Nine years ago today, I hopped on a train to Wales, to bring home a little old dog, who had ended up at a stray kennels in the north west of England. We don’t know how long she’d been straying for, but she wasn’t in the best condition.
I had decided some before that I wanted to adopt an older dog. When the time was right, I started looking at various rescue forums/websites. One night I saw a particular thread that started along the lines of “Old lady desperately seeks loving home for last weeks/months …”. I knew before I clicked on the thread and even saw her, that we’d found our oldie. This was the face that appeared …
I read the thread, felt we could offer a loving – and suitable – home for her and shouted up to my husband that I’d found our new old dog. I contacted the rescue that evening and after being approved to adopt her, made arrangements to bring her home. We don’t know what she was originally called, as she was an unclaimed stray, but we decided to call her Sweetie.
I met up with a lovely lady called Cindy, who very kindly transported her to Wales, to bring Sweetie home. We didn’t have a car at that time, so Sweetie and I had to join a rush hour train. It wasn’t the most fun I’d ever had, as she was looking a bit bedraggled and was a tad pongy, after straying and being in kennels and as I sat in the baggage area with her, I felt people looking at me accusingly. I will always be grateful to the smartly dressed man who asked me about her and gave me the opportunity to tell him, rather loudly, that she had been a stray and we had just adopted her into our family and this was our journey home.
Sweetie settled in very well and quickly became a much loved member of our family. She was a very easy dog to look after and she really lived up to her new name. We envisaged when we brought Sweetie home, that she might be with us a matter of weeks or maybe months. We hoped to provide her with a safe and loving home, with a cosy bed in front of the fire, yummy food, company and peace and quiet for as long as she had left.
I don’t have hundreds of photographs of Sweetie as she was really afraid of the camera, but this is one of my favourites of her, taken in 2005, just as I started becoming really passionate about photography. We had always hoped to take Sweetie to the beach and we had that opportunity on holiday. My husband walked her down to the water so she could have a little paddle and I photographed them.
We shared a wonderful three years and three months with Sweetie, until it was her time to say goodbye. She exceeded our initial expectations by around three years and we feel very blessed to have loved her in her final years.
Sweetie was a special little girl. Not only was she one of our much treasured rescue dogs, she was also a big part of why I decided to become involved with Oldies Club when it started. Seeing her blossom in our care and enjoy over three years of life that she would not have had, if a rescue hadn’t decided to help her, made me want to help other older dogs who might not otherwise have had the chance of a new start in life.
Many, many dogs end up in rescue through no fault of their own and are just waiting for someone kind to give them the chance of a forever home. We have so far adopted two older dogs into our family – our much missed Sweetie and Jasper – and while we currently already have two dogs who are growing old with us, I know we will welcome other oldies into our hearts and home in the future. If you are thinking of offering a loving home to a dog, please adopt from rescue and please consider an oldie.
I can’t remember exactly when I started volunteering for Oldies Club, but I know it was about seven years ago. I tend to stick to fundraising and photography and even then it’s an emotional ride, but it is wonderful to think how many older dogs have been given a second chance in those years, thanks to rescues, volunteers and of course, adopters. Many are still waiting though, take a look, go on …
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