, my goodness.

Yeah, she likes a vanilla cone, 99, with a Flake in it.

What's the weirdest thing you've heard of a dog eating?

Probably a McDonald's, like, quite often...

like, as a regular meal on a Friday and Saturday night,

they have a McDonald's and the dog has a McDonald's.

I would say probably half the pets we see are overweight.

Yeah, I know, it's quite shocking. It's a really big thing.

It puts so much pressure on their joints, on their heart,

on their internal organs.

Tony Lindy's dog Sophie has been diagnosed by the PDSA

with a serious health issue.

See, to hear her being described as obese was...

I cannae say it was a surprise, cos it wasnae.

I mean, people had says to me previously, "Is your dog pregnant?"

And, er, that's not something that any female wants to hear, is it?

Tony lives in Paisley and first met Sophie five years ago.

Her previous owner was working all the time.

Sophie was basically left in the house from six in the morning

till ten o'clock at night,

so a couple of times I said to him,

"Can I take her to the park? Take her out."

And he went, "Aye, on you go, take her to the park."

Me and her, we just seemed to hit it off

right from the first moment I set eyes on her

and I think the first moment she set eyes on me as well.

I think she seen it as a way out, do you know? I don't know.

I just fell in love with that wee dog, honestly, I did.

That's Sophie's walk.

That's what she ends up doing.

She just lies there.

That's your exercise, isn't it, Sophie?

And he said to me, "Look, give me 500 quid and you can have her."

I didnae have the 500 quid at that moment in time,

you know, I didnae. I went and borrowed it.

And he handed me Sophie.

You see the thing is, he thought he was away laughing, I was laughing.

I would have gave him everything I owned. That's what he didnae know.

You couldn't buy Sophie off of me for £10 million.

See if you pulled a cheque out for £10 million the now

and said, "I'll buy Sophie off of you,"

I'd probably crack you right on the nose. That's the truth.

Oh, my God, Sophie.

The barrel of the chest, probably put her at 69 centimetres.

You need a new bra, Sophie, man.

You've just got to think of the long-term, don't you?

-I've got to be more strict with her.

-Absolutely.

I would happily have a cake every day, but I don't think that

my heart or my waistline would like it very much, or my husband.

Aye, that's great. Thank you very much for that.

-Thank you.

-Thank you. Bye. Cheerio.

Do you have a weight problem like me, or not?

-She does, aye.

-Me and her can do a diet sheet together, then.

Laura Brown has come to the PDSA for help of a different kind.

Hi there.

My cat Dusk who's registered here, he's been missing since...

She's partially-sighted

and her cat Dusk has been missing for six months.

I describe him as my fur baby.

I don't have children, but he is my baby and it's heartbreaking

to think that he's been taken or he is lost or he is scared.

Up to last year, I was ten stone.

That's me.

Me very thin and before I became a big balloon

or a white panda, as I call myself.

Laura's battled with her weight all her life

and thought she'd finally solved her problems with the help of surgery.

But her gastric band eventually failed

and she put all the weight back on.

When somebody gets a weight-loss operation from the government,

yes, I've been slated that, you know,

why all this money should be wasted on people like myself.

Well, let me tell you this, not everyone who's fat is lazy.

Yes, I'm sure there's people out there who, you know,

are quite happy living on benefits,

but I'm not one of these people that just sit about doing nothing.

It's all low-fat, swear to God, everything's light.

I'm a fighter, I don't want to be stuck in a prison.

I try and hide, you know,

so I don't have too much interaction with the human race.

People are always judging you.

For me, personally,

I find that animals never judge you and they're my best friends.

Dusk being missing enhances, you know,

your emotions and wanting to eat and, of course, I comfort eat.

Of course I do.

I love my animals.

I would have them any day than anything in my life.

Ain't they? My babies.

Told my son not to come back cos he was allergic to them.

One of them, aye. "Don't come back."

-My wean.

-SHE LAUGHS

-He was only seven, as well.

-No, he wasn't!

-Terrible.

-He was 15 or something! Or 16.

As long as he gets his medical checkups, that's all I worry about.

I'll worry about that until I die.

See this place.

If I didn't have this place, that would be it.

I said to my daughter, I said,

"What's going to happen to that animal if anything happened to me?"

For Angie, the waiting room is a second home.

She has been a PDSA client for over 30 years.

It's a shame when they put pedigree cats on adverts.

Why can they not put somebody like him on a tin of cat food?

He's due a lucky break in his life!

-Hello.

-Oh, hi. I've got the young boy.

-I call him...

-The young boy today!

My mum said it was born into me.

I've always liked animals.

Cats, mainly.

Lots and lots of cats.

Today, Angie's brought Leo, as she's worried he's overeating.

-So, will we do a wee general checkup today?

-Yeah. What he's got...

