A dog rescued from the horrors of the Chinese dog meat trade has strutted her stuff on the red carpet at Cannes Film Festival in a sequined gown.
Felicity, who was saved by the NoToDogMeat charity, made her entrance at the prestigious festival behind A-List stars at the exclusive screening of Project Silence last night.
The poor pup was rescued from the Chinese dog meat trade after being strung up by her tail by cruel butchers, but she has now found a happy home in London where she is treated like showbiz royalty.
Chinese Dog Meat Trade
And the Samoyed dog, who loves to show off, is an ambasa-dog for the NoToDogMeat charity, and was specially invited to Cannes Film Festival, which is a long-time supporter of the cause.
To make sure that Felicity looked her best for her red carpet moment, Michelle Parker, who is a senior volunteer for the NoToDogMeat, created an epic gown which took more than 30 hours to complete.
The poor pup was rescued after being strung up by her tail by cruel Chinese butchers, but she has now found a happy home in London where she is treated like showbiz royalty
To create the dazzling dress, Michelle, from Rawdon, West Yorkshire, deconstructed a second hand prom dress, thinning out the metres of tulle and satin before adding hundreds of hand stitched tiny sequins.
She then created intricate satin roses to decorate the frock. ‘I loved making the dress and Felicity looked so fabulous in it,’ Michelle told The Ethicalist. ‘She is a very outgoing dog and loves to pose, but the most important thing is that she is comfortable so I spent a lot of time making the dress as light as possible, so that she can wear it happily.’
When Felicity, who lives in London, arrived at the festival she received her own pass, which gives her access to a range of exclusive parties, screenings and events where she will rub shoulders with Hollywood’s showbiz royalty.
Rescued Pup
Together with her owner Julia de Cadenet, who founded the charity and was on the rescue that saved the pup from the Chinese dog meat trade, Felicity will receive star treatment, and Julia hopes that telling her story will help to educate and inspire people to act in the fight against the dog meat trade.
She said: ‘When we found Felicity she was in a terrible state, but over time and with a lot of love and care her outgoing personality has blossomed.
‘She really is a miracle, and loves to show off and meet people, so this really is a perfect moment for her. She deserves it so much and we hope that by telling Felicity’s story, and when people meet her they will be inspired to join our movement.
‘The dress itself is like a work of art, and a huge thank you to Michelle who has worked so hard to create the gown for this special occasion. NoToDogMeat really is a family, so everyone chips in to help with their specialist skills.’
No To Dog Meat
The NoToDogMeat charity was founded in 2009 when Julia saw for herself the horrors of the Chinese dog meat trade. The charity was the first to bring the annual June Yulin Dog Meat Festival to the world’s attention, and now holds United Nations’ Special Consultative status.
NoToDogMeat currently cares for more than 750 dogs at shelters in China, and also operates projects in Cambodia and the Philippines. The charity works with local people who want to make a difference.
Michelle added: ‘Anyone who loves dogs is rightly appalled by the cruelty of the dog meat trade, and ever since I found out about it I have been determined to try and help.
‘Of course, it is not all about dogs wearing gowns on the Cannes Red Carpet, but at the charity we always say no action is too small. I hope that Felicity’s red carpet moment raises awareness and funds for the charity.’
To donate to NoToDogMeat and help the charity save dogs at next month’s Yulin Dog Meat Festival go to www.notodogmeat.com
