One Dog at a Time: Saving the Strays of Helmand

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As we all know there are millions of dogs around the world that are starving and that go hungry each and every day. Our charity partners are working tirelessly to help and save these poor dogs. The cruelty, despair and starvation that some dogs have to endure are not acceptable and by working together we are determined to stamp it out, so to this end, the Bradshaw’s pledge is ‘ for every bowl you feed we donate to a dog in need’. Looking through the many photos, we came across a sibling group of four puppies, three brothers and a sister. Maddie was just a ball of fluff, whereas the three boys were all short haired. Murray, the biggest of the group, had really sad eyes and a face just begging to be loved. So decision made, we’d enquire if either was available. Murray was, but Maddie had been reserved already. Lots of people told me to be very careful about Romanian rescue ‘charities’ and the types of dog they would be rehoming.

I joined the wonderful 1 Dog at a Time Family in March 17. A simple share on Facebook and my application to adopt Annabel Amber and Jessie was successful. Rescue has always been my first love; right from the moment I could walk, I was rescuing. My first recollection was saving butterflies and fish from my brother’s nets, and like so many before me, I insisted my parents stop the car to rescue hedgehogs from the side of the road. As a child, I was always bringing home wounded animals and strays. I’ve grown up with dogs and have shared my happiest and saddest moments with a dog by my side. We also have a monthly auction on our Facebook Group where you can bid on a wide variety of items. All proceeds raise money for us. Nana is our first ever Romanian rescue, but almost certainly not the last. We chose to adopt and later also fostered another dog with 1 Dog and would thoroughly recommend them and can guarantee the support given all the way through was exceptional. I felt reassured with the organised, friendly and professional approach. I spoke at length with people with all my concerns and questions, and they were happy to help.Neuter/spay provided the dog is old enough or well enough. This will be discussed with you if we are not able to get the operation done in Romania. In my experience, someone is always just a text or a phone call away, or you can ask the group chats: there is lots of help and advice. It’s great that other adopters and fosters love to hear about and see updates, and likewise, it’s great to see the dogs become relaxed and confident. They couldn’t be more different – Jaimie is more nervous but so smart and knows how to get a treat when an action is requested. Kammi is obviously in charge of the 3 of us and likes to set the pace and direction! She is also quite reactive to other dogs, and so we don’t let dogs approach us, which can be difficult with some off lead dogs and not so helpful dog owners! But she is getting better all the time. But honestly, we wouldn’t have had even a tenth of the support and guidance buying a new puppy in the UK, that we have had with these wonderful, caring supportive people. Fourteen-month-old Percy arrived in July. He has the sweetest temperament you could imagine. He was such a dream we also got six-month-old Millie in October. She is full of mischievous energy and affection. We have been fortunate to have encountered few issues but know that a wealth of expertise and experience would be on hand if required.

Nothing really prepared us for Raffles. From day 1 he was so loving, would really lean in like he wanted you to wrap him up and snuggle forever. It’s a good job, as after his initial settling in, he certainly found his feet, and I will not lie, he was a little bit of a challenge. Aimee loves her home, but the outside world can still be a scary place. We have had great advice from the behaviourists at 1 Dog, and Aimee has done so well in our work together to overcome many aspects of her nervousness. Sharon kindly put me in touch with the owner of Aimee’s Mum, and we have compared notes to find that they are very much like mother like daughter.Fostering provides many advantages and helps to give our dogs the best possible start to their new life. In a foster home situation, the dog’s true personality will have a much better chance of shining through, which is sometimes harder to see in a shelter environment. This foster home gives potential adopters a much more accurate insight into the dog’s temperament and character (the good and the quirks!). Foster also allows the dog to socialise in a family situation with other people, dogs and other types of pets, so that any quirks that need work become apparent. My first Romanian rescue was my big boy Fozzy. A plea appeared one night on Facebook to help; he had been poisoned and beaten. Try as I might I could not get him out of my mind, his eyes haunted me. So I pressed the comment button and said… “please get him off the streets and to a vet, I will pay and help him…” little did I know this was the start of a lifetime commitment to helping the street dogs. The lady who had posted Fozzy’s appeal and I worked out how to get Fozzy to me in the UK, I then wanted to help more dogs there to find loving homes. I started helping the dogs that had been captured by dogcatchers and taken to the local public shelter to find homes, one at a time and 1 Dog at a Time Rescue UK started just like that… Helping one dog… We are delighted to report that 19 precious souls made it safely to the UK last week and are now in their forever homes.