-Right, I put him in a Primark bag and I put him on the scales.

-OK.

-He weighs half a stone, 5kg.

-Oh, right, gosh, that's a good size.

-He'd kill you for food.

-Really?

I'm going to see what he says... what weight he was last time.

I think that he's been very fortunate where he got...

I think he's come from...the father,

he's obviously had the looks.

Look, he's awful good-looking.

He's got that wee sort of look as if to say, "Ooh, I'm the boss."

Know why I got him? But don't burst out laughing.

My heart-throb's... What do you call him?

Liam Neeson.

-INTERVIEWER:

-He reminds you of Liam Neeson?

-Aye.

And I like Harrison Ford!

I prefer animals sometimes to people. Yeah.

-Why?

-Cos people can be nasty, but animals wouldn't be nasty.

-Och, he's getting lovely and big. So, he was 2.1 last time.

-Was he?

And 3.95 today. So I'm not too worried about him today at all.

I think he's a perfectly healthy wee boy

and he's coming on just as he should be.

What do I do about his food, then? How do I feed him?

-We would just let him eat.

-Just let him do it?

-Mm-hm.

He's certainly not overweight.

I think he's just a wee perfect example.

Thank you very much for your contribution towards the PDSA today.

Oh, God, I wish I could give...more.

It makes a real difference. You're a wee star. See you next time, OK?

-Right, thanks.

-See you later.

-Right, bye.

-Bye-bye.

Right.

I couldn't actually find anything abnormal with Leo at all.

I think for a lot of people,

maybe this is a point of social contact as well,

where it's maybe elderly clients

or maybe if there was another client with a mental health disorder,

having somebody to talk to,

not necessarily about what's wrong with their pet

but about what's going on in other aspects of their life.

I think that's quite important to them.

I've got nobody now. My mother's got dementia.

She's in a hospital bed in our living room.

All I've got's they two cats now.

How horrible it would be without them.

If I didn't go there, I wouldn't meet anybody either.

That's a day out, going there, seeing those lovely animals.

DOG BARKS

I feel like I look like a gangster walking down the street with my dog!

She's just a muscle. Like, she's just big, huge.

In Aberdeen, 17-year-old Jamie Leigh Duncan lives with Kabana,

her American bulldog.

People don't expect me to have a big dog.

They expect me to have a Chihuahua, but it's just my lifestyle.

-DOG BARKS

-Kabana!

Kabana isn't Jamie Leigh's only responsibility.

I moved out when I was 16,

cos I had a daughter when I moved out,

and she was a year old when I was 16.

So I had to get my own place.

-..A doggy sandwich.

-Doggy sandwich?

-INTERVIEWER:

-Do you think having a big dog like this

is partly because you are on your own?

No. Not at all. Like, I've always loved big dogs.

It wouldn't matter if I was on my own or not,

I would always have her, like, she's my baby, she is.

BARKING

She's like my daughter. She's just like her.

A bit bigger, but...

Like, I treat them both the same now, both equal to me.

I was a hairdresser, hair and beauty,

for about two years,

and then I had to go onto benefits and that,

but people on benefits don't bother me at all, like,

cos they have their reasons.

I have my reasons.

I've got a two-year-old daughter and I can't get her watched

until she's in full-time education, so that's why.

Jamie's local PDSA hospital in Aberdeen is the UK's smallest.

BARKING

Kabana hasn't been well,

and she's come in for a checkup with head vet Fiona.

-She's a big girl, isn't she?

-Yeah.

-What can we do for her today?

I'm just wanting to get a checkup to make sure she's all OK.

She keeps losing weight and being sick

-and then putting it all back on.

-Right, OK.

And how often is she actually sick?

Sometimes she'll be sick up to five times a day.

But then she can go without weeks of being sick.

-Is she due in season just now?

-She's in season.

She's in season at the moment. Is this her first season?

No, she's had three.

Are you thinking about getting her neutered?

No, I want her to have one set of puppies, then get neutered.

Right.

I'll come back to...!

Right, because she's putting her fingers in her mouth...

that... They're classed as dangerous dogs.

It shows you there that they're not that dangerous

if you treat them right.

Kabana must switch to a gentler diet

before a follow-up appointment in a week's time.

But this dog's upset tummy is the least of Fiona's concerns.

Quite often, you do get an inkling from some of the dogs

just what their temperament really is like.

BARKING

I don't think he likes me.

But in a strange environment

that they're picking up strange vibes,

but the dog seemed to be quite happy with the child about.

Again, you do worry

just because of the nature of how some of these dogs have been bred

and the reasons they've been bred,

like some of the banned breeds that were used for fighting dogs.

A lot of people say it's wrong,

I shouldn't have a type of dog like that around an infant.

But people just don't understand

you can have dogs, like me, and they'll be fine.

It's all go in here.

