Elkie

Age: 3-5 years old

Sex: female, spayed History Elkie (was Ellie) was left in a pound 30 days after being mated. Luckily she was not pregnant and IRR had her neutered immediately.

Personality: This lovely lady is perfect in every way, and absolutely full of personality. She is good in the car and walks well on the lead.   She is there whenever a cupboard door is opened with her head in to see if there’s anything exciting inside, she’s quite and wants all the attention. She’s  extremely affectionate and loves cuddles. She’s house trained and loves the sofa.  She gets on with other dogs, but would like to think of herself as top dog telling the others off when they get a bit rough with each other.

Elkie’s (was Ellie) Dream Home: This lovely lady would suit being an only dog or with one other as a companion. 

Suitable to any age group, young or elderly. 

Fostered in: Mansfield, Notts.

March 2014

Elkie has gone to her Forever Home

 UPDATE 23rd April 2014

Ellie (now Elkie) has fallen on all 4 paws and has a wonderful new home in Suffolk with her new companion, her IRR brother Floyd. Her Mum, Ann, tells us that Elkie is an absolutely sweet girl and loves everybody and every dog she meets.  She is less friendly with wildlife (as a little muntjac found out recently, although he did get away!) and, apparently, she is absolutely obsessed by a field mouse who has decided to take up residence under the house by the flower bed.

 “I’m glad to say that so far he has eluded her. She has such puppy characteristics and behaves like a two year old with our neighbours’ six month old puppies (a standard Poodle and Labradoodle).  She also met another neighbour’s three month old chocolate Labrador puppy a couple of days ago and definitely showed her maternal instincts by trying to bring him back to the fold and cleaning him.  She was so gentle with him and he seemed very taken with her.  We took her to the stables where our horses live and she is very comfortable around them, including the hens who live there which is funny bearing in mind she loves to chase the rooks on the green and any pigeon she has in her sights.  We also took her for a walk in the grounds at the local stately home where lambing had just taken place, with a few hundred sheep and lambs roaming in the grounds.  Although we kept her on the lead she didn’t seem at all interested in them and was more keen to explore a rather filthy pond she had spied under the trees (thankfully the lead was a great deterrent!).  We wondered if perhaps she had lived on a farm at some stage, as she seems so comfortable around farm animals but less so with wildlife.

We started to let her off the lead after about a week and apart from a couple of scary moments (like the muntjac incident) she has been pretty good with recall – although she sometimes takes a circuitous route, she always comes back to us.   We have, so far, managed to avoid water but she eyes every pond, particularly after an energetic walk, so we’re not so sure how long it will be before she gets wet.  Funnily enough, she had a shower after her stitches were removed and she didn’t seem so keen on being in that particular kind of water!   She does, however, smell sweeter and look at least 2 shades lighter since her shampoo session. 

She had her doggy MOT recently and all is well, apart from some crystal formation on her eyes, which we may have to address at some point in the future.  She does appear to have some difficulty in seeing things close to but it definitely does not impinge on her enjoying life.  Her back legs are getting stronger as she runs free now and she has also put on a little weight, although I think she will always be on the small side for a Goldie.  It would appear she has had at least one if not more litters but, despite having had a hard life prior to being rescued by IRR, she is such a friendly little girl and so trusting with everyone we think that someone in her previous life must have been kind to her. 

She is certainly making herself right at home and she and Floyd are getting along really well.  He wasn’t so sure about her at the beginning, as she does have a tendency to be rather vocal when excited and he is such a quiet, gentle soul.  Also, Elkie does like to steal his toys, taking them right from his mouth when she feels like it, much to his surprise.  They are eating together, sleeping together and we think they both enjoy having each other around.  Unfortunately, Floyd underwent major heart surgery recently and he was away from home for 4 days.  On day two Elkie would not eat her breakfast or dinner and was then generally low for a couple of days.  When Floyd came home, she made a miraculous recovery and was back to her bright, happy self.  We wondered if perhaps she was wondering, with Floyd gone, whether she was going next but think maybe she just missed him.  Whatever it was she has definitely perked up since his return.  Floyd is making a steady recovery and we are just so grateful to have our beautiful boy back home with us and that Elkie is here to keep him company.  

Malcolm and I send our thanks to you all at IRR for rescuing our little Elkie.  Our special thanks to Sandie for all you do and for giving Elkie her first taste of a better life;  Louise and her family for fostering and showing her love and affection; and Aileen for organising for us to have another IRR Golden in the family.  Elkie may not have been your 100th rehoming, Aileen, but she is definitely one in a million!”