It’s hard to believe that these disgusting criminals could stoop to this level. By stealing essential supplies, they’ve put the animals’ lives at risk. DARG is a non-profit organisation that rescues and rehabilitates abused and abandoned cats and dogs. The staff and volunteers there do amazing work to care for the animals. It’s heartbreaking to hear that something like this can happen.

If you can assist with any food, equipment or donations, please get in touch with DARG on (021) 790 0383 / 2050 or info@darg.org.za. You can find DARG on Main Road, Hout Bay. For more information on the organisation, visit www.darg.org.za. Please help out if you can.

UPDATE: In some good news, Trellidoor SA and Peninsula Glass have come to the rescue by helping DARG secure their premises. Hopefully that’ll keep the thieves away once and for all. Well done guys!

2010 SPCA Horse Show Victor Lodorum winner Roxanne Joubert of Table View on Money Mover.

The event is the largest charity horse show in the Western Cape and is open to riders of all ages. You can look forward to showing classes and a gymkhana from 09h00 on Saturday 10 December 2011 and show-jumping classes from 08h00 on Sunday 11 December 2011. In addition, there will be a Christmas market and food stalls, as well as pony rides and entertainment for the little ones on both the Saturday and Sunday.

The SPCA Charity Horse Show raises much needed funds for the SPCA Horse Care Unit and is fully endorsed by the Western Province Horse Society. The event is generously co-sponsored by Abax Investments and Mr and Mrs Jack Mitchell and family.

Entrance for spectators is free and there will be parking available at R30 per car. You can find the Constantia Valley Riding Club in Brommersvlei Road, Constantia. For more information on the show, get in touch with Juan August on 021 700 4180/41 or events@spca-ct.co.za, or visit www.spca-ct.co.za.

You can enter the 2011 Community Chest Twilight Run as an individual or in of team of four to six people. As always, participants are encouraged to dress up in crazy costumes for the race. Six prizes to the value of R10,000 will be sponsored by Lewis Stores and trophies from Good Hope FM will be up for grabs.

The Twilight Team Run raises much needed funds for the Community Chest, an organisation which supports over 400 social development agencies. Beneficiaries include children and families in need of help, the homeless, elderly, physically and mentally challenged and people living with HIV/AIDS.

You can enter the 2011 Twilight Team Run online at http://www.twilightrun.co.za/. Individual entries for the race cost R50 each, while team entries cost R180.

The race distance is 4,5km and the venue for the start and finish is the Grand Parade. Remember to get there early as judging for the best dressed team starts at 17h00, while the race starts at 19h00.

Hospitality sites (4m x 3m) are also available on a first come first serve basis for R1,500 each, with numbers strictly limited to 100 sites. If you’d like to have a braai at your site, then be sure to take note that only gas braais will be permitted.

Go and have fun while supporting a good cause. This is one of Cape Town’s favourite events in December. Enjoy!

The 4.5km fun walk starts at 09h00 at the Academy of Maths, Science and Technology, located on the corner of Spaanschemat River Road and Firgrove Way in Tokai. With a wide variety of food stalls, as well as pony rides, face painting, a dog agility display and a jumping castle, the event is a fun day out for the whole family.

The Wiggle Waggle Walkathon raises thousands of rands to help less-fortunate animals being cared for by the Cape of Good Hope (CoGH) SPCA. In addition, the MySchool MyVillage MyPlanet fundraising programme will once again give R10 to the CoGH SPCA for every dog participating in the walkathon. Last year, R17,510 was raised for the CoGH SPCA through the MySchool MyVillage MyPlanet program alone.

Note that if you have an older dog, a dog with joint problems or a short-nose breed, then the Royal Canin team recommends a check-up at the vet before deciding on taking part in the Wiggle Waggle Walkathon. Also, large breed dogs of 18 months or younger should keep to a shorter distance, to avoid pressure on growth plates and joint development. Puppies under four months old are not allowed to take part, so they’ll have to wait for next year.

Entries cost R30 per person, R20 per dog and there’s no charge for children in prams. You can pre-register online at http://www.spca-ct.co.za/event.asp. Alternatively, you can pick up an entry form from the SPCA in Grassy Park or at the SPCA Vet Shop at 6 Gabriel Road, Plumstead.

Remember, you don’t have to have a dog to join in the fun – everyone is welcome at the Wiggle Waggle Walkathon. Go ahead support this good cause. Enjoy!