Back at Shamrock Street,

it's not just animals that need treatment.

I got a new coffee table and fell over it, so hence...

the sore nose.

I mean, I say a sore nose, I mean a sore nose.

Oh, well. That looks like a mess, doesn't it?

It's going to be horrendous.

I can be a bit cheeky at times. It can get me into trouble.

I make up a lot of stories about myself...

just to wind them up.

Morning, Glenda. ..No, I'll get him out.

-What?

-Aye.

-Are you all right?

-I'm fine.

Och, you wee soul.

Five lasses mugged me.

-What?!

-Mm-hm.

-Are you being serious?

-I'm being serious. Look.

-Where was that?

-At the Sign Centre. I know.

-What, so...?

What age were these girls?

It's pity I get off them.

"Oh, you poor soul, you. That's a sin."

For all his storytelling,

the truth is that Stefan volunteers his services four days a week

for no financial reward,

and does so in spite of a debilitating condition.

I've got osteoporosis.

And it's very painful.

Ohh! See, this is what I hate.

This is when I feel the pain bad.

Oh, my God.

HE SIGHS

There's nothing I can do for it.

I was the life and soul of the party.

And now I don't do anything,

apart from going to PDSA and take my dogs walks.

-Do you have a social life?

-No.

Why?

Cos I don't... As I say, I don't keep well. You know...

It's like...

Somebody asks you, "Can you come out for the night?

You go like that, "I'll come." But then... I'm too ill to go

because I'm in pain.

So... People get fed up.

And they just peter off.

Pets don't drift away.

They stay with you.

That's why I like going into work.

I feel like I'm doing something because I'm getting benefits.

So I feel... It's just the way I feel. I feel that...

I'm giving something back.

Do you ever worry it might get so bad you can't work here any more?

Yes. Uh-huh, that frightens me.

That really frightens me.

-Why?

-Because this is the only place where I interact with people.

'You know, if I'm at home I don't interact with anybody.

'That's it.' So it does, it scares me a hell of a lot.

A hell of a lot.

DOG WHIMPERS

This is Neil. After Neil Lennon, the Celtic manager!

-I didn't choose it.

-What kind of names do you get in here?

Can I say them? Really?

Minge. There's a wee cat called Minge.

Spliff.

Wee Bastard. Things like that.

In Paisley, Sophie's diet has altered Tony's eating habits.

I feel terrible, man.

It's dead hard to say no to her.

So I've been kind of hiding in the kitchen and so on.

I'm not sitting and eating in front of her all the time.

No, Sophie.

You can't get any, I don't know what you are wagging your tail for.

Oh, my God.

I cannae, Sophie.

There's a pet shop just here. Sophie usually runs in and grabs stuff.

Come on, then, Soph, come on. Come on, go down here. No...

Come on. Naw...

You're on a diet. Come on,

you're just going there for treats, you're not going in, nae treats.

I just wanted to spoil her. See because of where she had come from,

she had been locked in a house and she was a wee skinny thing

and all. Naebody was spoiling her, naebody was giving her

any attention. So I did. And I overdone it.

At Angie's flat in Glasgow's Southside, Leo is free

to enjoy his dinner again.

I live here with the cats.

I couldn't live on my own without them. There's no way.

You know, four bare walls. Me, I watch the soaps on television,

which takes me right up... till late at night.

So basically...

You're looking at the cats...

SHE CHUCKLES

..and the soaps!

Well, I had a good life when I was young.

I had... I was a resident hairdresser in the Southern General.

And I had a husband.

But he died at a young age and then I had the two children

and I had to bring them up on my own.

Do you have friends that you go and see or anything like that?

None. Absolutely no friends.

Erm, I'm actually stuck in this house with the cats, permanently.

The only...life I've got is going out to supermarkets.

That's about it.

That's basically it.

I'd like a better life, but it doesn't seem to be happening.

Angie is 55, and has been looking after her mother's cat, Daisy.

She's worried Daisy might be overeating too,

so she's heading back to the PDSA.

Hiya. Hi, it's Daisy.

Would you like to make a contribution just now, at all?

Oh, yeah, I forgot about that,

I don't have an awful lot but I always give something.

Well, we appreciate that, thank you very much.

I like they wee dogs, the wee, tiny ones!

If I had a dog like that, I'd pure spoil him.

-Does he wear clothes?

-No...

-No, I think that's a bit much.

-Aye.

I probably... If I had a garden, I would have a dog.

You can meet other people because you've got a dog.

The same with cats, you meet an awful lot of people

-when you come up.

-INTERCOM:

-Daisy to room two.

Oh, there's Daisy going in.

She's a ton-weight now.

-Hi.

-Hi, come on in.

She's very... Getting very, very heavy now.

So do you not think she's eating as much as she used to eat?

-She's eating more.

-Eating more than she used to. OK.

