The Brooke animal hospital causes suffering to animals

[AmyMay]

deleted.

 

[mountainview22]

I feel that if anybody has any further questions regarding this incident, they should contact The Brooke directly (as The Brooke have already advised) rather then posting on an internet forum where the whole world and his wife can read it. They will able to provide the definite facts. I feel that if this thread continues, it could be detrimental not only to The Brooke, but it may also lead to people questioning where their regular donations/fundraising leads to.

I've kept out until now.

This quote sticks out to me.
1. Why should the world and his wife know the answers? They have nothing to hide?

2. Why waste resources the charity has by asking the the same question 100 times via separate emails, why can't they save time which is money (wages) and answer here, remember, they have nothing to hide and it would save ALOT of man hours.

3. Any person who donates to a charity and doesn't wish to question what their money is being spent on either has too much money or only donate for the sake of it.

IMO they've answered here twice, that's more than charities/people often do against allegations on here;
http://www.horseandhound.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=531292

Just for the record, I am on niether side here.

Said charity haven't really given an in depth reply to an investigation that really, against such strong accusations, needs a "proper" thorough look at.

OP blows the wind up another charities bum, why was she even at the Brooke if the other charity is so much better. Why didn't she ask for ace' vet to have a look, if they are that professional and experienced surely that wouldn't be a problem.

I'm sticking here on the wall.

 

[Mithras]

I feel that if anybody has any further questions regarding this incident, they should contact The Brooke directly (as The Brooke have already advised) rather then posting on an internet forum where the whole world and his wife can read it.

Upon what authority are you telling people to do this?

Because I'm perfectly capable of making my own decisions, than you very much. And what do you think of conflict of interest - whereby the issue is investigated by the organisation complained against? Which already seems unable to quickly grasp the details of current goings on in its workload.

1. Why should the world and his wife know the answers? They have nothing to hide?

In actual fact, the trend in the charities sector is towards transparency and accountability, not some fictional notion that charities should in some way be excluded from public discussion:

http://www.thirdsector.co.uk/news/1029247/?DCMP=EMC-DailyBulletin

http://www.cklawreview.com/wp-content/uploads/vol80no2/Morris.pdf

The Charities Commission is "committed to openness and accountability": - http://www.charity-commission.gov.uk/About_us/About_the_Commission/govframe.aspx

OP blows the wind up another charities bum, why was she even at the Brooke if the other charity is so much better. Why didn't she ask for ace' vet to have a look, if they are that professional and experienced surely that wouldn't be a problem.

The Original Post explains that she was directed to the Brooke by her caleche driver, as the horse she had used the previous day was the one which had been injured. One also assumes that the OP does not have the benefit of supernatural levels of hindsight.

 

[Mithras]

But I BELIEVE that it is morally just not the right way to go about it. This is backed up by the people cancelling standing orders etc off the back of it.

You see, I feel that its morally very wrong to hush things up. I think its morally lazy to assume the best standards are being met and to donate without question.

 

[stormalong]

Freddie - I did sent photographs to The Brooke. I have posted 2 photographs (well my daughter did - I can type, but I am not computer literate). We decided not to post the photo of the horse, it just did not seem right. However The Brooke have seen it - and have commented on the injuries you can see in the photo - but not of the injuries you cannot see.

Before I posted on this forum, a friend sent my account to The Brooke via their Facebook page, and had a response that they took this very seriously and would come back to us.
Didn't receive anything. I left it 48 hours before I decided to post on the forum.



Re the poster saying maybe the vet had had a very busy time that day and was just having a 10 min coffee break. Well I did spend an hour there first thing in the morning, and the coffee break lasted the whole hour I was there. The second time I visited he was sitting down chatting again. That coffee break lasted quite a while too. For your information on that day, and the following day, when I visited again, they had NO animals being treated in the stables. They only have about 7 stables and they were empty. Their main remit at the Luxor centre is to be available for the animals to have a wash (picture posted), and I did see someone rub some sudocrem cream onto a wound.

Sorry have to go to work shortly, if there are any further queries posted I have not responded to, will reply either very late tonight, or tomorrow.

 

[mountainview22]

Mithras, excuse outburst, personal situation has aided this.

Do me a favour. Use your brain, READ the post.

It was not my opinion, but a quote. I am on a mobile, unable to quote properly.

Second point, I agree, it was a spelling error.

