Tammie Fox initially fostered and subsequently adopted Pumpkin from Breeds in Need, a Lincoln rescue that specialises in helping puppies with disabilities and complex health conditions, including cleft palate and hydrocephalus.
DID THEY GO TO TAMMIE OR DID TAMMIE GO TO THEM?
In an article published by Your Dog Magazine, Tammie Fox is described as having spotted an online post about Pumpkin that melted her heart. In an interview with Westies & Besties Magazine, Tammie gives a different account: “Breeds in Need contacted me and asked if I would be interested in fostering a young puppy with back leg problems.”
During the US Val Talks Pets podcast, published in February 2025, CEO Tammie Fox stated: “One of our local rescue centres here in Lincoln put a plea on social media. We’ll put our name down and we’ll see if we can help.”
NOTE: Although the Westies & Besties webpage is dated July 2023, the interview describes Pumpkin as being 20 weeks old, this suggests that the interview may have been conducted considerably earlier than the publication date currently displayed.
UPDATE: During a live video on 14th October 2026, while discussing Pumpkin & Friends Only Facts, CEO Tammie Fox stated that she ADOPTED Pumpkin at just eight weeks old. This appears to contradict her previous account, in which she stated that she initially FOSTERED Pumpkin before subsequently adopting her. Our understanding is that Pumpkin was approximately 11 weeks old when she was officially adopted, rather than eight weeks old. So which account is correct?
THE EARLY SUPPORT FOR BREEDS IN NEED
In an October 2021 article published by Lincolnshire Live, Tammie Fox is reported to have said that any money remaining from Pumpkin’s fundraising campaign, after her treatment costs had been covered, would be donated to Breeds in Need. The article also quotes her as saying: “If it wasn’t for Breeds in Need, Pumpkin would have been put to sleep.”
Breeds in Need was also acknowledged in other early media coverage, with references to fundraising and financial support. Given the rescue’s significant role in Pumpkin’s story, we were interested in understanding how that relationship and the publicly visible support for Breeds in Need has developed over the years.
AND THEN IT APPEARS TO HAVE CHANGED
Some months ago, Breeds in Need spoke publicly about the difficulties it is facing. In one Facebook post, the rescue stated: “Honestly, we are exhausted.” In another, it reported: “Adoptions are at an all-time low. Donations have become almost non-existent.”
On 26th July 2026, Breeds In Need held a dog walk at Boultham Park in Lincoln, raising £86.15 in cash donations. The rescue expressed its gratitude to everyone who attended and supported the event. As two Lincoln-based organisations working to improve the lives of dogs, this would have been an opportunity for Pumpkin and Friends Charity to demonstrate its support for the rescue that originally took Pumpkin into its care.
Indeed, in a Facebook post dated 30th August 2026, Pumpkin and Friends Charity stated: “If any fellow rescue or dog charities ever need our support, whether that’s wheelchair advice, supplying equipment, or hands-on help with fitting. Please know our door is always open. We believe in collaboration, not competition. When we work together, more disabled animals get the second chance they deserve.”
We have not identified any publicly available evidence that Pumpkin and Friends Charity, any of its trustees or volunteers attended or supported the Breeds in Need dog walk.
WHAT SUPPORT HAVE WE BEEN ABLE TO IDENTIFY
We decided to look more closely at the publicly visible support the CEO and Trustees of Pumpkin and Friends Charity have provided to Breeds in Need since becoming a registered charity in 2022. In particular, we looked for references to Breeds in Need, dogs available for adoption, fostering requests, fundraising appeals and other forms of support.
Our review included the following Facebook pages:
Breeds in Need / Pumpkin & Friends Charity / Pumpkin The Wheelie Westie Warrior / Tammie Fox Personal Page
The most recent public reference to or expression of support for Breeds in Need that we were able to identify on the pages reviewed dates from 2022. No support beyond 2022 has been identified. We would welcome information about any additional support provided since 2022, including examples we may have overlooked.