Would you be able to lift her? Or do you not think

-she would let you lift her?

-Aye, aye.

-Oh.

-She'll barely. Oh, aye, she's a biter.

-Uh-hm.

-Aye, but she mellowed out, with old age.

-OK.

-Her recent...checkups have went...very smoothly.

-Right.

CAT SNARLS

No, I don't want you to get bitten.

She is not...the best-natured, she's never ever been good-natured.

I'm noticing that! So, I wonder... if we could...somehow weigh this...

Oh, oh, no, I've broken it.

LAUGHTER

I'm sorry, I've broken your cat carrier!

Daisy has no intention of getting on those scales.

So lovely Louise is going to give us a hand.

You're OK.

CAT SNARLS

That's it, that's it. Here we go.

-She's killed a lot of...pigeons...

-Do you want to start...

-..when she was young.

-Did she?

Do you want to start the supplements as well today?

-It's too dear, isn't it?

-Too dear.

-15.50?

-Let us know at any point.

-No... Know what the plan was?

-Right... My daughter's birthday is Wednesday.

-Mm.

I went to that shop Lush...

You're always going to get some people that

go off on tangents and want to tell little stories and things like that

and it is really lovely... if you've got time.

So that's sort of the challenge, a little bit.

Just to sort of keep them on track.

For some people it's harder than others.

-Right, I got her a lipstick.

-Uh-huh.

-A MAC lipstick.

-Oh, yeah.

-She says that I decided it was pink...

-Uh-huh.

-..to suit me!

-Oh.

-But I don't like pink, I'm a red...

A red woman. No, I see that.

I'll need to give them money for that.

I'm going through cages like hot dinners.

Thomas and Anne-Marie Davies are bringing in their bulldog, Brody.

He's not been eating and is being seen as an emergency case.

So, what kind of timescale has this been happening on?

-Just last week.

-Just the last week?

-Last week.

-OK.

-Any vomiting or diarrhoea?

-No.

-OK, I'm very concerned.

-Yeah?

He's very, very pale. He's going to need to be admitted today

for sure. I'm worried he's got... I think I hear a heart murmur.

It could be because of blood loss, potentially, as well.

Just looking at him now, I'm not sure what's going on with him

but I'm really, really worried. What we'll do today is we're going to

do some imaging and get him on some supportive medication.

Do you have any questions at all?

-I'm totally shocked.

-I know it's really surprising

but he's a very sick little dog just now. OK.

You feel as if people think you're not feeding it, you know?

We'll do our best for him,

but I want you to be prepared for the worst, OK?

Brody is admitted for urgent tests. Thomas and Anne-Marie

face an anxious wait for news.

I'm very concerned about this dog.

Anne-Marie and Thomas have been together since they were 14.

He's always done gardening fae... Since he left school.

He had his own business in it and then here... That was me,

I took the brain haemorrhage.

And since then he's been watching, now looking after me.

I had aneurysms, three aneurysms. And one burst and...

A brain haemorrhage. And then I took two strokes

and then a seizure.

I had to learn how to swallow. I couldn't swallow.

Couldn't even swallow.

I forget things.

You know? Sometimes, like when I'm walking, my balance is away,

sort of thing. And the nerve endings...are away.

Now, with the two strokes.

Do you ever feel like...

I'm a burden to him? I do. I feel sorry for him

cos he's...

He does do a lot. He does do a lot for me.

I didn't want to go out - I didn't want anybody to see me like that.

We said, if we get a dog again, it'll get Anne-Marie out.

-If you like.

-Aye.

-You know, it sort of...

work off each other, you know?

And it has worked.

I mean, I have been getting out, you know, wi' the dog, but...

I don't know what I would do without him.

Brody's undergoing scans and blood tests

to try and determine what's wrong.

At a regular vet hospital, the cost would run to hundreds of pounds.

If you didn't have the PDSA and the same thing was to happen,

to me, there would only be two options.

You would either have to get the money, or...

-Put it down.

-Yeah.

-Aye?

-Well, what other option have you got?

Oh, I'm praying to God.

Praying to St Francis of Assisi, I was saying to you, wasn't I?

I'm saying to him... He's Protestant as well,

and I'm saying, "Pray to St Francis of Assisi."

She's pregnant.

So she's only had one... One puppy since three o'clock this morning.

That's why I'm in now,

to see if there's any more puppies inside her.

I get benefits because I've got two young kids,

so I'm entitled to come here.

The lady's just checking you.

What I'm going to do, I'll pop her through and just do a little scan

of her tummy to see if there is anything left inside.

We were going to keep one, and then the rest we were going to sell.

How much do they sell for, the puppies?

Between £300 and £400.

So you could get a lot.

The PDSA doesn't support breeding,

but unborn puppies can pose a medical emergency.

She was absolutely fine, but I can't see anything

that's still in the womb that needs to come out.