Movember was originally started in Melbourne, Australia but now enjoys global recognition with formal campaigns in Australia, New Zealand, USA, Canada, the UK, Finland, the Netherlands, South Africa, Ireland, Denmark, Norway, Belgium and the Czech Republic. The sudden popularity in ‘moustachery’ during November certainly gets people talking and, in a fun and original way, raises awareness for men’s health.

So, how do you get involved with Movember? Firstly, you need to register online at http://za.movember.com with a clean-shaven face on 1 November 2011 and you’ll become one of the ‘Mo Bros’. Then, over the next 30 days, you need to find some sponsorship for that moustache. Of course, Movember would be nothing without the help of the lady in your life, so ask her to help you find sponsors and she’ll be one the ‘Mo Sistas’.

To celebrate the efforts of Capetonian Mo Bros and Mo Sistas, there’ll be a huge party happening at Trinity Nightclub in Green Point on Thursday 24 November 2011, with live performances by Jack Parow and Crazy White Boy. Be sure to look out for details on that one – it should be a great night out.

Spread the word and help make Movember 2011 the most successful one to date. Good luck with those moustaches!

For information on the programmes funded by Movember South Africa, visit:

• Cancer Association of South Africa (CANSA)
• Awareness & Education
• Global Action Plan

The iThemba Walkathon starts and finishes at the Green Point Park and the route runs through Mouille Point and Sea Point, along the promenade. Participants can choose from two distances – 5km and 10km. There’ll be loads of prizes for the best dressed on the day, as well as live entertainment from La Vuvuzela, a kiddies play area, a Toddler Trot and food stalls.

This year, dogs will be welcome on the 5km walk, so bring along your four legged furry friends. There’ll be refreshment stations along the route to keep them well hydrated.

Parking will be available on Somerset Road, Green Point, as well as the Green Point Traffic Department, Hamilton’s Rugby Club and Green Point Cricket Club.

The iThemba Walkathon helps to raise awareness and funds for breast cancer, as well as for the Bosom Buddies breast cancer support group (www.bosombuddies.org.za) and Look Good… Feel Better (www.lgfb.co.za).

Entries cost R65 for adults and R45 for children under the age of 12. If you enter by 19 October 2011, you’ll qualify for a T-shirt and goodie bag, which you can collect on registration at the Green Point Park from Wednesday 26 October 2011 to Saturday 29 October 2011. To enter online, visit www.ithembawalkathon.co.za. Alternatively, pick up an entry form at Curves or Skechers outlets.

Have fun, get some exercise and support a good cause. All good reasons to take part. Go for it!

This year, Sunflower Fund bandanas will be on sale from Pick n Pay and BP Express stores. In addition to raising much needed funds for the SABMR, bandanas are worn on National Bandana Day to show solidarity towards patients suffering from leukaemia, who lose their hair when undergoing chemotherapy treatments.

What used to be called a bone marrow transplant is now called a bone marrow stem cell transplant as nowadays they just extract stem cells, like a little bag of blood, from the donor and transplant them into the recipient and the stem cells find their way to the recipient’s bone marrow to produce new non-cancerous blood cells.

The testing of donors to find a match for a recipient is very expensive as there are so many possible variations in stem cell matching – each individual is almost unique. Even the initial tests done to register a stem cell donor on the SABMR are expensive and some people who are willing to be a donor, ie to donate stem cells from their bone marrow to save someone’s life, don’t have a spare R500 to R1000 to pay for the tests.

That’s where fundraising drives such as National Bandana Day come in. Every R20 helps the Sunflower Fund in recruiting potential bone marrow stem cell donors for the SABMR.

Do your bit by buying a Sunflower Fund bandana for R20 and help make a difference. For more information, visit www.sunflowerfund.org.za.

And if you need another reason to buy a bandana, then take a moment and watch this short video http://vimeo.com/26756094.

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Here’s some other news on Sunflower Fund initiatives:

Capetonians both old and young gathered at the Mouille Point Lighthouse on Sunday 18 September 2011, for the Sunflower Foundation’s first ever fun run/walk. This initiative was aimed at raising awareness for 14 year old Reza Price from Westerford High School who is suffering with leukaemia.

