Firstly Jess, a young neighbour, who has helped to love and look after them for about four years now. Jess is adored by all the dogs, who love going for walks up the lane or running about in our field with her. Jess is a very compasionate and caring girl who really is wonderful with all animals. She has brought me injured hens on two seperate occasions, who are now living with my ex - battery and rescue hens very happily. All my dogs adore Jess, but Molly is absolutely barmey about her, completely unable to contain her excitement when they are together! Jess is hoping to work with animals when she leaves College, which she will be starting in September. She will be studying advanced animal care, and hopes to be an R.S.P.C.A. inspector in the future. I wish her all the best with her studies, and know that the animals of the future will be in very good hands.
Secondly Jordan, my eight year old Grandson who absolutely adores the pups. He is instumental (as is Jess) in socialising my pups, by sitting in the whelping box with them, getting them used to young people. Jordan doesn't have a dog at home so loves to come and visit mine, and is very good at grooming them for me. He and Pebbles were very close, and when she lost her sight, Jordan would come to my house and spend the duration of his stay leading Pebbles around so she didn't bump into anything - telling her - "it's ok Pebbles I'll look after you, I won't let you hurt yourself" He was about 4 years old at this time. After she died his Mum (my daughter) found him in the garden looking up at the stars with tears in his eyes, and when she asked him what he was doing he replied "I'm making sure Pebbles is alright." He is now adored by Tamar who only ever abandons completely his loyalty to me when Jordan is around! Jordan recently said to me : "Granny, it really makes me angry when people don't look after their dogs, because they are living things and they deserve to be looked after properly" Who said you can't put an old head on young shoulders?!!
Next is Sadie. Sadie is the daughter of a friend. Although she lives too far from me to be involved in a hands-on way with my dogs, she is a true lover of Goldies. She has three of her own, including a young female called Willow from my boy Tamar, seen above in this photo. Just like Jess, she is a very compassionate and caring young lady, who clearly adores her dogs. She has a gallery in her bedroom, in which she has many pictures of my dogs. She e-mails me frequently with news of her dogs and always asks after mine. Every Goldie deserves a Sadie to love them.
I try to encourage and support young people like these who have a love of animals - and Goldens in particular. I feel that if encouraged as compassionate youngsters, they will grow into compassionate adults - and there is certainly plenty of room in the world for more of these!