-So there's no more babies?

-I can't see anything on that scan.

'I'm aware of the cost that puppies and kittens, even, are selling for.

'She could have a home lined up for puppy two, puppy three, puppy four.'

She may very well be disappointed,

but...that's the way it is. Can't change it.

She always gets a bad reaction when I'm walking down the street.

If I'm in town with her, standing at a bus stop,

they'll all move out from the bus stop.

They won't say things, but I'll see them looking, and talking,

and I'll say to them, "She's not a dangerous dog,

"I wouldn't let her out if she was, she'd have a muzzle on."

And they just look at me.

Jamie Leigh has come back to the PDSA

for Kabana's follow-up appointment.

Kabana, gonnae just chill out?

How's she been since I saw you last week?

She's not been eating as much as I thought she would be eating,

-but she's not been sick or anything.

-Right, OK.

I just want to get a wee feel at her tummy, OK?

But I think just to calm her down,

-I want you to pop a wee muzzle onto her for me.

-OK.

-OK?

That might be easier said than done.

Come on, it's OK, it's OK.

Oh, she's just took it off.

She won't bite, at all. But I know...

She's a big dog, and it's a strange place, a strange person -

we've got to sort of play on the safe side.

I'll hold her for you.

-Do you have a collar for her?

-Yeah, it's at home.

I might get somebody to come and help us, just as a backstop, OK?

-OK!

-She's a big dog.

This is hard.

Come here, please.

I know you don't like it, sweetie, but we're going to put it on to you.

I've got a hold of it.

If I can just pull out...

I'm fairly certain that her vomiting is to do more with her diet,

coming in season, all these sort of issues.

Because we don't, as an organisation,

recommend breeding,

I would seriously ask you to consider getting her neutered.

She's quite a snuffly dog - you've got to be aware that

that's something that could be passed on to future generations.

Erm, and again...

You've got think of, sometimes, the dog's sort of temperament.

She is a big, powerful dog.

Yeah, and you're saying that... Why are you saying that?

I know how to control my dog and how my dog acts.

-She's not a dangerous dog at all.

-No, no, I'm just pointing out

the general sort of recommendations that we have.

But it's more important... I've got to give you this letter.

Because we're using PDSA money,

we can't be seen to be supporting people wanting to breed.

-No, that's fine.

-If she is sick or injured,

we don't have an issue with seeing her,

but if she did get pregnant,

-you'd have to make arrangements...

-I've got a private vet for that.

You've got a private vet for that? OK.

Just the other thing is just, with the legislation at the moment,

-she is supposed to have a proper collar.

-She does have a harness.

No. She's supposed to have a proper collar on.

-I'll get her a proper collar.

-OK.

-It's just part of the legislation.

-Yeah, no, that's fine.

I think you'll find that, rather than that lead slipping,

you'll have a wee bit more sort of control over her.

I do... Not really... Like, I know my dog, that lead's better for her.

But if you're saying I need a collar for her, I'll get a collar.

-It's legal.

-Yeah, that's what I'm saying, I'll get it.

But I'm just saying, if they get startled, maybe,

if you're walking along the street,

you've got to have something you're sure you can hold her with.

I know I can hold her.

-OK.

-OK.

-Right, bye.

-Bye.

Thanks.

Come on, then.

'She's a very, very powerful dog, just pure muscle,'

and they can easily drag someone off their feet.

Don't even know what to say, like, I am just raging about it.

I am...

Just the way she was looking at me and the way she was saying it,

like basically putting across that

I can't really handle her as much as I...

Don't know. It stresses me out.

I am stressed out cos of that.

In Glasgow, there's still no sign of Dusk,

and Laura now faces a difficult situation.

She's moving house.

Obviously with Dusk being missing,

and if he does try and come back and I'm not here,

it's very worrying that...

..you know, he won't understand what's going on.

Would you mind keeping a look out for Dusk when I'm away?

I'm always looking all around when I'm going about.

If I hear anything from Dusk

-or anyone that phones or...

-Hopefully he doesn't call you!

Can you get that?

It used to come apart, but it had to get screwed together.

Aye. Sorry. Cos I broke it.

I went through the couch!

I'll get the screwdriver.

Oh, my Tampax! Don't look.

-We're embarrassed now!

-Sorry!

How to embarrass workmen - talk about your Tampax.

Laura's big move is less for her benefit than for her cats'.

I've got an ongoing issue with my neighbours.

They don't particularly like my cats.

Some people just look at them as vermin, unfortunately.

I can't wait to move out of here,

because I'll be happy when my cats get their new home.

I'm leaving behind some really good neighbours

and I'm leaving behind neighbours that are...

not particularly animal-friendly.

I'm not happy that I'm leaving without him.

I'm very upset.

But I know it's the best thing for my cats.

