We'd already decided that we'd have another dog at some point. There are so many in need of rescue that meant the hole in our lives could be filled by supporting a life that needed us as much as we needed them.
The wife was searching for this very blog, using Google to look for Roxy the Rottweiler when a rottweiler in need of rescue popped up in the results.
She arranged to go see her one afternoon and we both took some time off work to go drive an hour and a half to go visit the Primchurch boarding kennels to see her. She was abandoned and not without some medical issues. It looked like the previous owners took the opportunity to abandon her when they moved house to save paying the medical bills to treat a bleeding lump she had on her back.
Primchurch organised the treatment and paid the vet bills to have the lump removed. It was reportedly a non-cancerous growth that bled just because she caught it on something.
Despite the Frankenstein looking scar and stitches on her back she stood out as the dog with the right temperament, basic training and age that was attractive to us. The only thing in our way was that there was another interested party that had shown up previously.
We never realised that in this country Rottweilers in need of rescue are pretty much guaranteed a home! They are in demand and as soon as one arrives in a rescue shelter they usually have only a few weeks to wait before they are allocated a new home. Sadly that applies only to those that have a suitable temperament and haven't suffered some torment to warp their otherwise gentle nature.
Of course the search my wife was doing meant that not only was it a Rottweiler in need of rescue, but also that her name is "Roxy".
On the day of the visit Primchurch notified us that they'd accepted us as adoptive parents and that they would bring her to our home, subject to a home check and the all clear from their vet in regard to the stitches that she'd be living with us. I can't begin to say how that made me feel. I loved Roxy and this after meeting this new Roxy I was amazed at how similar they are in looks and behaviour. I swear that most people that met Roxy would not have realised it was a different dog and would have thought she'd just have regrown her tail.
Primchurch delivered her to us on my birthday and straight away you could see she was a perfect fit for us. It's all still very new and early days, but I think "Roxy too" would have "Roxy's" approval. If it weren't for the fact she's about 3 years old you could almost swear she's a reincarnation they are so similar.
So Roxy will never be forgotten. She turned me into a big softy without me realising it. Roxy's story never really ended, we're just starting a new chapter.
Roxy too |