Shaun Reynolds is one of the nicest people involved with greyhound racing. Ask anybody, and they’ll tell you the same thing. When I first came across him just over a year ago, he helped to get me started in greyhound racing photography through his firm Fortitude Communications.

When Shaun shared the sad story about his beloved whippet, Willow, who succumbed to Alabama Rot on Tuesday, 5th March, it not only helped to raise awareness of this increasingly prevalent and deadly disease, but also it kick-started a fundraising campaign that has already far exceeded expectations.

Since then, alongside his partner Lil, Shaun has hit the fundraising trail relentlessly, setting themselves a target of £10,000. When I spoke to Shaun, in less than a month, they had raised £5,300: more than half the target. Today the total stands at £9,255, taking into account donations made outside of the gofundme page.

“We’re really chuffed. When we set the page up, we were quite confident that we would raise two and a half maybe three grand without doing anything just because of the story and the amount of people who were following it and people who wanted to support us with vet bills.”

When I caught up with Shaun again, on TV Trophy night at Oxford, it was clear that his expectations were rising.

“I’d like to think we can raise more than ten grand now, maybe twelve and a half”

Shaun was keen to tell me about a whippet racing fundraiser that he was planning to raise even more money.

“In terms of events, we’ve organised a whippet racing fundraiser on August 31 at Lambourn Sports Club.”

Sporting his trademark shorts on a cold evening (I was wrapped up under at least 3 layers) Shaun also told me he’ll be running four back-to-back marathons next year to coincide with the one-year anniversary of losing Willow. With his iron-man credentials laid bare, I resolved to go on a diet – and help support the cause in any way that I could.

I asked Shaun what the money raised would go to and he was quick to point out that the charity was hugely under-funded and that little is really known about the disease, how it is spread, or how it can be cured.

“The charity is partnered with the University of Surrey who are leading research to better understand how the disease is caught and spread. They are also working on finding a cure. There’s literally nothing known about it.

“Cases are rising and the charity only raised £10,000 in total in 2023; it is criminally underfunded and there are no paid staff. All the money goes towards research which is good.”

Since out last conversation, Shaun has made appearances on television and on the radio in his plight to raise more money and awareness. The effort is inspiring and the willingness to keep going, to raise more, is admirable.

To support Shaun with his fundraising efforts and contribute to the Alabama Rot Research charity, click here.

A little after racing had finished, Shaun fetched Whisper for a little run on the track. However, Whisper had other ideas and decided to go for a little stroll and a sniff instead.

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God bless you Willow, our gorgeous blue Whippet (2019 – 2024)

First published – March 6, 2024

I’ll never forget the day we picked up our two whippets – Willow and Whisper – and brought them to their forever home for the first time, Thursday, January 2, 2020.

A wonderful lady based in the Cotswolds named Tor bred them – I think we drove her nuts messaging constantly for updates until ‘gotcha day’ having visited them when they were only weeks old.

While I absolutely adore Whisper and his irritatingly lazy personality, this blog is about Willow whose determined fight against suspected Alabama Rot devastatingly reached its end on Tuesday following 23 very upsetting days.

She will be the most intelligent, loving, curious and determined whippet I’ll ever own. And I’ll miss her every day until her fate from yesterday applies to me. Not seeing her grow old will unquestionably be the biggest regret.

Excluding the gym and occasional work commitments, Willow was my shadow who loved her morning walks and would sit under my desk all day snoozing until office closed and it was time for our evening adventure.

Every time I moved to grab a banana or fill up my water bottle – there she was. She couldn’t leave my side. So it would come as no surprise that calling time on her life at such a young age was the hardest thing my partner Lil and I have ever experienced.

We gave her every chance of fighting off this dreadful disease which has only been identified in 318 dogs in the UK in history with a 10% survival rate. But it wasn’t to be.

After a brief period at home where hopes of a miraculous full recovery were on the cards, she turned. And treatment options were becoming increasingly risky with increasingly severe consequences.

Until Tuesday, Willow’s battle was entirely reliant on her ability to dig deep and our ability to fund it – which is a really sad thought. But on Tuesday afternoon, for the first time we had to consider if we were making the best decision for her.