Third point. She apparently hates Brooke yeah?

Did the driver put a gun to her head and say get in there?

I'd hope not. No one made her enter the property of what she describes as con artists in as many words.

Now please, get your head from your backside, learn to read not scan and keep your silly belittling comments to yourself.

I am still sat on the fence.

 

[mountainview22]

Looking at your second post Mithras, it seems we actually agree on the whole transparency side of things. If you'd read my post in depth rather than scan you'd have saved my rantings.

 

[AMH]

I haven't read any of the OP's other posts. With regard to this thread, though, I'm afraid I'd give more credence to the validity of the OP's comments if there wasn't a blatant attempt to promote another charity. I don't understand the relevance of that to the allegations of poor treatment at the Brooke.

 

[CathySirett]

ah its always SO difficult when someone posts a personal experience that leads them to belive negative htings about a charity -- really hard to decide what to believe?

I know that every human has a bad day, that not the best organisation can keep track of what every individual involved with them does -- and I know some people involved with Brook here so really don't want to believe anything negative

however -- on the plus side I DO think that frequent oversight of geographically distant locations is essential otherwise things CAN slip or slide and affect the reputation of a wonderful organisation.....

Cathy

 

[rhino]

Before I posted on this forum, a friend sent my account to The Brooke via their Facebook page, and had a response that they took this very seriously and would come back to us.
Didn't receive anything. I left it 48 hours before I decided to post on the forum.

If that's the post regarding the 'disturbing story' on Trip Advisor, then it was posted on 25th April, pm. Your OP is dated 26 April, early hours am. That's not 48 hours, it's barely 12

Funnily enough the TA link is no longer active.

 

[Goldenstar]

I haven't read any of the OP's other posts. With regard to this thread, though, I'm afraid I'd give more credence to the validity of the OP's comments if there wasn't a blatant attempt to promote another charity. I don't understand the relevance of that to the allegations of poor treatment at the Brooke.

Yes i am with you I did comment at first and again around the PTS issue ( just because I have experiance of the cultural differences that can mean that animals do not get PTS)
OP first post makes my convinced that OP has a hidden agenda it was a worried by what saw post she says they are rotten to the core and ask for help to expose them .
The brooke much to their credit have allowed the thread to run I respect them for this and have seen the work they do to ease the misery of hard working horses I admire the way they try to work with people to ease these horses woes showing them how to fit packs to prevent galling providing watering points shade etc etc.
Many would have had the thread pulled because of the allegation of corruption the fact they have not makes me feel the Brooke has little to hide.
As for the vet being rude to her if the tone of her original post is anything to go by I sure she's a delight to deal with too.

 

[lannerch]

I must confess the Brooke as a charity are far more likely to get my support in the future after this thread.
There has ben some serious defamatory accusations made and instead of getting the thread pulled and poif it's gone they have looked into the accusations and responded in a very proffesional way and IMO answered all questions.
It is quite aparent the conditions for horses and donkeys out there are horrendous and they are making good out of a bad situation.
I hope all our equines appreciate how lucky they are!

 

[Moomin1]

Personally the issues surrounding the horse where very subjective from a 'passer-by' point of view!

The OP's 'facts' of suffering and neglect were this:

The horse was laying down.

There were flies.

The horse had burst stitches on a wound the second visit.

The vet was having a coffee break and didn't appear to be panicking that the horse was laying down.

Seperate all of these facts and not one of them REALLY suggests any wrong doing in themselves. The horse was laying down because it was injured and sedated. There are flies in a hot country which are bound to be attracted to animals, particularly injured ones. Stitches burst - particularly on large animals. Vets do take coffee breaks and can't be running around like blue a*sed flies all the time. They are professionals who deal with these issues every day and I have never yet seen a vet in 'panic mode', particularly not the older more experienced ones.

OP has seen a series of events, which to be fair is easily done, and assumed a negative scenario.

For instance, I once knew of a GSD which had it's tail amputated in an effort to stop it self mutilating. The dog had been removed from a shed which was piled high with faeces and junk after being abandoned by the owners. It was emaciated and developed an obsession with nibbling it's tail and spinning in circles. This in turn was stopping the dog from gaining weight. In a final effort to try and rehabilitate the dog and address it's issues the vet advised amputating and retraining. This vet is highly experienced and very well thought of. The following morning, the vet team arrived to the surgery to find the kennel COVERED in blood - looked like a massacre, and the dog was lethargic. It had mutilated it's legs etc so badly that it had haemorrhaged everywhere. Immediately pts. Now for any passer-by that would undoubtedly look like negligence on the vet's behalf - but it wasn't - it was unavoidable and nobody could have foreseen that the dog was going to react that badly. It had recieved the highest level of care and attention.

