Wendy - A Free Spirit

Wendy came to join our little family on Monday 21st May 2001. We take in as many dogs as we can accommodate comfortably and had recently lost a dear old lady so we had room to take in another old dog or one who could not be easily homed for any reason. We heard about Wendy through Cheryl at the RGT Croftview kennels at Meopham. Cheryl had heard that there was a greyhound at Battersea (Brand’s Hatch) who was a sweet girl but who had been continually overlooked by visitors. They had called her “Rags”, as when she arrived there she resembled a bag of rags.

Cheryl arranged for Rags to be brought down to Devon with some friends who were travelling down via the M5 motorway. A neighbour offered to drive me to Tiverton where we met Rags for the first time. She was a little younger than the dogs that we normally take and was in very good condition due to the care she had received in the Dogs’ Home. She was a very pretty brindle girl with huge ears which when pricked made her look just like a deer. She jumped into the car happily when we opened the tailgate and then settled down for the last part of her journey to Croyde.

Although Rags – now renamed Wendy - had been assessed as having several problems and needing special care, we found her to be very adaptable and she fitted in very well with our other dogs. She was especially good with the two small elderly Jack Russells that we had then. They would cuddle up to her and rest their heads on her back and she would put a protective paw over them. Wendy was so grateful for the home we gave her. She always loved the sofa, though she was quite happy to share it with another greyhound and the two little girls who cuddled in beside them.

Wendy became so devoted to us that she could not bear to be left. This was not a problem as she was quite happy to travel around in the car with us and wait while we did the shopping. In the warmer summer months somebody always stayed with her so that she was not left in the car.

We kept Wendy on the extending lead for a few weeks until we were sure that she would not get lost and then we allowed her to run on the beach and dunes when we were out on the walks. She loved to play and run round the beach and into the water. Sometimes she would get so excited she would pick up a clump of seaweed in her mouth and toss it into the air.

She was always as good as gold on the walks and because our garden backs straight onto the footpath to the beach, she rarely had to be on the lead. She ran up and down the sand dunes and had great fun but always remained within sight and sound of us. On one occasion she caught the rabbit she was chasing. I was horrified as she ran around with the poor creature in her mouth looking so pleased with herself. I grabbed the other dogs and yelled at her to drop it. Surprisingly she did just that! The rabbit was none the worse for his adventure and scuttled off down the nearest hole without a mark on him. This shows what a gentle girl Wendy was and shatters the popular misconception that all greyhounds will kill small mammals given the chance. She never harmed any creature, never growled and never used her teeth on anything other than her chew-bones.

One of our dogs (Poppy) has severe difficulties relating to other dogs and people. She is a sweet affectionate girl with us but trusts nobody else. Wendy always regarded Poppy with great admiration for some strange unfathomable reason. She would follow her up and down the dunes, running just behind her and so desperate to be accepted by her idol. Poor Poppy is a real loner and was never particularly nice to Wendy as she is unable to play or become a companion but this never daunted our gallant sweet-natured greyhound. She did find a great friend in Billy, another greyhound who came to us in November 2002 with acute health problems. The two of them would run round and round the beach and in and out of the waves until one or other tired.

I take the fitter dogs out for a long walk every morning around dawn. We go along the footpath and down on the beach and then across the stream and back up through the dunes. Wendy, Poppy, Billy and our two little girls always loved this walk, as they were all able to stay off the lead.

Wendy went to the vet for a check on her eye on 6th January. She had cataracts, but one eye was continually closing and needed checking out. The vet diagnosed Horner’s syndrome, which is not painful and does not need treatment. It is just a condition that causes the eyelid to droop and look abnormal. The vet examined her at the time to check her general health.

On Thursday 8th January we set off on the morning walk as usual. The dogs were all running around and enjoying the beach despite the rain. We reached the stream where the little dogs prefer to be carried across. I turned to call Sugarlump, but she was running around being silly so I turned back and immediately saw that Wendy was lying on her side on the damp sand at the approach to the stream. My first thought was that she had fallen somehow and would get up in a moment. I ran up to her and saw that she was twitching as if she was having some sort of fit. I bent down and felt under her coat for her heart while getting out my phone to ring the vet. I still expected her to come round and be alright. However while talking to the veterinary clinic I felt that her heart was not beating and a horrible realisation came over me that Wendy was dying. There was nothing I could do. It was over in moments. She had gone without any warning. One minute she was running around and the next she was dead. It was the most horrible experience imaginable.

My husband carried Wendy the long distance back to our home. It was very difficult for him, as she was a very heavy strong healthy girl – or so we had thought. We were both in a state of severe shock. We had not had a chance to even say goodbye. Wendy was the last of our dogs that we had expected to lose. We knew Billy was very ill and Ambrose was such an old boy but our Wendy was supposed to be here for years yet – helping each new dog to settle in as she always did.

The vet said that she had suffered a massive heart attack and that it was not totally uncommon for this to happen. Everyone said that it was a lovely way for her to go as she died on her beloved beach and knew nothing about it. She did not suffer and she did not get old and ill and disabled through arthritis. All this I know and accept. However it is such a brutal shock for those left behind. She should have had another three or four years. Ten is no age for a dog to die these days. I cannot help feeling she was cheated of so much time to live her life and enjoy herself.

We will never forget you Wendy. You were a special girl. I can only hope you are out there playing and chasing around just hidden from our eyes but with all the dear ones who shared your life here and have also now passed away from this world - hopefully to a better one. You will have your friends who left before you – Danny, Bonnie, Amy and Sally. I so hope you are all together again. Now dear Billy has left his pathetic diseased body and gone to join you just four weeks after you went. I will always see you in my dreams - dancing and leaping in the wind that blows in across the dunes from the Atlantic Ocean. Run free my dear girl until we meet again…