From stray to loved family pet
Did you know, last year we took in 390 stray cats and dogs at BCDH? Pablo was one of those strays, and his story is quite typical of our lurchers at BCDH.
Pablo was picked up the Dog Warden, we think left behind after being used for illegal hare coursing. From his behaviour at BCDH and our assessments, we could assume he hadn't lived in a house before, and not had any training for everyday pet life such as walking on a lead.
As with every cat and dog at BCDH, we made him a personal rehabilitation plan. At 5kg underweight, this included a healthy high-protein diet, and to increase his confidence walking on a lead he joined in group walks with more relaxed dogs.
We gave him training like ‘focus on me’ and also taught him to play tug! He was with us for 2 months before being chosen and adopted.
His adopters took him on with a big heart full of patience.
They understood that they were giving him lots of new experiences – his first evening cuddling on the sofa, his first walk around the neighbourhood, his first garden, his first toy box. It took time and some post-adoption support from our team, but he settled in to become a loving companion.
"Adopting Pablo has been the best decision we've ever made."
Pablo's new family shared their thoughts on adopting a lurcher -
"Once settled in, lurchers are the best balance of being calm and gentle at home with lots of enthusiasm and energy when out walking or sprinting around the dog park.
We had a very positive experience adopting from Bath Cats and Dogs Home and appreciated their honest advice on the training and decompression period needed by rescued strays like Pablo.
If you're thinking of adopting a lurcher, our best tip is to give yourself and your dog at least a month before you gauge how it is working and to adjust to the changes. It is worth the time and effort, adopting Pablo has been the best decision we've ever made!"
LINK » Read more about our specialist program for stray dogs and cats on our blog.