As for the dog with the broken legs that OP mentioned - well, if that did really happen then that is pretty bad, but I suppose if they don't have an x-ray machine it is difficult for them to diagnose breaks!

 

[Goldenstar]

In my last post I meanlt to type corrupt to the core not rotten sorry folks

 

[stormalong]

Regarding the posting that the reasons I thought the horse was suffering was a) it was lying, down, b) flies and c) burst stitches, is not my prognosis at all.

I know there are alot of postings now on this subject, but -

On my initial visit the horse was down, but it was sedated. It did have significant large wounds that had been stitched. However the vet assured me the horse would be fine, would require 3 weeks at the centre for recuperation. I did not say he was on a coffee break, someone else previously suggested this might be the case. In fact in a previous posting I said he was chatting with other Egyptians, I made no comment that he was drinking anything - because he wasn't. Like I say I tell it how it is. The truth is always the same.

I went away happy the horse was going to be ok. I had used the caleche driver the previous day, he had a new horse, he was very proud of his horse. He had given it an egyptian name, and when I asked him what it meant, he said Lucky. How poignant is that?

It was on my second visit, roughly an hour and a half later when I returned, that I knew the horse was dying, and I was very concerned for the horse. I believed it was suffering because - the horses breathing was very laboured, it was losing a large amount of blood, the stitching had come open, and there was a large open wound. The vet again told me the horse was fine, and would make a full recovery.

Would you walk away from this scenario thinking all was well at this charity?

Yes, many Egyptians do not look after their animals to the same standard that we do. However, that is not the case of everyone out there. There are many caleche drivers who do look after their horses well. The Brooke and other charities in Egypt try to educate the local population on how best to care for their animals. I would have hoped the vet in Luxor would have the same standard of care as an english vet, but it did not even come close.

Lots of people might have walked away and decided not to do anything at all. After all the english are not great at complaining. I had hoped the The Brooke would look into the level of care at the Luxor centre.

Business's often welcome criticism where things are not up to scratch, it helps them to get stronger and improve. If we say all is well, all the time, then standards slip.

I have been to Luxor, Egypt many times, and will continue to go on holiday there. Every time we travel we take out 2 suitcases of supplies - tack for the caleche drivers headcollars etc, numnahs to contribute to padding under harnesses, fly fringes, dog collars, noseband covers to go over the many metal chains they put over the horse and donkeys noses, brushing boots, medical supplies and as much vet wrap as we can afford. My vet and blacksmith also give me items to take out.

I will continue to help the horses and donkeys and other small animals out there the best I can, and reporting this incident was in an effort to improve things. I could not hope to improve the standard of care there by saying nothing.

 

[rhino]

I will continue to help the horses and donkeys and other small animals out there the best I can, and reporting this incident was in an effort to improve things. I could not hope to improve the standard of care there by saying nothing.

Where do you stand now then? I found a link to the Brooke's complaint procedure earlier and can look it out again for you? As you obviously feel they are not telling the truth are you going to take it further?

If you have time could you also clarify the posting on the Brooke's facebook status by your friend, to put my pedanticness at ease? Was it the post referring to the (now deleted) tripadvisor comment?

Thanks, R

 

[lannerch]

And from your recent post op it now sounds like the vet did no wrong at all!
I too am very suspicious of you motives for this post in the first place, slating the Brooke like you have if sucessful will only result in more animals suffering do you really want that?!

 

[Goldenstar]

OP has amended her tone considerably now, I hope she continues to enjoy going to Egypt and suggest she stays away from the Brooke which she clearly does not like.
However making an accusation of corruption in print on a public forum is a stupid thing to , to decide not to give to a certain charity is fine there's loads I won't give to. But tring to whip a reaction and stop people giving to a charity qwho works every day with live working horses is IMO not a nice thing to do.
This blunt and people will not like me saying this. But I am glad this poor little horse died what future for a drastically impaired horse somewhere like Egypt I am glad the Brooke don't have all singing and dancing X-ray machines and spent the money on people in the field adjusting harness doing parasite control and all the unglamorus stuff they do .
The PTS thing is a difficult one but it's an issue fraught with difficulties I know this for myself but you know it our upbringing that makes us think this and I debated this with a Muslim with differing views it's a reasoned position he took even though it was so different to mine.