Would you like to make a contribution today?

-The PDSA provides free treatment...

-Thanks very much.

..and relies solely on donations and client contributions.

-And how much of a contribution are you making today?

-£10.

That's lovely.

Sherlock for Lilley?

But not everyone is happy with the way their system works.

Every time I come in, I get asked, do I want to make a donation?

I pay by direct debit every month.

I haven't been here for over two years.

I've been in twice and I've had the life pestered out me.

It's not actually to this hospital, your direct debit,

so we don't know about it. If we don't ask, we don't get.

-It's meant to be on that screen.

-It's not.

But it was...? Don't tell me it's not, hen.

-I was told yesterday...

-What I mean is, the direct debit isn't linked

-to our records.

-They were going to link it, and they never done it.

Detrimental to my health, out there.

I've had four heart attacks,

and to be asked, do I want to gie somebody money,

and have to say no half the time...

With my experience, you know, you just learn to be calm -

there's no point in getting angry back with them

because you don't know what kind of hard day they've had.

What's up with my cat?

What's thingmy? Because I'm starting to get upset with you as well.

'I suppose when you start out in PDSA, you kind of think

'well, surely they're really grateful that there is such a thing.

'But, you know...people are all different.'

-This is Jen, our client services manager.

-Hiya.

..that door.

'A donation's meant to be something that you want to do.

'You shouldn't be embarrassed into paying somebody something.'

This place is here because we don't HAVE money.

So...

-I think some people just come in in a bad mood.

-Yeah.

Sometimes they're having a bad day.

Anne-Marie and Thomas have come in for Brody's test results.

And would you like to make your contribution today?

Eh, I haven't got anything with me, sorry.

No problem at all, no worries.

-You just take a wee seat and I'll call you through, OK?

-No bother.

But yesterday, I put some money in, you know?

I never knew they would ask for another one again.

-Are we going to have enough for...

-Aye, aye.

..for the gas and that cos we've still got to put money in the gas?

-Yep.

-Aye?

-Mm-hm.

'How do you work out how much to donate?'

Well, we've got to work out how much it is to keep us.

There's enough there, don't worry about it.

I know, we've got that...

We've got their catalogue and all.

They're helping us out at the end of the day, you know what I mean?

That is what it's all about, innit?

We've got the report back from the overnight hospital.

They did a blood smear last night and found that

he does have very low amounts of clotting factors in his blood,

which can be an indication of a cancer or something as well,

so we're still not 100% sure what's going on here

but the fact that we've seen an improvement overnight -

he's eating, he's drunk, he's walking -

that's very, very positive.

Let's get you all set up, shall we? That's lovely, we'll see you back...

The possibility that Brody has cancer changes everything.

Oh, I don't feel well at all.

Everyone knows that word,

everybody has had someone in their lives -

a pet, a family member, a friend -

who's been affected with it

and it does strike fear into everybody's hearts.

If that is an option,

it's something they need to be made aware of, unfortunately.

I've just got a feeling, I don't know what it is,

but I've just got a wee feeling that he'll pull through.

Well, we'll just need to wait and see, eh?

There we go.

A week on from his injury, Stefan's lies have been found out.

The story I got told was that four 17-year-old girls jumped him.

-I heard it was boys.

-Oh, no, he told me girls.

And then I think it turns out that he fell over...

-A coffee table.

-..a coffee table.

He's trying to make amends with chocolate.

I got a Kinder Egg because he lied to me and made me upset.

I got an egg.

I did not get an egg.

I complained cos I didn't get an egg and then I did get an egg.

-But chocolate doesn't cut it with the boss.

-Bye, everybody.

'Being professional is easy. I see it as having fun.

'You've got to have fun in your job as well.'

I wasn't harming any pets, I was just having a wee giggle.

But I always do.

But I always get into trouble for it.

Brody the bulldog is facing a cancer diagnosis and the PDSA team

have placed him on steroids in a bid to boost his system.

When you're dealing with something like that

when they've got such low red-blood-cell counts,

it is always really, really sort of touch and go from the start

but there's nothing to be lost from trialling treatment

to see if we can get them better because a proportion of them do

and some of them do respond really, really well to treatment.

Right, come on. Oh, well done. Out you come.

He couldn't even walk when he came in so I think this is...

I would say a slight improvement,

the fact that he's actually walking out.

-Are we going to go and find your daddy?

-Brody.

-Who's that there to see you?

-Hello.

We've got a waggy tail so that's a good thing, isn't it?

Shamrock Street isn't able to keep pets overnight,

so Thomas has to take Brody across town to the overnight hospital.

In an ideal world, we would have night staff here.

It's quite a big effort if you've got a really sick animal

and it needs intensive care.

They're here between nine and six during the day

and then up to our out-of-hours hospital at night-time.

