Why you need a rescue dog in your life.

This is our Rufus - doing his puppy face as the Princess calls it on Christmas day. His "I am the cutest dog ever face". But there is way way more to this furboy of ours.

Just more than a month short of a year ago we adopted this boy through Labrador and Golden retriever rescue. We knew that our Bongi had a very short time left with us and we did not want Moya left alone and grieving. After viewing a few dogs we almost immediately upon meeting him knew that he was "the one". He and A bonded immediately and do have a very special thing going between them. He adores his human sister but loves that his human brothers play ball with him. Even more now that the ball gets hit with cricket bats and golf clubs and goes really far and high.

Moya and Rufus on Sardinia bay beach

The point is that we decided to adopt a grown rescue dog and not buy a puppy. Whilst the benefits of buying a puppy is plenty it is incredibly rewarding to give a dog a new human family after it has been given up or forsaken by their previous one. It is almost as if they are even more loving, even more attentive. He is a real character and the sweetest pup ever.

The reasons why we adopted a grown dog was mostly selfish - we did not have the energy to bring up a puppy. The sleepless nights, the potty training. In return we got a dog that is fully potty trained, walks well on a leash (although he does pull hard) and is over the excessive chewing phase. He does not dig up the garden, eat the sprinklers or do many of the other Labrador puppy things that makes them equally challenging and delightful to raise. If the rest of the family is out he will make sure that he is a mere 5 steps away from me all the time. If Hunter works downstairs in the evenings he sometimes slips up the stairs to cuddle with me or he slips onto his human sisters bed and falls asleep - sometimes sleeping her half off her bed! Sometimes he checks up on his human brothers and gives them a little wet nosed kiss. It is almost as if he is checking if this is really his family and making sure he stays with us. He has been such a blessing for our family - maybe more so than what we have been to him.

The downside is that socializing him fully is proving a challenge and training him is harder than with a puppy. But we do see improvements all the time. And lets face it - if we had a puppy we would have spent time training and socializing in any event.

So do consider adopting a dog the next time you need a family pet. Most of the breeds have rescue organizations that you can approach and then there is of course always the usual animal charities. You may just be rewarded with the most awesome dog ever!