Five Animals Adopted Today.

We have had a busy day today and rehomed three adult cats and the two spaniels which is brilliant.I am so happy with the people who have adopted Jess and Sam , the gorgeous but obese Springer Spaniels. There is no doubt in my mind that this time they have truly fallen on their feet and will be very happy.They have gone to a family who have always had 2 Springers and these two will fill the large gap their previous dogs have left. Good luck to them all.

The first cat to go today was Max who has been here about 8 months, this lovely tabby and white came in with 2 other cats, all are 10 years and over so they have had very little interest shown in them . This might herald a change of fortune for the remaining two Apollo and Taz, who knows!

Rocky and Tiger were the next to go, at only 12 months we had thought these two would have been snapped up but nobody wanted to take the two cats together and we will not split cats which are very close and from the same home. So 5 months after their admittance they hit the jackpot and they have left us for a better life in sunny(and windy) Anglesey; speaking of Anglesey the much admired and obsessed over Kate(Im not one of the multitide) has been seen shopping (with bodyguard and minus William) in Waitrose! I wonder if it had been the month we had the charity box there, would she have slipped a coin into it? Call me an old cynic but somehow I doubt it.

   I received a call this morning about a Jack Russell which had been obtained 3 years ago from another rescue locally, he had been adopted by a childless couple who now had a baby and of course the dog was showing signs of jealousy.  It is understandeable that new parents panic and their first concern will be for the safety of the child but in many cases the situation can be avoided by understanding how the dog might feel.For years many dogs are beloved pets and can often be a surrogate baby for a young couple, then the real thing comes along and all of a sudden the animal which has been surroounded by attention and love all its life, is suddenly pushed out of  its prime position  within the family unit .No wonder there are problems, however with the right behaviour around baby and dog, this situation can work. My friend Diane had 2 beloved German Shepherds and when they were middle aged , she had her first child Jake. The visiting midwife threw her hands up in horror at seeing 2 big dogs in the home and people assumed Diane would immediately get rid of the dogs. Not so.What she did do is work with them and ensure that they did not feel left out, after all they had been the focus of her attention for 6 years and it was up to her to make sure the dogs and baby got along. Her actions worked and the dogs became the baby's keenest admirers. I am not stupid enough to suggest that ALL dogs will accept new arrivals into the household but I truly believe that with the use of common sense and a little understanding it can work in many cases and there would be far fewer dogs taken to animal shelters for this reason.It is one of THE most common reasons given for relinquishment of a dog. Cats too are given up but it is usually the family dog which suffers the most in these cases.

With regard to dogs being returned, a lady sent me a poem about rescued  dogs and although I am not a great fan of such things(sentimental poems, not dogs!) I do think that this one hits the spot and so I am publishing it here for everyone to read.

Baggage
From a Shelter Dog

Will You Help Me Unpack?"

Now that I'm home, bathed, settled and fed,

and all nicely tucked in my warm new bed,

I should unpack my baggage, lest I forget,

There is so much to carry, so much to regret...

Hmm...Yes there it is, right on top, let's first unpack Loneliness, Heartache and Loss,

And there by my leash hides Fear and hides Shame,

As I look on these things I tried so hard to leave,

I still have to unpack my baggage called Pain.

I loved them, the others, the ones who left me,

but I wasn't good enough for they didn't want me.

Will you add to my baggage? Will you help me unpack?

Or recoil from my things and take me right back?

Do you have the time to help me unpack?

To put away my baggage, and never repack?

I pray that you do, for I'm so tired you see,

But I do come with baggage � do you still want me?

By Evelyn Colbath