Special note from Editor

I decided against all advice to put this story on the web, because it is true, it is funny, it is also written genuinely from the heart of a lovely family, who could not do more for their Trailies and who love them to bits no matter what. At our fun days, Sal is truly a character and everyone loves her, so as Sam, Iian and Aiden have said, don't let this funny story put you off, because it is going to get better, as with rehoming any animal it takes time for them to settle. Thanks

SAL

(click here to see her boyfriend and partner in crime Mack)

We have had our other trailhound Mack for 18 months and he still hated being left on his own when I went to work, even though I only work part time, he had already done quite a lot of damage to our woodwork, having locked himself in the downstairs toilet a couple of times, managed to rip up all the lino flooring to try to get out; and just generally didn't like being left. So we decided to get another dog to keep him company and of course it had to be another trailie! We spoke to Eileen from the Lakeland Trailhound Welfare at the LTWN Fun Day last August and she suggested that Mack should have a girlfriend, so we asked her to let us know when there would be a suitable one available. Unfortunately Snetterton Dogs Trust did not have any room so we ended up travelling down to the Dogs Trust at Harefield in Middlesex to see Sal and another lovely girl.

Sal was brought out first and she was just all over the place, jumping on the little table, jumping up at us all and just really bouncy. Then she brought out the other one who was the complete opposite and so shy and timid that it would not have been fair to bring her home to our rather noisy house (although I did want to). So we decided that Sal was the one for us and took her for a walk around the grounds at the Dogs Trust and yeah she was still very excitable but so lovely with it. The next step was to introduce Mack to her, so we took them both for a walk and then took them to an enclosure to let them off together and they just didn't seem bothered by each other which was good. So the decision made we arranged to go back and pick her up the following weekend. Luckily as with most trailhounds she was really good on the long journey home again and settled in very quickly. The first picture was taken on the first night she was here, as you can see she was more than happy laying with me on the sofa with Mack. Before we had Sal, Mack only had an armchair so when we knew we were getting Sal we had to find a sofa quick for them, thankfully we came up trumps on Ebay and got that one for £1, what a result!

Anyway Sal well and truly fitted in, she was still as mad here as the day we saw her but Mack accepted her very well and they just created more mischief together, the plan did not exactly work to stop Mack being destructive as she is 10 times worse than he ever was, but hey she is lovely and now we never really know who has done what unless we catch them of course.

Since we have had Sal we have discovered she will chew and eat anything, but loves plastic which is unfortunate for Aiden with his toys! She loves wood, shame we have all wooden skirting boards and doors! Really anything she will chew. The first day we brought her home she chewed a plug off an electrical lead, between them they destroyed a very big wicker basket I had for the washing which unfortunately lived on the upstairs landing next to their beds, it did take them several months but the mess just got worse, as you can see in the photo they did a good job! She likes velcro, shame again for Aiden, she chewed his new trainers! We left the bathroom door open by accident one day when we went out and came home to find she had chewed a gift set of bath stuff including the soap and the packaging! Washing tablets, although she was smart enough not to eat them but boy did she make a mess, then when I came home and started clearing the mess up, Mack was not so smart, ate some of it and was very promptly sick, so something else for me to clear up!

But I think the best job they have done between them was to empty the cupboard under the stairs while we were out one day. I am the first to admit I do hoard stuff and put a lot under the stairs but they managed to empty this lot out through a gap that could only have been about 6-10 inches as there was something behind the door to stop it opening any further, as you can see from the picture they must have worked hard! I could tell you so many stories, I never know what I am going to come home to, I just love the days they are good!!

All said and done though we all love her to bits and couldn't imagine life without her.

PLEASE DON'T LET THIS PUT YOU OFF REHOMING A TRAILIE, BECAUSE WE COULD NEVER BE WITHOUT SAL AND MACK - NEVER!

Sam, Iian & Aiden, Mack & Sal