 

[Patterdale]

To be fair if i were the vet in that situation and some tourist kept poking around asking if a severely injured horse was ok, I would probably just say 'yes it's fine' I doubt the vet thought to himself 'right, I'd better go along to the horse, discuss every part of my treatment and prognosis, and give a detailed report to this stranger western tourist.'
I think you should just accept this and move on.
The horse got hit by a bus and later died.
It had been given pain relief and sedated.
There were flies on it's wounds. In the desert.
The vet didn't sob over it and give you a detailed report.

I'm thinking that maybe your expectations were a little high. It's Egypt, not the Royal Dick. Make it comfortable and hope for the best is usually all they can do - and much more than would be done were they not there.

Give them a break!

 

[FionaM12]

Am getting confused by the OP's account now. In her first post she says of her first witnessing of the horse:

What I witness shocked me to the core of my heart.

... I must say the horse did look in a very poor state, it was lying in alot of blood. During my time here the vet spent all his time sat at a desk talking to other Egyptians. I felt he should be monitoring the horse and not sat relaxing.

But now she says:

I went away happy the horse was going to be ok.

Also, up until now the OP seemed to be on a mission to get to the bottom of this and keen to keep this forum informed. But her last post suddenly seems to have changed tone and gives the impression she's washing her hands of the issue and that that will be her last post. Very odd.

 

[AmyMay]

You're mis-reading her account.

Your second quote is from the first sighting.

Your first quote is from the second sighting.

 

[FionaM12]

You're mis-reading her account.

Your second quote is from the first sighting.

Your first quote is from the second sighting.

No, I think you're wrong. I've got to dash to work now, but I've gone back and checked and am pretty certain my quotes are both from the first sighting.

 

[FionaM12]

Our caleche driver was alerted to the fact that a friends horse had been admitted to The Brooke, and was badly injuredafter being hit by a bus. He told us it was the caleche driver and horse we had used the previous day, and a man we have known for several years. What I witness shocked me to the core of my heart.

The horse was lying sedated on foam mats in a stable with a sand floor. His wounds had been stitched up and he was covered in flies. I went over to the vet and asked him about the condition of the horse. He told me there were no broken bones, it just had superficial wounds, however it would make a full recovery, and stay at the centre for 3 weeks to recuperate. I must say the horse did look in a very poor state, it was lying in alot of blood. During my time here the vet spent all his time sat at a desk talking to other Egyptians. I felt he should be monitoring the horse and not sat relaxing.

We continued on our way to ACE, roughly 10 minutes further up the road. This is a much smaller charity set up 10 years ago, but their facilities are superb. We were made welcome and given a guided tour of the facilities there and the current inmates.

Amymay, here's my first quote in context. Definitely the first sighting.

 

[rhino]

Amymay, here's my first quote in context. Definitely the first sighting.

You're quite right Fiona, which also makes a later post somewhat confusing:

I did not know my husband had taken a photo while we were there, its one of those things you are so upset, and I did shed many tears that day. I could have easily not gone to see the horse, infact at first I did refuse. However I am pleased I did put myself through the ordeal, as I want the personnel there thoroughly investigated.

If you were 'happy' that the horse was going to be ok, why did you initially 'refuse' then 'put yourself through the ordeal' of visiting again?

Also OP

Someone yesterday also sent a link to The Brooke's Facebook page for me, they replied that they would investigate for me.

This also directly contradicts a later post, in which you stated that you had left it 48 hours before posting on here. You can see the date and time of the post on the Brooke's facebook page even now...

OP I've pm'd you.

 

[Patterdale]

Thread title is pretty unambiguous too......

 

[Goldenstar]

Thread title is pretty unambiguous too......

And probably close to libellous to.

