Collect old used stamps for the tiniest animals - Buglife

Love them or loathe them, we all need the tiniest animals on the planet.  They are essential to all our well-being.   We all depend on them.

And there's a charity working to conserve all our bugs, from bees to beetles, worms to woodlice and jumping spiders to jellyfish.  It's called Buglife.

Invertebrates, say Buglife, underpin life on earth.  Every species has its place in the eco-system.  Without invertebrates, the world's ecosystems would collapse.   But invertebrates - like so many species - are facing an extinction crisis.   Around the world, 150,000 species could vanish by 2050 unless something is done to stop the rot.

Like so many species, once a species is extinct, that's that.  You can't bring them back.   Buglife are working to halt the extinction of so many invertebrate species  by promoting awareness of their environmental importance and raising awareness of the challenges these species face. The charity is also helping develop legislation and policy to ensure their conservation.  They spread knowledge about how to conserve them, and support and encourage conservation initiatives in the UK and elsewhere   They also run projects to help contribute towards stopping the extinction of so many species.

So your stamps can help Buglife do all these things.    Cut the stamp from the used envelope (don't damage the stamp in the process).  When you've got a good number of them, pop them in an envelope to:

Buglife
PO Box 16992
Sutton Coldfield
BY3 9YA

Please ensure you put enough postage on your parcel or envelope of stamps  

One other thought - which Buglife ask us to do - is to change our view of invertebrates.   They are a vital part of the food chain, being food for other animals.   So unless they cause damage, Buglife ask that we let them be.

You can also help at home, by gardening to help invertebrates.   Find out more here

Help horses and donkeys with your used stamps

UK horse charity Redwings now accept used stamps of all shapes and sizes.   They say foreign or special stamps can raise the most money but all stamps help!

The charity cares for over 1,500 horses, ponies, donkeys and mules every day.  Many are brought in as rescues and you can find out more about these here. They have lots of advice and information for horse owners and wannabe horse owners here

Please send your stamps to:           

Supporter Services Team

Redwings Horse Sanctuary

Hapton

Norwich

NR15 1SP

You can also support Redwings by buying gifts and products from their shop, including adopt a horse.   Click here to visit their online shop.

Born Free Foundation need your stamps!

The Born Free Foundation welcome all stamps, on or off paper. 

The charity helps hundreds of thousands animals  around the world, protecting lions, elephants, tigers, gorillas, wolves, polar bears, dolphins, marine turtles and more in their natural habitat.  They work with local communities to help people and wildlife live together without conflict.

They ask that if possible, "stamps on paper should have no more than 10mm of single thickness border around them, please do not trim them so close that the perforations are damaged."
 
Send your stamps with the right postage please, to:

Born Free Foundation
Stamp Appeal
PO Box 638
Fareham
Hampshire
PO14 9JJ

For more info, click here

For other ways to help, click here.

The PDSA are collecting stamps

The PDSA helps vets treats sick and injured pets around the UK.  In 2015, the charity celebrates 98 years of caring for the sick and injured animals of people in need.  And last year it helped 470,000 pets in need.

The charity's mission is "To care for the pets of people in need by providing free veterinary services to their sick and injured animals and promoting responsible pet ownership."

You can visit the PDSA's page here to see if your pet is eligible for their care.  You may also find their advice pages helpful.

You can send your used stamps to:

PDSA Charity Stamps Support
41 Buckingham Avenue
Penwortham
Preston
PR1 9HG

Companies can donate their used postage stamps too - visit the PDSA's website to find out what to do!  And click here to find out how else you can help.

Help hedgehogs with used stamps

The British Hedghog Preservation Society (registered charity no 326885) is dedicated to helping & protecting hedgehogs native to the UK.

It seeks to encourage & give advice to the public about the care of hedgehogs care, especially when injured, sick, treated cruelly or orphaned. It also works to encourage children to respect our natural wildlife, as you can see from Spike the hedgehog's letter. (By the way, if you want to get rid of slugs from your garden, Spike advises that you encourage hedgehogs, as they'll happily gobble them up). The Society also funds research into behaviour habits of hedgehogs to help determine the best method of helping them survive

The charity also runs a helpline with advice on caring & encouraging hedgehogs in the wild & in your garden. You can find their contact details here

The British Hedgehog Conservation Society needs our used stamps to help them raise vital funds to continue with this work. They also need worthless, foreign pre-decimal coins or notes, old or broken gold or silver jewellery

You can send your used stamps only to Mr S Bence, BHPS STAMPS, 35 Lime Road, Southam, Leamington Spa, Warwickshire CV47 1EQ

Anything else can go direct to Hedgehog House, Dhustone, Ludlow, Shropshire SY8 3PL

Help retired greyhounds

Last night, I discovered that the Retired Greyhound Trust have a Used Stamp Appeal.

Some 10,000 greyhounds retire from racing every year, most being between 3 and 4 years old. And many aren't after a manic energy busting life, either - they are quite happy with a couple of short-ish walks each day (20 to 30 minutes, I've heard), followed by a nice nap on the sofa with a cuddle. They are short haired, so don't need much grooming, and tend to be very placid, so make good pets for children. And they can and do make friends with cats, so if you've got a cat and are thinking of re-homing a retired greyhound...

The Retired Greyhound Trust has over 70 branches around the UK from the Isle of Skye to the Isle of Jersey so there's plenty of opportunity for you to get involved & lend a paw, or even take on a greyhound yourself, or events to go to for a great dog day out, such as the Great Geryhound Gathering in Nottingham in September.

You can send your used stamps to

Retired Greyhound Trust
2nd Floor
Park House
1-4 Park Terrace
Worcester Park
Surrey KT4 7 JZ

So get collecting those stamps! And take a look at their site to see how else you could help a retired greyhound or two...