We had to leave our beautiful little dog at home in Australia while we were in China and were planning on taking her to England with us, but most airlines have banned snub nosed dogs from long haul flights. Bear that in mind if you have plans to migrate with a dog or cat with a snub nose, including Shih Tzu, Boxers and Pugs.Terrible news, girls were upset but there was no way around it so our dog was left with friends and the girls were promised a rescue dog...with a long nose, on arrival in the UK.
We arrived, had a family meeting and set criteria for our rescue dog. Must be small to middle size, older dog, non shedding, everyone must agree on chosen dog. We then spent hours trawling the numerous dogs' homes locally. They were filled to the brim with crazy puppies and big dogs but none that matched our criteria. My husband instructed my eldest daughter to look online and find a dog called Ralph...thinking she would never find a dog called Ralph...and she did! So off we went to the New Forest to meet Ralph, a five hour round trip.
Ralph didn't fit any of the criteria apart from having a long nose...and he was...a dog. A four month old Border Collie cross. There was much pleading and begging to adopt Ralph on the long drive home...and that was just from my husband. We threw the 'dog choosing criteria' out the window and went to pick him up the following week, on my eldest daughter's birthday! That was three years ago and Ralph is a very much loved member of our family. He is such a character and has been on many adventures with us. We are in the process of getting him to Australia when we return home in January 2016. So glad you picked us Ralphy!
Ralph loves catching bubbles!
He just loves playing in our forest!
He has good sea legs
Loves playing tourist dog.
Enjoyed his trip on a gondola in Venice
Is a 'little' spoiled!
Loves a bone to chew on
Usually has a ball in his mouth, though it can be hard to choose!
Ralph is so clever he sneaks onto the family computer when we aren't looking and
has his own blog..check him out at The Life and Times of Ralph
I can see why you chose him. I hope he gets to travel back to A. with you.
ReplyDeleteOh Marcia, Ralph is such a character, he was meant to be part of our family! Ralph is coming home to Australia with us, he has his import permit all sorted, just a round of vaccinations closer to the departure date and 10 days quarantine in Australia. Has his travel crate as his bed, not sure if he will enjoy two long flights!
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