About – Neapolitan Mastiff Welfare
From the foundation of The Neapolitan Mastiff Club (TNMC), Breed Welfare has been & continues to be, an on-going issue of concern. Despite its ‘Rare Breed’ status, Neapolitan Mastiffs were & are, subject to the same environmental factors as any other breed, and can, through changes in circumstance of ownership, or neglect, or abuse, or abandonment, find themselves needing to be re-homed, ending-up in rescue kennels, or even wandering the streets. Initially, Breed Welfare was addressed by breed enthusiasts, Members & Committee Members of TNMC, in an independent capacity, at their own expense, whenever and wherever the need arose.
In 2002: TNMC recognised the necessity of establishing a more formal structure to oversee Breed Welfare, and a Welfare Sub-Committee and Welfare Co-ordinator were appointed to administer and Co-ordinate Neapolitan Mastiff Welfare (NMW), working alongside those enthusiasts, Members & Committee Members of TNMC, who generously continued to support the cause.
In 2005: TNMC opened a separate Bank Account for NMW. And, with an ever-increasing number of unwanted or abandoned Mastini requiring assistance, continued to work toward establishing NMW as an independent organisation.
In 2007: With the formation of the independent NMW Organisation, TNMC relinquished control of NMW, which was to be administered & co-ordinated by a Committee of Welfare Representatives & Volunteers, as a separate entity to the Breed Club, but sitting under the wing or umbrella of TNMC, was supported and promoted by the patronage & endorsement TNMC provided.
In 2009: With a decreasing number of Welfare Representatives & Volunteers able to assist NMW, the then Administrator / Co-ordinator, Jackie Bunn, downsized the NMW Organisation.
In 2010: whilst the Officers & Committee of TNMC, recognised, acknowledged, and sincerely appreciated all the wonderful work that had been undertaken and achieved, for those of our breed in need, during the previous 3 years, with the further scaling-down of the already down-sized NMW Organisation, TNMC felt it necessary to take back control of NMW and re-establish a fully operational Welfare Organisation, capable of fulfilling its original aims & objectives.
In 2018: the current committee of TNMC pledged to work together to support welfare cases we were made aware of. A dedicated PayPal account was opened and FUND raising went into action. Support was given to other organisiations assisting with our breed rescue.
In 2019: Neapolitan Mastiff Welfare is an independent not-for-profit organisation, with a dedicated Bank Account and committee. It will be administered by a Welfare Coordinator who will work closely with TNMC as well as a network of Welfare Representatives & Volunteers endeavouring to achieve the Organisations Aims & Objectives. We have our own Welfare section on TNMC breed website.
Neapolitan Mastiff Welfare – Aims & Objectives:
The Aim of NMW is to: alleviate the suffering of unwanted or abandoned pedigree Neapolitan Mastiffs. With the Objective of: successfully re-homing as many unwanted or abandoned Neapolitan Mastiffs as is possible for the NMW to do so. (All Non-Pedigree / Non-KC Registered Neapolitan Mastiffs will be assessed on their own merits & circumstances)
NMW also Aims to: Maintain good working relations, exchange knowledge & information, and combine resources with TNMC & Membership, Enthusiasts, and Breeders. With the objective of: Monitoring Breed Welfare, Encouraging Responsible Ownership, highlighting Duty of Care, and promoting Responsible Breeding Practices, thus reducing the number of unwanted or abandoned NM requiring the assistance of the NMW.
TNMC is the only BREED club in the UK, it has a very small band of members. The very same applies to NMW helpers, however we all do what we can when we can. In reality it is never enough, therefore EVERY offer of assistance (in any shape or form) will be gratefully received.