It’s National Puppy Day, and whilst many people think that ‘adopt don’t shop’ only relates to older rescue dogs, did you know, even puppies can find themselves in rescue?
Here at Forever Hounds Trust we have rescued many puppies over the years. Whether they’ve been found abandoned as they were an accidental litter, or an expectant mum arrives in our care, we’ve had to deal with the pitter-patter of tiny paws on many occasions!
Here’s the story of one such puppy, Remy, who arrived into our care at just six weeks old, a very poorly pup indeed. He had a serious skin infection, so in a bid to protect his skin and keep him warm, we had to improvise by cutting legs holes in a greyhound snood to make him a custom coat!
Being such a young pup, we were desperate to find him a loving home, and fortunately we had a willing family on hand to help him.
They pick up the story…..
Shortly after completing the ”A Dog for You” application on the Forever Hounds Trust website and passing the home check, we were contacted about a very young Saluki puppy in need of a home. We was six weeks old, as so poorly, even the vet wasn’t sure he would survive.
Luckily under the care of the Forever Hounds Trust team, and with his own fighting spirit, he pulled through. After meeting him, and introducing him to Tigs, our 11-month-old Saluki X were adopted a few months before, we were driving home with this gorgeous little bundle of joy, fostering him initially but with every intention to adopt.
He was quite a remarkable young pup, given that help more than likely missed out on crucial time with his mum and siblings and the learning that goes with that. He was confident with Tigs, who was extremely tolerant of this bouncy newcomer, and started to learn boundaries when it came to interacting with his new big brother. His painful skin condition meant that his vaccinations were delayed but, we didn’t want him to miss out on the socialisation that healthy young pups experience, so, much to the amusement of my husband, I bought Remy a puppy pushchair, and took him out into the big wide world, whilst keeping him safe from illness. I was able to walk Tigs and let Remy see his new village and the sights and sounds that he was likely to experience throughout his life. We went to the pub, took him along footpaths through farms, where he could see cows, sheep, horses and we introduced him to our chickens too.
Nothing phased this little lad and he just seemed to absorb everything like a sponge, he seemed happy with and reassured by his new people. Once vaccinated, it was Puppy Romp and Puppy Training Class time. For the first few minutes at Puppy Romp, he seemed a bit overwhelmed and stayed close to me, but was soon romping around with the other pups and was introduced to many different breeds. Puppy Training Classes brought out how clever our gorgeous new puppy was and he was very quick to learn. Being very food-motivated, he is quick to repeat actions for which he is rewarded and his housetraining was actually quite easy – time-consuming, but easy. He’s now 5 months old and growing into a beautiful young dog who wags his tail at everyone he meets and is equally as friendly towards other dogs.
Every day we are just so grateful that we completed the ”A Dog for You” form online and were matched with Remy. It’s wonderful watching him grow, not knowing exactly how he’II turn out, but given the progress he’s made so far, his future, and ours, is looking bright.
Thank you Forever Hounds Trust for this cheeky little ray of sunshine.
Remy’s Family
Remy is just one example of a puppy we have helped recently. As you can imagine puppies need a specific level of care so YOU can help us look after some of our littlest hounds buy purchasing a puppy care pack as a virtual gift – a ‘birthday gift’ for that special someone is a ‘gift of life’ for a puppy in need.
Here are just some of the puppies that previous puppy pack purchases have helped, all of which are now happily homed and growing fast!
We just couldn’t do it without your help.
Happy (Foster) Mother’s Day!