Written by Conrad Greer
Professional photography by Nat Gold ZA
My sincere hope is that, with this story, we can show people that rescuing and rehoming a dog is the most rewarding thing that any human can ever do, and that rescue dogs are not problem animals. With some time, love, understanding and patience, they can be the most loyal and loving dogs ever.
It started on a Wednesday afternoon in January when I saw the sad story of a very young brown-and-black dog named Bella on social media. She’d been tied to a pole with a seatbelt and abandoned.
Saved from the street
A good Samaritan had taken the terrified dog to Tygerberg Animal Hospital (TAH) Rosmead, Kenilworth, and through their network of contacts the story was posted and a foster or furever home was needed for her as soon as possible.
Animal rescuer and Cape Town representative of Feel Good Funding Adoptions, Jo-Jo Bayvel, who’d put out the post, told me that Bella, as she’d been named, was scared, timid and reactive to other dogs, and she was safely at TAH Rosmead for the time being. A good friend of mine is a vet there, so I called her and told her to please let me have a few hours to discuss fostering Bella with Belinda, my wife, so that we knew what we were in for.
After a long and emotional conversation, it was agreed we’d “foster” Bella. We both knew that, once she was with us, our fostering would become adoption – we’d never be able to part with her. However, we have three other rescue dogs, so we also needed to be pretty sure that Bella would fit in with our fur kids Widget, Gizmo and Bithkit.
A humbling experience
I went over to the vet that Wednesday evening and was introduced to Bella by my vet friend, who was on duty that night. Bella was thin, timid, shy, full of ticks and sick because of the tick infection, and the numerous scars on her little body were evidence that her start to life hadn’t been easy or pleasant.
Whenever I see a poor dog in that condition, I lose a bit more of the little faith I have left in humanity. For the next three hours I just sat on the floor and let her come to me as she was comfortable to do. First a distant sniff, then a bit closer, then she let me touch her, then she put one paw on me, then two, and she then sat on me and eventually lay on my stomach, finally lying next to me and falling asleep in my arms.
What a humbling experience it was for me that, in spite of her mistrust for humans, she still came to me and, in her way, trusted me. It was instant love for me and, before I left, I bought her a collar and put it on her. It was my pathetic way of claiming her as one of our own, who, no matter the cost, Belinda and I would love, protect and care for, for the rest of her life.
A new start
I got all the legal work done the very next day and then went to fetch our new baby. Again, she was scared and timid. I got her medication, signed her release forms, attached her lead and we were out of there on her new adventure.
I put her in the back of the car, but when I got in she jumped over the seats and got on my lap. Her tail wagged for the first time and there was a new light in her eyes. I drove home carefully as she wasn’t used to a car and was between the passenger seat and wanting to climb on my lap, so I had my hands full.
The introduction to her new furry family was as peaceful as could be: there was a lot of sniffing, looking, wagging tails, but not a single growl, bark, snap or snarl from any of the pooches. I just sat and watched them do their doggie rituals and get used to each other. If only humans could be as accepting of each other – despite our differences, the world would be a better place.
After about an hour of the dogs getting used to each other, Belinda arrived home and got to meet Bella. Well, if you think I’m a dog person, then Belinda is the ultimate dog woman; she also instantly fell in love with Bella and just went and sat on the floor so they could meet. Needless to say, Belinda was smothered by a very excited Bella and got many sniffs, wags and kisses from her.
My shadow
So, after the hectic events of the previous 24 hours, we were a new extended family and all was good. The process of integrating her into our home and routine would be the next step. I slept downstairs on the couch with her next to me on her bed for the first four nights, before she was upgraded to be with the rest of her family on the king-size bed upstairs. She now sleeps between her humans and with her brother and sister, and all is fine for the night.
Indi and I are up at 4:30 in the mornings and she sits/sleeps next to me on the couch outside while I have my morning wake-up brew of coffee. She’s eating well and is getting used to doggy biscuits, dry wors and raw chicken, but for now she still prefers plain doggy kibble.
As each day goes by she’s more confident and assured that she’s in a safe place. Her playful nature has taken over from her mistrust and fear. We renamed her Indiana (or Indi for short) after Indiana Jones from the movie Raiders of the Lost Ark, as her tail is like a whip when she wags it, and Indiana is a strong name, just like her personality.
She’s an absolute pleasure to have around the house, she’s intelligent, learns quickly, and just wants to please her humans. She’s my shadow and goes everywhere I go, and when I’m at work and Belinda works from home, she then latches on to Belinda for the day. She plays with us and nibbles our hands and arms, she squirms into our arms and under our legs and is such a cuddle bug. We’re just in awe of her and she’s brought out so much laughter in us.
She was chipped, dipped, treated for ticks and fleas, dewormed, had her first bath, and once she has the “all clear” health wise, she’ll be fully vaccinated and snipped. Oh yes, she’s already started her doggy training classes as well.
I’ve titled this story “It takes a village”, as without the commitment of many people who love animals, the rescue, rehab and rehome of animals wouldn’t be possible. The whole village has to participate and contribute.
In this case I have to say a huge thank you to Jo-Jo Bayvel; the kind anonymous lady who recognised Bella’s plight and didn’t walk away but chose to get involved and help; the staff and Bianca Thebus, Practice Manager of TAH Rosmead; and especially Dr Kaitlyn Reabow, our friend the vet, who made sure Indiana was kept there until I could get there to meet her.
Thank you to Feel Good Funding Adoptions who arranged all the legal paperwork so we could adopt. There are other people who behind the scenes contribute to the welfare of animals in need and I’ve not met, but I’m grateful to them.
Then to all the people who saw the posts and progress of Indiana on social media and have sent so many kind words and so many kind wishes and posts. To every single one of you, Belinda and I owe so much gratitude for caring for animals; your actions go such a long way to restoring some of our faith in humanity.
We’re looking forward to the future with Indiana as this young puppy develops into an amazing companion for us.
