Buddi's Smokey Paws Legacy: Saving Lives Together
Entrusted with recounting the remarkable tale of Buddi, the celebrated therapy dog with his own Facebook page and Instagram account, I have, at times, felt overwhelmed by its telling, wondering how to convey in just a few hundred words the immense impact this little dog has had on countless lives.
To learn more about their inspirational work together, I recently had the privilege of meeting Buddi’s owner, Andy Williams, not only a hero as a firefighter with North Wales Fire and Rescue Service, but also twice (and current) mayor of the city, and dedicated community volunteer of many years standing. As Andy spoke to me about his life and times with Buddi, my pen flew, gathering his thoughts and memories, and filling page after page.
So here goes, Buddi. I hope I tell your story well…
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BUDDI COMES HOME
This cute Lhasa Apso came into the family’s lives around 9 years ago, when he was just a year old. Andy’s son, Luke, had regularly walked Buddi for a local lady, when he came home one day to say that she was moving away, and was looking to rehome him. Andy and his family took Buddi into their home without a second thought, and the rest, as they say, is history.
The family soon noticed Buddi’s remarkable natural affinity for comforting others with his own gentle form of solace, often laying his head gently on the site of a person’s injury, or where they were feeling pain. One day, Bev, who works as a nurse, saw a pet dog being allowed onto her hospital ward to visit its sick owner. Seeing the positive impact this had, she realised that Buddi would make a fantastic therapy dog, and she shared her idea with Andy.
Recognising the potential too, he applied to the Pets as Therapy charity, and he and Buddi were invited for an interview in Oswestry. They passed with flying colours.
BUDDI, THE PETS AS THERAPY DOG
Andy and Buddi were soon out visiting patients, beginning with Nightingale House Hospice, where Buddi would sit with cancer patients, and visit the Day Care Unit to comfort people in the early stages of the disease. Later, their visits took them to Wrexham Maelor Hospital, where Andy and Buddi would eventually make hospital calls at least once, and often, twice a week.
Getting to wherever they needed to be always took a long time though, as people were constantly stopping them to make a fuss of Buddi! One day, as Andy was walking with Buddi down one of the hospital corridors, a consultant asked him to stop. Lifting Buddi up, he stood still with his eyes closed, silently stroking the little dog for a few minutes, before gently setting him back down with a nod and a quiet thank you.
News of their heartwarming visits spread across the region, and Andy had requests from other hospitals, including Alder Hey, in Liverpool, although he reluctantly had to turn those down due to their other commitments.
Buddi adored his work, although he never saw it as that, and would make funny little snorts and sneezes of excitement whenever Andy told him they were off out to do some Pet Therapy work! He even had his very own hospital pass, allowing him access to all areas of the building, and he would go into the children’s ward, the theatre recovery room, intensive care, the A&E waiting room, and sometimes into ambulances outside A&E, to reassure children during procedures such as having blood taken. Remarkably, he would even sit and comfort people as their loved one’s life support was switched off. Buddi also once paid a special visit to Luke, Andy's son, when he underwent emergency surgery at the hospital for a ruptured spleen, a moment which brought their relationship full-circle.
In his role as a therapy dog, Buddi would often make visits to staff at Wrexham fire station and the police control room, where his calm and friendly presence provided a welcome distraction from the stressful nature of their work.
The little dog even went on to become a star of the small screen when he was filmed for various BBC and ITV programmes, including BBC1’s Children’s Ward. Though he was unable to visit hospitals during the Covid lockdowns, Buddi’s work continued, as he accompanied Andy on Zoom meetings. Buddi’s unstinting work was recognised with the Betsi Cadwaldr University Health Board Volunteer of the Year Award, in 2022.
BUDDI IN THE COMMUNITY
As well as hospital and other visits, Buddi and Andy have also done a lot of work together in the community. For instance, when the CAMHS (Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services) Team in Wrexham Maelor were treating a little girl left with a severe phobia of dogs following an unfortunate incident when she was younger, they contacted Andy and asked if he would call in with Buddi.
