Mick remembers the first winter he spent on the streets.

“It was very hard, because you have to learn how to keep the elements out,” he says. “You become so frustrated with the cold, and it can reduce you to tears. If I didn’t have Benson, I don’t think that I would have survived it.”

Benson, his Staffordshire bull terrier, wasn’t just a dog. He was a lifeline. And thanks to StreetVet, the charity that provides free veterinary care to pets of people experiencing homelessness, Benson received the treatment and support he needed to stay by Mick’s side.

StreetVet began in 2016 when vets Jade Statt and Sam Joseph packed rucksacks of medical supplies and took to the streets of London. They knew that for people like Mick, the human-animal bond is often the most vital thing holding life togeth

See Full Page