Today, I am incredibly grateful for my wonderful husband, our beautiful dogs, lovely home, good food and fantastic fireplace ♥
~ They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning,
We will remember them. ~
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Last time I posted here, it was to celebrate my darling Mr Moo’s 13th Gotcha Day.
Very sadly, just five days later, we had to say goodbye to our beautiful boy. It feels as though someone has ripped out my heart and stomped all over it right now, so I will come back and write a proper tribute to my wonderful boy at a later date.
For now, I wanted to share this photograph of Max, AKA Mr Moo, on a beach, some years ago. It will always be one of my absolute favourite photographs of him. It’s also the one that really kicked off my passion for photography.
Mr Moo, I will love you always. I miss you so, so much. Thank you for being such an amazing part of my life.
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Please join me in wishing our darling Max, AKA Mr Moo, a very Happy 13th Gotcha Day.
13 years ago, we went to visit a young Labrador in his previous home (thanks to my friend, Jo, for kindly driving us there). He was proving too much for those owners, who had taken him on from his previous family when they were having problems and unable to keep him.
Max was a very lively young boy when we met him. He did a wall of death around the living room of his previous home. When I asked the owner what his recall was like, I was informed that he got out of the garden and ran around the estate, but did come back. Wasn’t quite what I meant!
I decided Max was coming home with us and we agreed to have him on a night’s trial – though I had no intention of taking him back and they didn’t have any desire to know where he was going! So he was ours.
We took him for a long walk the morning after we got him home, which he very much needed. When I went to pick up his first poo in our care, I found it had an alien attached. That was a sign of things to come!
Max is the most wonderful boy. The last 13 years have not always been easy. I had to get a window repair man to lie to my husband once when Max tried to jump through a first floor window in our previous house, when he spotted a cat. He used to try to shred our post, would counter surf for anything he could reach and took on the important role of chief toy destroyer.
Mr Moo is not in the greatest of health these days and we see each day as a blessing, one to treasure always. I’m incredibly grateful that for the first 12 years with us, he has been in brilliant health, apart from a few bouts of upset tummy and one encounter with kennel cough. He still has an excellent appetite, still catches treats, still wants to scrounge anything we may be eating, still helps his Daddy cook and still retains the cheekiness, although it is a little watered down these days.
Mr Moo, I love you SO very much. Happy Gotcha Day my darling boy.
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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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