Though nervous at first, by the end of the session, the little girl was cuddling Buddi on her lap, and taking him around on his lead.The pair would also visit staff at Wrexham Football Club, from the support personnel to the teams and directors.
Buddi’s visits to the gym, the boardroom, and elsewhere, helped to reduce stress levels in the highly competitive and demanding world of professional football, and he would also make welcome appearances at the supporter’s club, wearing his own Wrexham FC apparel.
Additionally, Buddi would go with Andy to Coleg Cambria in Wrexham, to deliver talks on volunteering to the college’s public services students.
BUDDI AND THE BLOOD BIKES SERVICE
Besides his work as a firefighter and his duties as Mayor of Wrexham, Andy is also a volunteer rider with the North Wales Blood Bikes Service. This team consists of 50 volunteer riders, including a core of around 30 experienced bikers, who ensure that the service is accessible 24/7, 365 days of the year.
Andy successfully fundraised £16,500 in 2019 to purchase a Yamaha FJR Blood Bike, which saved the NHS nearly £450,000 during its two years of active duty before being retired.
Previously, medical deliveries were made via costly courier services, but now healthcare professionals can easily request the assistance of the Blood Bikes team, who handle tasks including collecting samples from the phlebotomy departments of community hospitals and delivering them to labs.
The team also transported patient notes and blood samples during the Covid pandemic. Additionally, the Blood Bikes team aids in distributing breast milk to new mothers who are unable to produce milk themselves, due to various health conditions.
Around three years ago, Wrexham Fire Station received a generous donation of an animal resuscitation kit from the charity, Smokey Paws. These masks have been specially designed to fit snugly over an animal’s nose and mouth to deliver an efficient and directed flow of oxygen in the event of smoke inhalation, massively increasing their chance of survival. The ambition of this not-for-profit charity is to have one of their pet oxygen masks on board every single engine in the UK Fire and Rescue Service.
After meeting him and Buddi at an event, Vanessa, owner of Daleside Veterinary Practice, approached Andy with an offer to sponsor Buddi and to become his personal vet, free of charge. She also delivered a programme of training sessions to Wrexham fire crews in the application and use of the Smokey Paws apparatus. Over the past 18 months, Buddi accompanied Vanessa to the station, playing a key role in training the crew on how to use the kit effectively.
Using a sand dog mannequin as well as Buddi himself, Vanessa taught dog anatomy, including how to locate a pulse, how to find the animal’s heart, and how to safely perform compression, taking into account differing rib cage sizes in various breeds.
The UK Fire and Rescue Service do not carry pet resuscitation apparatus as standard equipment, and there is currently just one Smokey Paws kit shared between three engines in Wrexham. Over the past two and a half years, the crews have used the kit around eight or nine times, allowing them to successfully save the lives of beloved pets.
Now, Andy is raising money to equip all fire engines in the region with this vital equipment, enabling the crews to help even more animals in life-or-death situations.
GOODBYE, BUDDI
Tragically, the family’s world was turned upside down at the beginning of March this year. Early one Saturday morning, they could see that Buddi was clearly not feeling well, so Andy contacted Vanessa, his personal vet, who called him in.
On examining him, she was concerned that Buddi’s temperature was very low, and that his gums were cold. She asked Andy to leave Buddi with her for a scan and to have bloods taken. Two hours later, Bev received a phone call from Vanessa, asking the family to come in as soon as possible, as they had a “very poorly boy”.
During investigations it had been discovered that poor Buddi had a huge tumour which was bleeding into his belly, and was inoperable.
Devastated, the family held and stroked the little dog as he gently slipped away. Through his tears, Andy noticed that flakes of snow, always Buddi’s favourite weather, had just started to fall - the first and last of this year so far.
Via Buddi’s social media pages, Andy received hundreds of messages of sympathy from followers, even some from as far away as New Zealand and Canada, to express their sorrow at the little dog’s passing.