 

[Achinghips]

Dear Ms Ingram



I read with interest your response to the thread recently posted on the Horse and Hound forum in relation to the unfortunate death of the horse in Luxor. While I appreciate that the good works the Brooke generally do, I was surprised that your response did not address the details of the case which caused so much consternation amongst Horse and Hound members. The details of particular concern were the flies laying over the horses ruptured stitches and also that the horse’s breathing had become laboured, and she was showing obvious signs of distress along with the bedding issue of where the horse lie. These issues were not being properly addressed and although there is no proof that suffering occurred, apart from photographs which are alluded to, the post I am afraid, will likely effect the reputation of The Brookes charity adversely leading to the withdrawal of funds by some members of the public.



Please could you explain the veterinary surgeons response further to these specific issues?

Regards
----------------------------------------------




Dear Lisa,



Thank you for your email in relation to the incident that occurred at our Luxor clinic , I am happy to address your specific concerns in more detail.



Regarding the flies, despite fly repellents (insecticides) being used by the vet around the wound, it is impossible to completely control flies in the environments where we work. The clinic is not glazed in order to help with air flow, so unfortunately the presence of flies, whist unpleasant for staff and animals alike, is inevitable.



On the subject of the stitching, it is likely this ruptured due to the movement of the horse when recovering from the anaesthesia – this sometimes happens, particularly as we do not have controlled anaesthesia in our countries of operation.



We believe the laboured breathing was a result of the horse recovering from anaesthesia and the pain relief administered. It is not always a sign of distress but may be seen as such by those who have not seen sedated or anaesthetised horses before, and I can imagine it was very upsetting for the lady who informed us of the situation to witness.



With regard to the bedding, as mentioned in my post, the mare was originally placed on a mattress inside a large box when she arrived at the clinic, so the wounds could be stitched. After this was completed, she remained in the box surrounded by small mattresses with straw as bedding. All photographs that have been provided to us show her laying on a mattress in a shaded area of the stable.



All our vets working in the Luxor centre are fully qualified, and the vet dealing with this case is extremely experienced. We support their ongoing education with a veterinary training programme which is led by our team in London. In addition we undertake clinical audits to ensure good practice is maintained. I would like to assure you that our team in Egypt are very dedicated and hard working professionals who care passionately for the animals in their care.



We are always very sad when an animal in our care dies, but we do believe in this case everything that could be done was done to save her and to keep her as comfortable as possible under the circumstances.



I hope this will help to ease your concerns, but if you have any further questions at all please do contact me again.



Kind regards,



Petra Ingram



Chief Executive





The Brooke

 

[Goldenstar]

Dear Ms Ingram



I read with interest your response to the thread recently posted on the Horse and Hound forum in relation to the unfortunate death of the horse in Luxor. While I appreciate that the good works the Brooke generally do, I was surprised that your response did not address the details of the case which caused so much consternation amongst Horse and Hound members. The details of particular concern were the flies laying over the horses ruptured stitches and also that the horse’s breathing had become laboured, and she was showing obvious signs of distress along with the bedding issue of where the horse lie. These issues were not being properly addressed and although there is no proof that suffering occurred, apart from photographs which are alluded to, the post I am afraid, will likely effect the reputation of The Brookes charity adversely leading to the withdrawal of funds by some members of the public.



Please could you explain the veterinary surgeons response further to these specific issues?

Regards
----------------------------------------------




Dear Lisa,



Thank you for your email in relation to the incident that occurred at our Luxor clinic , I am happy to address your specific concerns in more detail.Z



Regarding the flies, despite fly repellents (insecticides) being used by the vet around the wound, it is impossible to completely control flies in the environments where we work. The clinic is not glazed in order to help with air flow, so unfortunately the presence of flies, whist unpleasant for staff and animals alike, is inevitable.



On the subject of the stitching, it is likely this ruptured due to the movement of the horse when recovering from the anaesthesia – this sometimes happens, particularly as we do not have controlled anaesthesia in our countries of operation.



We believe the laboured breathing was a result of the horse recovering from anaesthesia and the pain relief administered. It is not always a sign of distress but may be seen as such by those who have not seen sedated or anaesthetised horses before, and I can imagine it was very upsetting for the lady who informed us of the situation to witness.



With regard to the bedding, as mentioned in my post, the mare was originally placed on a mattress inside a large box when she arrived at the clinic, so the wounds could be stitched. After this was completed, she remained in the box surrounded by small mattresses with straw as bedding. All photographs that have been provided to us show her laying on a mattress in a shaded area of the stable.



