I come from a family who go one stage further than animal lovers; we are complete animal sops! Aside from Ruddles, our first family dog, all our dogs and cats have been rescues or rehomes. There was Jess, the severely epileptic, Jack Russell cross, who my sister found wandering in our village. My Dad strongly declared “We are definitely not keeping that one”. We had Jess for sixteen years.
Bramble, the little tortoiseshell kitten, destined to be thrown on a motorway. Jaws, the unwanted black cat, who lived up to her name. Smartie (full name Martina Navratilova – my sister was tennis mad) a kitten born wild in the woods. Sprite, our Border Collie, whose owner had to move into rented accommodation. And, of course, Boxer, the little Christmas cat, who lost her life a couple of months ago on the road. They all found happy days at my parents house.
Best of all was Scrumpy Jack (I was going through a cider phase) the Heinz 57 we found dumped nearby. My Dad put his foot down with Scrumpy, he was sent to the dog warden. Six weeks later the dog warden called to say no-one wanted Scrumpy; he was to be put to sleep. My Dad couldn’t have that, so we drove thirty miles to get him back. My Dad’s face when he was told it would be £25 to take Scrumpy home was priceless.
A Dog Of Our Own
I live close to my parents and the family pets still come to me when they are away. There is nothing quite like a pet of your own though. Today, finally, my dream of a dog to share my adventures has come true!
Two weeks ago I went toBabworth Animal Rescue Kennels, near Retford in Notts. I had the perfect dog in mind; medium sized, young but not a puppy, must be able to go on long runs!
One of the kennel workers pointed out a young bitch, she looked nice but then a bouncy, black ball of energy caught my eye. Boozoo was just nine months old, he had been sent over from a rescue charity in Romania with his brother Spirit. Spirit was still with him but due to go to his new home in the next week. “Do you want to take him for a little walk?”
At the end of that little walk I knew I had found my boy. Boozoo was energetic, without being strong, inquisitive and loving. The hardest bit now was waiting to take him home. Almost two weeks later and here we are. I am writing this whilst having to pause for hugs. Brew is taller than I remember and every so often I catch him, paws on the work surface, trying to snarf food. He is going to keep us on our toes but I’m pretty sure he will learn fast.
Now To Make Him Adventurous!
To be honest, I don’t think it is going to be hard. Obviously, I have changed his name already. Boozoo was pretty cool but Brew Dog reflects my love of tea and real ale better!
Brew is lively, curious and intelligent. With some patience and the right training he is going to be the perfect companion for my adventures. Once he is obedient on and off the lead I am hoping to get him running with me. My uncle runs marathons with his dogs, I wonder if Brew will be getting a medal one day too?!
Brew has already had a pretty adventurous life, being sent over by Rescue Me Romania. He is also a lucky boy. There is a large problem with stray dogs in Romania and often strays suffer terrible fates. There are many articles about this on line but this one gives an overview of the situation.
I have to extend a huge thank you to Rescue Me Romania and to Babworth Animal Rescue Kennels for taking such good care of Brew so far. Now it’s my turn to make him happy.