After understanding a very complex and intense three-day treatment plan, we rushed to Anderson Moores Veterinary Specialists near Winchester to see Willow for ourselves. She gave her tail a small waggle, but she didn’t have the fight, she didn’t wish for the pain ahead – it was time to say our goodbyes.

She fell asleep in my hands with her brother Whisper and Lilly beside her and slipped away.

God bless her for bringing enough love and laughs into our lives in four short years which will last a lifetime. Our regular holidays in Cornwall, Devon and Wales, her whippet racing days, her summertime strolls up the gallops at home, bundling into our bed at the first opportunity, relentless kisses, grumbling, chasing – all memories.

I want to give a special mention to Catarina, Sophie and Josh (and the lady who cared for Willow in her very final hours, forgive me her name escapes me) for their outstanding attention to detail with Willow.

They genuinely made the unbearable that bit more comfortable and are the reason behind our detailed updates which so many people followed as Willow’s fight developed. We couldn’t have wished for her to be in better hands.

But for now, see you soon, Willow x

Alabama Rot – our experience..

My partner Lil – previously a veterinary nurse – and I knew everything available in the public eye about Alabama Rot before Willow fell ill.

Despite it being incredibly rare, we did everything in our control to prevent infection – we were just simply desperately unlucky. On that first night, I asked Lil if she was comfortable for Willow’s story to be public.

Primarily, I wanted people in our village to be aware of a potential case and where I had walked with Willow leading up to her first symptoms. But also, I knew not everyone was aware of the disease’s key symptoms – or that Alabama Rot was even a thing.

From our experience, there are several key symptoms to look out for. In order, they are:

• An unexplained limp

This was Willow’s first symptom she picked up on Monday, February 12. We believe it occurred three days after she was infected. It concerned us, as Willow had no reason to be limping. She had an easy weekend exercise wise and hadn’t hurt or knocked herself once.

Lil called it immediately and raised Alabama Rot with our vet. It wasn’t discounted, but for now it would be treated as a routine infection. This limp vanished after four days, and we assumed treatment had worked.

• Sores

On Sunday, February 18, Willow’s foot was badly swollen and doubling in size every hour – no exaggeration. We took her back to the vets, and again raised Alabama Rot as the sore mirrored every photo of the disease you could see online.

Again, Alabama Rot wasn’t discounted, but the sore would continue to be treated as an infection.

• Sickness, lethargic behaviour and reduced urine

Wednesday, February 21. For the first time, Willow was throwing up her food. She became lethargic and would only go for a wee twice a day. Back to the vets where we again raised Alabama Rot. A blood test was booked for the following morning, after which her fight started.

Regarding how Alabama Rot is caught, it’s believed infection is associated with dogs walked in wet, muddy, woodland areas – with almost all cases reported between November and May.

The best an owner can do to prevent it is thoroughly wash down their dogs at the end of a walk – and pay particular attention to cuts and sores on paws which might expose flesh to infection.

Thank you

If there is a positive to take from the last month, it’s the genuine care people have shown.

Financially, we would never have been comfortable asking for support. But we had neighbours posting notes through our letterbox, colleagues rounding up donations and people we had never met before messaging for updates.

We realise there is a criminal lack of awareness and funding to help find a cure for Alabama Rot, so this year we’ll be organising a programme of fundraisers to help support the work of the Alabama Rot Research Fund – the only charity dedicated to finding a cure for this dreadful disease.

We want to raise £10,000, which I know with a bit of grafting is achievable. Our GoFundMe page launched yesterday evening and already over £1,250 has been pledged which is wonderful to see.

This is a disease which started affecting greyhounds only but has now spread worldwide with all breeds at risk of infection and cases are rising. I hope this piece translates the dangers of Alabama Rot and what can be done to prevent it.

If you could be so kind to support Willow’s legacy of helping to find a cure which so cruelly took her life you can visit our fundraising page by clicking here. We’ll also be holding a collection at Oxford Stadium on Saturday, March 16, at its St Patrick’s Day race night where Whisper will be lending a helping paw.

Take it easy – and thank you to everyone for their kind messages. Shaun.