The Sunday Times Magazine • 51GETTY IMAGES, ALAMY
Some prefer the
term “rehoming”,
but “rescue” sums
up the act that you
are performing
he did decide to run in terror
from a cloud, which he didn’t
much care for, his combination
of speed and intelligence made
him uncatchable.
Then came Buster, a bullmastiff
whose previous owners had
clearly thought that when they
got him as a puppy he was fully
grown. As he proceeded to prove
them very wrong over the next 12
months he was locked up all day
in a small yard, where pupils at
the neighbouring school came
to try and rile him. His later life
may have been blissful but forever
on, hearing children, the hackles
would rise and he would twitch
as though recalling the cannon
fire of the trenches.
Now there is Midge — a Staffie
so named because she was just a
tiny creature on arrival, rather than
because she had a tendency to bite
tourists on summer evenings. She
has been safe, warm and loved for
nine years now but still, every time
you lower your hand to stroke her
ears, she recoils waiting for the
strikes she once endured. Dogs
may live in the moment, but they
have eternal memories when it
comes to suffering.
However, it’s certainly not the
case that every abandoned dog is
damaged. A rejected companion
may have been perfectly well
treated but the new owners had
simply made the discovery that
they couldn’t cope with the
effort required. Yet I still
understand the difficulty in
making that choice between new
or used, and recognise that the best
of intentions can easily fall away.
We have ourselves strayed from
the righteous path, as our second
dog was meant to be a rescue. On
our way back from a kennel for lost
souls in north Wales, having made
the certain decision that this
would be the way forward, an
email arrived informing us that
the excellent breeder of our first
labrador, Olive, had recently
produced another litter — or at
least one of her dogs had. And so
we found Mabel, now co-star of
stage and screen. Occasionally wePooch corner
Is a rescue the right
choice for me?
Thousands of dogs are waiting for
homes in rescue centres across
the UK. Dogs Trust has seen a
39 per cent rise in calls from
owners inquiring about giving up
their pets since July 12, compared
with the 16 weeks before “freedom
day”. Its website (dogstrust.org.uk)
features nearly 500 homeless
hounds, from Ace the American
bulldog in Basildon to Zuma the
crossbreed in Kenilworth. You
have to apply to be considered
as a new owner, and assessed
“to see how closely your lifestyle
matches the needs of the dog”.
Zuma, for example, is “a beautiful
bouncy big boy” and “extremely
strong, so is looking for people
who have the power to hold him”.
“If the charity and the potential
new owner mutually decide that
they are a perfect match, Dogs
Trust will arrange an appointment
for them to take the dog to their
forever home,” the charity says.
Battersea dogs home’s website
(battersea.org.uk) encourages
people who register not to apply
for specific animals, preferring
to choose the right humans for
each dog themselves.
The RSPCA’s website (rspca.
org.uk/findapet) lists dogs in its
rescue centres near you and
gives the vitals on each. Storm, for
example, an older Siberian husky,
wants an “experienced” owner.
“You’ll need to take me to training
classes,” he says, adding: “I’d prefer
an adult-only household.”
“Dogs are a huge responsibility
and taking one on should always be
a decision that is made carefully,
with great consideration given to
whether you can care for that pet
for the rest of their life,” says the
RSPCA’s Dr Samantha Gaines.
“Any prospective owners should do
lots of research.” James Palmertell her that she was the result of
a moment of weakness. Perhaps
it could even add a different
dynamic to future Olive and
Mabel videos — bringing in the
damaged outsider who is always
there with a ready quip.
But if you need any further
persuasion, then here are some
more arguments to chew upon.
If you are thinking that you
badly need to have a pedigree
— well, firstly, there are plenty of
those available at rescue centres.
But also, what is a pedigree? It is
simply a breed formally accepted
by the Kennel Club. Most
recognised and “pure” breeds
are a cocktail that we humans
have decided to mix. With rescue
dogs you might get what we call
a mongrel — but in this the dogs
have simply been making their
own concoctions and the only
real difference is that they have
yet to have the paperwork ratified.
Another problem with the
demand for brand new is that a
market is created that promotes
only puppy farms or reckless,
ill-qualified breeding.
And yes, there is financial benefit
in going to the dog shelters because
you will make significant savings,
since puppy acquisitions can now
set you back the same as a semi-
detached house in the 1970s.
But above all you are making an
entirely different saving, and one
of a far more significant nature.
Some prefer the term “rehoming”
when it comes to dogs, but I still
prefer “rescue” because it sums
up the act you are performing —
it is one of salvation.
And we don’t even need our
own David Attenborough, in the
shape of Paul O’Grady, to make
an impassioned speech about the
need for us to do the right thing
— to rescue the thousands of
forgotten dogs. All you have to
do is arrange to go to a shelter
and see those dogs themselves.
To look into their eyes and
realise the course to take.
As we are all too aware in so
many matters at the moment,
doing the right thing often does
involve more work and a bit more
inconvenience. But like those
other acts, it should also be far
more satisfying in the end. We
can do a lot of good — one step,
or one dog, at a time n
Dog Days: A Year with Olive &
Mabel by Andrew Cotter is
published by Black & W hite
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