A terminally ill 'sausage dog' has been given a new lease of life after a loving owner was found for her just 24 hours after an appeal was launched.
Bella, a five-year-old dachshund with congestive heart failure, was believed to have only a short time left with Carmarthenshire-based charity Many Tears Animal Rescue who hoped to make her final days as comfortable as possible.
An appeal was launched to help find gorgeous Bella and her friends a loving home, and within hours the charity was met with "countless" enquiries. Now the Daschund and her inseparable friend 'Kammy', a Bischon Frise also with a terminal condition, have quickly taken to their new home. You can get more Welsh news and other story updates straight to your inbox by subscribing to our newsletters here.
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Reenie Ager temporarily cares and houses rescued dogs on behalf of the charity in an attempt to provide a more comfortable setting and readjust them into a housing environment ready for adoption.
Having undergone a thorough house check and interview, Reenie found Bella's new home and said the lovable canine instantly fell in love with her new owner. If you love dogs, you can read more stories about them by clicking here.
Having visited the dogs on Sunday, July 10, Patricia Morris wanted to give both terminal dogs a loving home to spend their final days and keep their tails wagging. Having had three Daschunds in the past, Patricia went out of her way to help the poor dogs after reading the appeal.
"All my dogs have been rescued and I have cared for ill and elderly dogs for a very long time. I am very much an 'anti-ageist'. I think dogs regardless of their age and condition are all capable of loved and being loved and it broke my heart when I read the story.
"I immediately enquired about Bella and got the opportunity to meet Reenie and both the dogs. I couldn't separate the two of them and so I adopted both," said Patricia, who spends who time working from home in the film industry.
As a self-confessed Daschund lover, 72-year-old Patricia said she jumped at the opportunity to house Bella and Kammy and add to her small dog family.
"At first she was slightly timid but that is natural. She really has grown in confidence and got a new lease of life. She dashes around my garden with the other dogs and she is the only one I can't stop from barking - she really has become a new dog," she added.
"People should never overlook old or unwell dogs. They're some of the most loving and loveable pets and I just wish more people would consider rescuing before looking elsewhere.
"A large reason we have so many rescue animals is because of the culture and behaviour around puppy farming. As soon as these dogs have served their purpose, they are abandoned and that is not right."
Bella and Kammy now spend their time in Salisbury and are becoming more settled each day. In a recent breakthrough the Daschund is now letting her new owner stroke her.
"Old dogs need to be given a second chance, a second attempt at happiness and love and I hope other people will also consider adopting rescues if they ever considered a dog," she said.
Bella and Kammy are just two of the many dogs that have been successfully rehomed under the careful supervision of Many Tears Animal Rescue. The charity re-home countless ex-breeding dogs and even those found on 'death row' in pounds or from owners who can no longer keep them.
The charity is no stranger to achieving the impossible, having previously been battered by Storm Arwen last year and, in March, becoming home to 57 Labrador pups. You can find the latest appeals and rescued pets from Many Tears Animal Rescue by clicking here.
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