All our vets working in the Luxor centre are fully qualified, and the vet dealing with this case is extremely experienced. We support their ongoing education with a veterinary training programme which is led by our team in London. In addition we undertake clinical audits to ensure good practice is maintained. I would like to assure you that our team in Egypt are very dedicated and hard working professionals who care passionately for the animals in their care.



We are always very sad when an animal in our care dies, but we do believe in this case everything that could be done was done to save her and to keep her as comfortable as possible under the circumstances.



I hope this will help to ease your concerns, but if you have any further questions at all please do contact me again.



Kind regards,



Petra Ingram



Chief Executive





The Brooke

I glad the Brooke answered your email.
But please do not include me in any future letter you send please ensure you say something like caused consternation to SOME members of HHO I do not appreciate you thinking to had the right to attribute any censor of the brooke in this case to me.
Please do not do so again
I will email the Brooke making this clear
Thank you

 

[Lark]

I think the OP has been completely credible from start to finish! I can't believe people would doubt her. But then again, those people have probably never been to a third world country and seen suffering - it really could make you so angry that you would come on here and fire off a thread... It sticks in your mind.. If nothing else, among the accusations there were some useful suggestions on where to go next with the complaint..

OP good luck, and keep us posted.x

Completely agree with this.

What is wrong with you People??
Seriously some of the people that have posted sicken me to the core.
Any excuse to cause trouble for the sake of it and detract from the real issue.
Or maybe just plain stupid (more likely) or naive - a corrupt charity!! why I Never!! pffffffff...get a grip.

OP is to be applauded for bringing this to the attention of the wider public.

 

[CatStew]

Dear Ms Ingram



I read with interest your response to the thread recently posted on the Horse and Hound forum in relation to the unfortunate death of the horse in Luxor. While I appreciate that the good works the Brooke generally do, I was surprised that your response did not address the details of the case which caused so much consternation amongst Horse and Hound members. The details of particular concern were the flies laying over the horses ruptured stitches and also that the horse’s breathing had become laboured, and she was showing obvious signs of distress along with the bedding issue of where the horse lie. These issues were not being properly addressed and although there is no proof that suffering occurred, apart from photographs which are alluded to, the post I am afraid, will likely effect the reputation of The Brookes charity adversely leading to the withdrawal of funds by some members of the public.



Please could you explain the veterinary surgeons response further to these specific issues?

Regards
----------------------------------------------




Dear Lisa,



Thank you for your email in relation to the incident that occurred at our Luxor clinic , I am happy to address your specific concerns in more detail.



Regarding the flies, despite fly repellents (insecticides) being used by the vet around the wound, it is impossible to completely control flies in the environments where we work. The clinic is not glazed in order to help with air flow, so unfortunately the presence of flies, whist unpleasant for staff and animals alike, is inevitable.



On the subject of the stitching, it is likely this ruptured due to the movement of the horse when recovering from the anaesthesia – this sometimes happens, particularly as we do not have controlled anaesthesia in our countries of operation.



We believe the laboured breathing was a result of the horse recovering from anaesthesia and the pain relief administered. It is not always a sign of distress but may be seen as such by those who have not seen sedated or anaesthetised horses before, and I can imagine it was very upsetting for the lady who informed us of the situation to witness.



With regard to the bedding, as mentioned in my post, the mare was originally placed on a mattress inside a large box when she arrived at the clinic, so the wounds could be stitched. After this was completed, she remained in the box surrounded by small mattresses with straw as bedding. All photographs that have been provided to us show her laying on a mattress in a shaded area of the stable.



All our vets working in the Luxor centre are fully qualified, and the vet dealing with this case is extremely experienced. We support their ongoing education with a veterinary training programme which is led by our team in London. In addition we undertake clinical audits to ensure good practice is maintained. I would like to assure you that our team in Egypt are very dedicated and hard working professionals who care passionately for the animals in their care.



We are always very sad when an animal in our care dies, but we do believe in this case everything that could be done was done to save her and to keep her as comfortable as possible under the circumstances.



I hope this will help to ease your concerns, but if you have any further questions at all please do contact me again.



Kind regards,



Petra Ingram



Chief Executive





The Brooke

Thank you for posting this. I personally feel that this is what the OP should have done in the first place, rather then making it so public. I think people forget that the internet is a very powerful tool and as I said earlier, everybody can read the OP and be concerned for what actually happens at The Brooke, not only in Luxor, but at other locations too. Hopefully this response will reassure people, and encourage people to carry on donating.