Despite the challenges of lockdown, Felicity Caddick, Senior Veterinary Manager at Animalcare, is in training for her first Ironman Challenge. It will take place on 25 July in Nottingham and will require her to:
- Swim 3.8 km at the Regatta Lake at the National Watersports Centre
- Cycle for 180 km through the Nottinghamshire countryside
- Run a marathon (42 km) along the River Trent path.
She will be raising funds for StreetVet, Animalcare’s charity of the year for 2021.
No stranger to exercise, in 2019, Felicity was part of a team that set a Guinness World Record for the most people running a marathon tied together. Her training for the Ironman has seen her complete virtual ironman challenges every weekend since April 2020. These have included variable distance runs and bike rides as swimming has not been possible for most of the time. She was one of only 122 people worldwide to complete the entire series in 2020.
StreetVet is a charity offering professional veterinary care and support to pets belonging to those experiencing homelessness. It has recently launched an accredited hostel scheme and is working to encourage more hostels in the UK to become pet-friendly so that homeless people do not have to choose between their best friend and a roof over their head. Funds raised by Animalcare will help to ensure that each pet entering one of these hostels will be microchipped on their registration. Animalcare also provides its identichip microchips, microchip scanners and a free lifetime change of address service for StreetVet clients. As they try to rebuild their lives, homeless people often move through different accommodation so the lifetime change of address is really significant to support them and their pets.
Felicity Caddick said: “Training in three different sports requires specific plans for each element but also the ability to be able to perform them one after another. Because of COVID-19 I have had to train mostly alone and I’ve completed much of cycling training indoors on my turbo trainer. It’s challenging not being able to carry out swimming training and this won’t be possible until swimming pools or outdoor swimming venues are allowed to reopen.
“Exercise is an important part of my life. It requires many transferable skills, as relevant in practice as they are in sport, including; individual motivation, leadership and team work. Most importantly, I find sport really helps me to maintain a good work-life balance.”
She continued: “COVID-19 has had a devastating effect on people experiencing homelessness and their pets. The need for StreetVet and its services has increased while its veterinary costs have doubled and, in some months, tripled during lockdown. The charity wants to ensure that its volunteers can always be there when they are needed so I am delighted to be raising funds to help to make sure that they can continue their wonderful work.”
To support Felicity, visit her justgiving page.
Animalcare offers a wide range of animal health and pet welfare products, including its identichip microchips and identibase database, which help to reunite lost pets with their owners. The company’s most recent product launches are Procanicare, the UK’s first “for dog from dog” GI support product and Thiamacare, the strongest oral solution of thiamazole available for the treatment of hyperthyroidism in cats.