He's probably going to have to do it for another three or four days

so it is quite a lot for them.

But Thomas soon learns that any hope for Brody is fading fast.

I went into the vets now, right,

and I says to the vet to give me it straight, right?

And she says he's got chronic leukaemia, right,

and there's no chance for him whatsoever.

Let's bring him back home.

We cannae bring him home at night.

It's gonnae happen, so you're better doing it the now.

I don't know cos you hear stories about they pull through.

I mean, how bad is it, between one to ten?

Anne-Marie, I would like nothing better to walk back from that town

with Brody at my side.

SHE SNIFFLES

But according to the vets now, it's no' happening.

-But they're no' releasing him?

-No, he's not gonnae last.

He's on his way out the now, according to them. He's dying.

We can just leave it till the morning and go back and speak

to the PDSA cos the vets are all away from the PDSA just now.

I'll need to think on that cos I cannae just...

-Right, you've got two choices basically, right?

-I know.

We go up to the vets now and dae what's got to be done

or leave it till the morning and speak to the PDSA.

-Leave it till the morning, if that's all right?

-Fine by me.

Good morning. Coming in?

-Hiya.

-Hiya.

-Morning.

-I know...

-Sammy Walker, please?

-That's...

-That's me.

Come in, if you just want to pop Sally on the table for me?

Actually, if you look in there,

can you see that lump underneath her tongue?

Yeah.

So she's actually got a tumour at the base of her tongue

and that's why she's not eating her food.

-Really, the kindest thing would be to put her to sleep.

-Oh.

-OK?

-OK.

I'm so sorry. I don't know if you were expecting that today.

OK, darling. Goodbye.

That's the hardest - little old ladies,

little old men where it's their best friend.

OK, baby. Love you. Eh?

It never gets any easier.

I'm just phoning to see if you can give me a wee update

on how Brody Davies has been overnight?

And there's more bad news.

After consulting with the overnight hospital,

senior vet Susie confirms Brody needs to be put to sleep.

He'd almost be easier to deal with if he was a wee 12-year-old

or a 13-year-old dog but what I was saying to Brody's dad

this morning is, you know, he couldn't have done anything differently.

Just like bad things happen to nice people, unfortunately,

bad things happen to nice dogs and nice cats

and we can't, you know, say why it happened.

Could people with lots of money pay for something else?

With Brody, I think, we always do have the option

of going for a referral to see a specialist

and I think maybe what specialists would be able to do

would be to tell Brody's dad exactly what was wrong with him,

give him a diagnosis.

Do I think they would have been able to save Brody? No.

Hand on heart, I don't think they would have got Brody back

even if they had all the money in the world.

I think Brody was just so poorly

that there was nothing anybody could have done.

No, that's him, it's the end of the road for him.

Come on, Sophie. Come on.

Aye, she's a bit heavy, isn't she?

Especially for somewhere like this, you know?

You'd think maybe he'd have the weight on level,

being a boxing coach and all that.

HE LAUGHS

Sophie's owner, Tony, is a coach with Paisley Amateur Boxing Club.

On you go. Good, good cross.

'Paisley's a rough area.

'See the guys who train in here, who train in here regular,

'they don't get involved in fights in the street.

'They don't cos we tell them in here,'

"You don't get paid for that shit, you get locked up."

You want to fight? Get paid for it, man.

The mirror willnae lie to you. See your pals and all that?

They'll tell you bullshit, they'll lie to you.

They'll say, "Oh, you're great, you're doing brilliant" and all that...

I talk to them about mistakes I made in my past.

Hopefully, they don't make the same mistakes

and trying to make money quick and stuff like that,

trying to take short cuts.

Get your arse right down. That's better.

I was brought up in a housing scheme,

Ferguslie Park, quite a rough area.

But Paisley Amateur Boxing Club was run by a man called Norrie Sweeney.

We used to train Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday

and a Sunday afternoon and I would know that he would be there.

He was the only constant in my life, you know?

It was guaranteed he would be there

but you didn't know what you were going home to,

you didn't know what your home life was going to be,

you didn't know what you were going back to.

But you always had the boxing club.

I used to get in a bit of bother and stuff like that, you know?

I was a bit of a rogue.

-I got in a bit of trouble.

-What kind of trouble?

Armed robberies and stuff like that.

I got eight years and seven years for armed robberies.

Robbery in a post office, robbery in a building society,

stuff like that.

I was young and I thought I could make money quick.

I didnae have an education.

You've no' got money to live on, you've no' got any security.

You're terrified.

You're kidding on you're tough and you're acting tough - that's

all front. That's all bullshit.

Fear...

Fear, that's what you've got. Not toughness.

The toughness, the gangsterism and all that bullshit.

I got seven year, and then...

after that I come out and Norrie always kept his doors open,

always kept in touch with us and all that stuff.

