Margaret Gray has had her life threatened and been insulted to her face by people who think she is too old to be heading the Oxfordshire Animal Sanctuary.

She has seen dogs arrive with their legs broken, skinned kittens and puppies found in plastic bags and sealed boxes. But for the 81-year-old, the sanctuary remains a fairy story that has gone on longer than anyone could have hoped.

For 30 years it has maintained a hand-to-mouth existence.

But all that changed when Miss Gray received a copy of the will of reclusive Oxford academic Dr Nikolaus Polgar.

As the Oxford Mail revealed yesterday, Dr Polgar, a former organic science lecturer at Wolfson college, bequeathed £342,000 to the sanctuary - its biggest ever donation.

"I was flabbergasted," said Miss Gray. "I had never even met the man. It was remarkable that he should have thought of us."

Since its foundation 30 years ago, the sanctuary has saved tens of thousands of animals.

Last year, the number of cats and dogs arriving hit a new peak of 700, with the sanctuary at Stadhampton costing £500 a day to run.

Miss Gray decided to create the sanctuary after visiting a city dog pound, where she saw animals chained to a wall.

She remembers sitting around a table with seven other women in 1967 - each put ten shillings (50p) into the kitty to take care of Oxford's stray and unwanted dogs.

"We started from nothing and now we provide a service that no-one else is providing," said Miss Gray.

The sanctuary has stuck to its promise of never refusing any animal, with no time limit placed on the length of stay. It remains open 365 days a year.

Twenty-eight years ago it acquired its home at Stadhampton. It now has 12 full-time and three part-time workers and presently provides a home for 275 animals.

There is the on-going problem of security, which recently forced the purchase of a mobile home to allow staff to live on site. V But the bills continue to rocket, with every new arrival having to be inoculated.

And Miss Gray, the daughter of a sea captain, suffered a broken hip in the autumn after a fall while out buying a new van for the sanctuary. But she said: "I will continue working for the sanctuary for as long as I can be useful.

"I count it as a tremendous responsibility to find homes for all these animals."

Some have claimed the sanctuary is too obsessively careful about handing over animals to new homes.

But Miss Gray has never been afraid of risking deep offence by refusing people pets when the sanctuary considers them to be unsuitable owners.

Disappointment can sometimes be matched by anger. Last year she faced a death threat after accepting a terrier, which subsequent investigation showed to be a pit bull.

The owners suddenly decided that they wanted the dog back, but they were too late and the dog had to be destroyed.

A late night telephone call warning that the decision would be her "last mistake" was taken seriously by police, who advised her to increase security at her home. How the

sanctuary

functions

The sanctuary at Stadhampton is the former home of the South Oxfordshire Hunt Kennels.

Last year the sanctuary took in 175 cats and found homes for all of them - plus three others.

Seventy-nine rabbits came in, but only 14 went out.

It costs an average of £14 a day to look after an animal at the sanctuary.

The sanctuary's president is the TV broadcaster Dr Desmond Morris, of Zoo Time television fame.

Miss Gray once served as a 2nd Lieutenant in the Canadian Navy, before taking charge of the medical department at Morris Motors. Here's what £342,000 can do Dr Polgar's £342,000 donation to the sanctuary will be invested, to generate ongoing income.

But on its own, it would be enough to:

Keep the sanctuary open for 689 days.

Provide enough animal food and bedding to last more than 11 years.

Pay the sanctuary's vets bills for 12 years.

Buy approximately 855,000 tins of dog food.

Look after 24,428 animals for just one day.

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