‘Unfortunately he is unable to find a donor and his quality of life will not improve unless a donor match is found.  It is imperative that we make awareness around getting more people to join the registry of donors.’ said Sunflower Foundation CEO, Tina Botha.

The fun run along the Sea Point promenade, kicked off at the Light House and carried on to Saunders Rock and back. All of the entrants sported bandanas to show solidarity for those leukaemia sufferers who have lost their hair.

Medac and Rockets sponsored sunflower branded yellow UV protective arm sleeves for the first 400 that entered.  Medac and Rockets merchandise was also sold on site in a bid to raise more funds for the foundation while each of the runners made a contribution of R50 towards the cause.

‘Despite the wind and rain on Sunday over 1000 entrants partook in the occasion, and together with Medac we managed to raise a considerable amount of funds for the Sunflower Foundation’ said Botha.

Earth Hour is extra special in South Africa this year, as the COP17 climate change conference heads to our shores in December. World leaders will meet at the conference in Durban to discuss progress in dealing with climate change and obligations for reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

The V&A Waterfront will be organising a special Earth Hour celebration at the ampitheatre to mark this year’s event. The Cape Town Brass Ensemble will perform as the lights are switched off around the ampitheatre. Drip-free, child-safe candles will be on sale at R2 each at the V&A Waterfront information centre.

I’m happy to see the Earth Hour initiative is continuing and gaining momentum. Do your bit on Saturday 26 March 2011 from 20h30 to 21h30 and show your support – it’s well worth it.

To stay up to date with Earth Hour news and events, visit www.wwf.org.za/earth_hour_2011.

Last year just over 400 people and 282 dogs of all shapes and sizes participated in the Woefie-Wandel, which raises much needed funds for abused and mistreated animals. The event is organised by the Cape of Good Hope SPCA, along with sponsors Purina and Pick n Pay.

You can enter online at www.spca-ct.co.za or you can pick up an entry form at Pick n Pay stores across Cape Town. Entry forms are also available directly from the SPCA and at the SPCA Vet Shop in Plumstead. It only costs R30 per person and R30 per dog and children in prams enter free. Registration opens at 07h00 on the day and the walk starts at 09h00.

There are a couple of short hills along the 3,5km circular route but nothing too strenuous, making it manageable for the whole family. Regular water points will be available every 0.5km and traffic officials, volunteer veterinarians and a human first aid vehicle will be on hand to attend to any human or canine injuries along the route.

Festivities on the day will include a dog agility display and a jumping castle for children. Radio Tygerberg’s Lorrein Katzke will broadcast from the event and help give away the many fantastic prizes from sponsors Purina and Pick ‘n Pay. There’ll also be a selection of food, beverage and pet product stalls available.

It’s a great event and we’re all hoping to see the Woefie-Wandel grow in popularity like the Wiggle-Waggle event has done in recent years. Be sure to enter soon and do your bit to support a worthy cause. Enjoy!

The walk starts at the Academy of Maths, Science and Technology, which is on the corner of Spaanschemat River Road and Firgrove Way in Tokai. The route will be closed to traffic for the duration of the walkathon, giving participants full access to the roads. Water will be available for both dogs and their owners at regular water points along the route.

It’s a fun day for the whole family and there’s plenty on offer to keep everyone entertained. There’ll be spot prizes, a jumping castle, a R6,000 shopping voucher competition and plenty of food and beverage stalls. Premium pet food manufacturer Royal Canin is partnering with the SPCA to organise the event and in addition to covering the costs of staging the walk, they’ll have lots of great freebies for all entrants on the day. Plenty of parking will be available as well.

The event raises thousands of rands to help less-fortunate animals being cared for by the Cape of Good Hope SPCA. In addition, the MySchool MyVillage MyPlanet fundraising programme will give R10 to the SPCA for every dog participating in the walkathon.

All participants must register to take part and there are a number of ways to do so. The first option is to register online, which you can do here. Entry forms are also available from local veterinary practices or from the SPCA. Alternatively, walkers can register at the venue or at the Cape Quarter (Somerset Road) on Saturday 27 November between 10h00 and 14h00 or at the venue on the day of the walk (Sunday 28 November) from 07h00. Entry costs R20 per dog and R30 per person.

Even if you’re not a dog owner, you can still take part in the Wiggle Waggle Walkathon. It’s open to everyone, so go out there and support a good cause. It’ll be great fun. Enjoy!