BREEDS IN NEED – FRIEND OR FOE?
What particularly interests us is the contrast between the early public expressions of gratitude towards Breeds in Need and more recent statements including an account CEO Tammie Fox gave during the US Val Talks Pets podcast, published in February 2025.
During the US Val Talks Pets podcast, CEO Tammie Fox states: “We did not know Pumpkin was disabled, we were not told.”
However, in an interview published by Westies & Besties Magazine, Tammie Fox gives the following account: “Her breeder didn’t want her due to the problems she had. Breeds in Need contacted me and asked if I would be interested in fostering a young puppy with back leg problems.”
In a December 2022 Daily Mirror article, Tammie Fox is quoted as saying: “Before I got Pumpkin I didn’t realise dogs in wheelchairs existed. I found it very isolating because I didn’t realise there was help out there.”
During the February 2025 Val Talks Pets podcast, Tammie Fox gave the following account: “We contacted the rescue centre they were unable to help us. They weren’t very helpful. There was no offer to take her to the vet or get her seen. We were just told to give her a cuddle and love her.”
This is a markedly different portrayal from the gratitude expressed in earlier coverage, including the October 2021 Lincolnshire Live article in which Tammie Fox was quoted as saying: “If it wasn’t for Breeds in Need, Pumpkin would have been put to sleep.”
APDAWG MEETING – 24TH FEBRUARY 2026
On 24th February 2026, CEO Tammie Fox attended the *State of UK Rescue* APDAWG meeting in Parliament, where she addressed an audience that included representatives of animal rescues, charities and the wider animal-welfare sector, Members of Parliament, campaigners and vets in all, approximately 200 attendees.
Before her prepared speech, Tammie Fox stated that Pumpkin had been paralysed after being stamped on as a puppy. She also reportedly said that the rescue from which she obtained Pumpkin had handed her over without explaining her condition and had offered no subsequent support.
Once again, this is markedly different to Tammie Fox’s earlier statements.
Breeds in Need was not expressly named in the remarks. However, given its publicly documented involvement in Pumpkin’s early history, listeners familiar with that history may have understood the comments as referring to Breeds in Need.
Unfortunately, at least one attendee understood the remarks to concern a different disabled animal charity potentially damaging their reputation.
WHAT HAPPENED AFTER THE APDAWG MEETING?
Following the meeting, Tammie Fox published a Facebook Live video in which she, among other serious statements and allegations, alleged that another charity had arranged for representatives of a separate rescue organisation to attend Parliament in an attempt to manipulate her. She stated that those representatives had sat opposite her during the meeting.
The charity accused of arranging their attendance strongly disputes this allegation, as do representatives of the rescue organisation. According to the rescue organisation’s account, its representatives attended the meeting independently and deliberately avoided contact with Tammie Fox and those accompanying her because they did not wish to cause any difficulties.
WHO ARRANGED THE APDAWG MEETING?
We arranged for CEO Tammie Fox to speak at APDAWG despite Tammie Fox’s statements to the contrary.
Read our Public Statement here for a full account of how we came to support Pumpkin and Friends Charity and how CEO Tammie Fox repaid our kindness and generosity.
We recognise that there may have been a falling-out between Tammie Fox and the founders of Breeds In Need, or that Tammie Fox may have had personal reasons for the decisions she made. We would welcome any clarification or explanation from Pumpkin and Friends Charity CEO Tammie Fox and would be happy to include her response.
We spoke with Breeds in Need and they provided us with the following statement:
As the founder of Breeds in Need Dog Rescue, I can confirm that Pumpkin was handed over to our rescue with a known congenital birth defect. This was fully disclosed and clearly explained to her adopter before the adoption proceeded.
Pumpkin’s condition is not the result of an injury, abuse, or any act of malice. It is a condition she was born with, and complete transparency was maintained throughout the adoption process to ensure her adopter understood her needs before making the decision to adopt and ongoing support was given.