I fell in love with Hugo the moment I saw him on the DMT group thread. There was just something about him that made me feel he was destined to be ours, so when Lesley contacted me to say he was ours if we wanted him, we were just so delighted. He arrived a few days later after a very long journey from the South up to Scotland, on a beautiful sunny day in April. He took to my daughter and me straight away and was friendly and affectionate from the moment of his arrival but my poor husband Pete was a different story. Hugo was just so suspicious and frightened of him and he got a few nips round the ankles on that first day. Luckily he is a very patient man and was determined that we were going to succeed with Hugo. Gradually over the coming days, he won him over with lots of treats and a cautious approach. They are now best of friends and Hugo will cuddle up to Pete and give him such a wonderful welcome when he comes home. I may add that H loves me more though and is like my little shadow! If you have read Northern Lights by Phillip Pullman, he is my little Pantalaimon!
Hugo and Dudley, our wire haired standard dachshund, got off to a dodgy start as Dudley was very defensive of Pete so they had a few scraps at first. I wouldn’t go as far as to say that they are best buddies now but they like being around each other more and I am optimistic that when Hugo is able to run around again, when his heartworm treatment is finished, they will start playing together as the signs are there.
We have obviously had a set back with the positive heartworm test and that has curtailed his training out and about. Before he was ‘locked down’ he was starting to get more confident on his walks and less reactive around strangers. He has a few trusted people that he really likes but is still wary of strangers, especially men and he barks frantically at cars and vans. He has made friends with the post man but is not keen on the male neighbours. We look forward to the new year when we can start his walks and therefore his training again. He has been brave and patient throughout his treatment and it was wonderful to see him snuggled up in the arms of our lovely (male) vet last week when we went to collect him.
Although it’s not been plain sailing, we absolutely adore Hugo and can’t imagine life without him. He is affectionate, funny and sweet. I will admit there were times when we thought ‘what have we done?’ Taking on a rescue from SK or China is not for the non committed. You need a lot of patience and determination and be prepared to put in the hard work to get these little guys to trust you and settle with you. You will also need a good carpet cleaner until the housetraining is complete! However we are past that now and we could not love this little morsel more. He is our beloved boy and he is home.
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