And I went back down to see him, it was the only positive thing I knew.

I went to see him and he was like, "Help me train the boys,"

and that's what I done, I helped him train the boys.

What would your life have been if you didn't have that?

I'd be dead. I'd have been dead a long, long time ago.

I'd either got murdered or I'd be doing a life sentence.

That time when I was young, I was young and running about wild,

it was hard to see anything good, anything positive.

So if you'd said to me, "You're going to have this wee dog,

"she's going to be a positive in your life and she's going to love

"you and you're going to love her and that,

"and you're going to have a great relationship and great fun.

"And this wee dog is going to make you smile every day,"

I'd have thought you were off your nut.

That's what I would've thought.

Dusk is still missing and Laura's niece, Grace,

is leading a poster campaign to spread the word.

It's been about seven months, and it's quite hard to stay hopeful,

but you've got to keep trying.

While Grace goes with the traditional method of cat hunting,

Laura has returned to the scene to try a more unorthodox approach.

William O'Connor is one of Glasgow's best-known psychics.

He's been involved in a number of missing persons' cases.

This will be his first investigation into a missing cat.

-Pleased to meet you.

-How are you?

-Double kiss. Thanks for coming.

There's my wee baby boy.

What we want to do is try and just

go around to the left and the right of the area.

Just to get a good feel where he would have been.

A lot of people think, you know, going to a psychic about

a pet sounds absolutely ridiculous,

but do you know what, it's my choice.

Do you believe psychics are real?

Well...

I believe...in...

when I'm desperate.

SHE CHUCKLES

I don't believe that the psychic can tell us where Dusk is.

I do think that he will turn up.

Even if the psychic tells us that he won't.

It's a bit difficult to say this, Laura,

-but he's not wandered off on his own.

-What do you mean by that?

It's a deliberate act, is the only word I can use.

-That it's a deliberate act of taking him.

-I get that.

Right. Unfortunately, it's not great news.

I must stress this to you, it's not... It's not random.

-No, it's deliberate.

-It's malicious intent.

-Yes. I believe that.

And it's because who the cat belonged to, rather than it's a cat.

-Yep.

-If that makes sense to you.

The hope...of him being returned

-virtually goes to nil.

-Nil.

Unfortunately.

In my heart... I want to think, oh, he's maybe with a nice family...

But my feeling is that he was taken deliberately because

the person knows me.

I'll never forget him if I never get him back. He's always in my heart.

The head vet had a quiet word with Stefan about his behaviour,

but it hasn't stopped him having the occasional laugh.

I call them the lambing hands because I can get two hands...in.

I know it's a bit disgusting, isn't it?

See what I've got to put up with?

You love my chatter, that's why you come to me.

Try and get two hands in ME.

-You could get a shovel up...?

-THEY LAUGH

Come on, Soph.

Good girl.

Sophie's been on a diet for six months.

Mr Lindy with Sophie to room six, please.

-And the day of reckoning is here.

-Aye, you're all right.

-Oh, look at the difference!

-What's she at?

-Down to just over 60 there.

-And that was 69!

-69!

-Good girl.

-14.7 today.

-Well done!

Who's a clever girl?

So that's more than half a stone she's lost altogether.

-Is she still bossing you about?

-Of course, aye. She always will!

She's got me wrapped around her wee paw.

It might say Boss on my jacket,

but Sophie is the real boss, aren't you?

In Aberdeen, love is in the air.

I've been looking for a stud dog to breed with Kabana.

And I was looking on Facebook and I came across Paul and his dog Sid.

The first time they met up, they weren't that keen on each other,

but the second time they met up, it was in my house, and they were...

together, I suppose.

And Kabana and Sid aren't the only ones.

We met up, the dogs got on well and then we got on well and we started

talking more and ended up in a relationship.

-So how are you feeling about it all?

-Happy, obviously.

Over the moon.

So it's Kabana and Sid and me and Paul.

It's two months since Angie took her mum's cat, Daisy, to the PDSA.

Since then, her life's changed.

My mum died...on the 8th of August.

When I'm really at my worst...

..I could have called my mother.

I don't know what you can do when you lose your mother.

There's not a lot you can do.

I could've done with her staying around for another two years,

but she had dementia

and she had to go at that specific time.

It would've been cruel for her to stay alive.

So I'm happy that she's gone.

That she's not in pain.

I think it's an old saying...

..that women with cats ended up on their own.

Hopefully, that's not what's happening to me.

What would my mum do?

She'd say...

"Get on with it!"

So my son said he can put me on Match.com.

Well, my ideal man would need to be good-looking

and a personality and preferably a smoker.

SHE CHUCKLES

Oh, and he's got to at least talk French.

That's a tall order, finding all those things and somebody

that speaks French, in Glasgow.

Is it? Well... I think that's what I'd want.

That would be quite a happy ever after.