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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Lifestyle
Dermot Murphy, as told to Faisa Mohamed

The pet I’ll never forget: Boone the neglected puppy, rescued alongside 250 others

A small poodle cross dog on a stretch of grass looking up at the camera with a ball between its paws
Now Boone’s tail wags non-stop. Photograph: Courtesy of Dermot Murphy

After 30 years working in the RSPCA, I had seen animals in unimaginable conditions. I saw dogs who had been left unattended at home for so long they began chewing doors and drinking water out of toilet bowls. I saw animals who had been stamped, kicked and even stabbed. But nothing could prepare me for Boone’s situation.

Carson, the older of my two cocker spaniels, died in January. I could sense Bessie, an excitable bossy nine-year-old, was lonelier without him. They were both rescue animals. Carson was picked up by an RSPCA inspector and Bessie was abandoned at our local vet. Any dog I brought into our lives was a dog who needed a safe home.

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