REHOMED

progress update: 1/1/13

Hello Helen, I hope you are well.
I thought I’d update you once more on how Sparky’s year has gone.
He’s had a great time on three holidays to Cornwall, Devon and Lyme Regis.
The photo of him is on the beach in Cornwall with my aunt’s dog, Dennis.
They agreed best at a distance, but managed to set up a game of tag fetch together as Dennis couldn’t quite manage to return the ball properly, but was quite good at outrunning Sparky to get it in the first place!
He’s done okay health wise. He has a lot more fatty lumps, but the vet assures us they are benign.
He also had a problem with his eye and after much investigation the vet eventually discovered a foreign body which was successfully removed.
He is still a very happy dog at the centre of our family and is much loved.
Thank you again for our your hard work.
Have a great Christmas and I wish you all the best for the New Year,
Lauren.

progress update: 22/12/11

Hello,
Hope you have had a good year and everything is going well at DAWG.
Just to let you know, Sparky is still well though he’s had an eventful year!
In the spring he was on holiday with my parents in Devon when he got bitten by an adder (for the second time!).
Unfortunately this time he had a much worse reaction & his leg swelled up dramatically.
Being miles from the car & Sparky too heavy/in too much pain to be carried my parents made a 999 call and were transferred through to the RSPCA.
The multi-choice automated system proved impossible to navigate on a mobile phone, so they made a second 999 call.
Eventually they managed to get Sparky back to the car park where they were met by an RSPCA officer who took Sparky straight to the closest vetinary hospital.
My parents have since described it as the most traumatic experience of their lives.
Sparky was given medication, put on a drip & kept in over night and it was touch and go whether he’d survive & there was also a possibility he’d lose his leg.
After he was discharged my parents then looked after him at the cottage they were staying in – both sleeping on the floor downstairs to keep Sparky company.
When I saw Sparky a few days later he was so dosed up on painkillers that I don’t think he knew what was going on.
I’m very happy to say that Sparky has made a full recovery – let’s just hope he has learnt his lessons with regard to playing with snakes!
Apart from that Sparky has had a good year. He still enjoys his walks locally and further afield.
Now that my dad has retired there’s much more opportunity for mid-week trips to the New Forest and Sparky loves having dad home as he’s his favourite!

Needless to say he is very loved and we wouldn’t be without him, thank you again for all the work you do.

I hope you have a lovely Christmas & wishing you all the very best for the New Year,
Lauren

progress update: 10th Jan 10

Dear Helen,
I hope you had a good Christmas and New Year and everything is going well at DAWG.

Sparky is still doing really well. As well as his daily walks up the local wood/streets, he went on two walking holidays to Wales and Devon this year, which he enjoyed immensely. We had a health scare earlier when we found a large lump on his hindquarters. We took him to the vets straight away, who was of the opinion that chances were it was cancer and gave him a biopsy ASAP. We had to wait two weeks for the results. Luckily the results came back clear – the lump is just a fat deposit! As you can imagine this was a traumatic time and we were all having to try and come to terms with the prospect of losing a special member of our family – so our relief was indescribable!
I think I forgot to tell you last year that Sparky survived an adder attack. We didn’t realise at the time what had happened, but the day after we took him for a walk to the New Forest, we noticed Sparky’s chest was hugely swollen and the skin had gone a purple colour underneath the fur. Although Sparky seemed fine in himself, we took him to the vets who diagnosed an adder bite. The vet warned us at the time that he may be prone to tumours in the future, so this recent scare seemed all the more possible.

So altogether, it seems Sparky is very lucky – he seems to have more lives than a cat!
Anyway, I hope this year goes well for you and good luck with all your work. Thank you again for all you do,
Love Lauren

progress update: 22nd December 08

Just to wish you a Merry Christmas and let you know that Sparky is
still doing very well.
He continues to enjoy his regular walks up the New Forest (I’ve
attached a photo of him enjoying running through the frost there) and
he’s been on holiday to Devon again this year.  We recently de-fleaed
him, shortly after which he stuck his head in the compost bin and came
out stinking- of course we couldn’t bath him for 48 hours after
treatment and I don’t think he could work out why he wasn’t as popular
as he normally is!  I’ve also attached a photo of him admiring his
reflection – though I think really he is keeping an eye on the
neighbours!
Wishing you all the best for the New Year,
Lauren

” We adopted Sparky from DAWG two years ago.
He’s a big softie and loves having his tummy rubbed.
He’s a great adventurer, sadly with no sense of direction.
Fortunately he has loving owners who will happily spend hours scouring the New Forest trying to find him! “

Lauren.