07/03/2025
❤ This is a lovely read. It is long so get cosy with a cuppa, settle down and read about the success story that is our beautiful black german shepherd Peach, who was rehomed from Southridge in January 25:
"We started our Southridge adoption journey in July 2022, when we were living in Bracknell. My dad sent us a photo of a Turkish Kangal puppy called Bluebell, who was looking for a home. We already had two big dogs; a 7 year old golden retriever called Buzz, and a 3 year old leonberger called Skye, who kept us busy, but when we saw Bluebell's sad face and pleading eyes we just couldn't resist her - we've always had a soft spot for big, soppy dogs! We reached out to Southridge, and excitedly waited for a reply. Bluebell had been through a lot during her short life - she still had little shaved patches on her legs from the medical treatment she'd had, as she'd been so poorly. We were told that she was the weakest of the litter, and had been so unwell when the puppies were collected that they weren't sure she'd make the journey to the vet
When we visited Bluebell, we took her for a short walk in the field at Southridge. She was very nervous and we could tell that she'd bonded with the wonderful team at Southridge - she was desperate to get back to them! Within a couple of weeks, Bluebell was well enough to come home, and we renamed her Holly. She's 3 now, but still as bouncy as a kangaroo and very excitable
In Spring 2023, we got an amazing opportunity to move to North Wales. We'd always loved camping holidays in Wales, with all the dogs in tow, but we found we were wanting to spend more and more time there, and none of us ever wanted to come home! So we took the plunge, and bought an old farmhouse with 5 acres of land.
Not long after we moved, we saw a photo of Goose on Southridge's page. He was a German Shepherd puppy who'd been born at Southridge, and he and the rest of his litter were looking for new homes. We weren't planning to add more dogs to our pack, but it gave us so much joy watching Buzz, Skye and Holly play together and enjoy life in the countryside, and we'd always wanted a German Shepherd - and he looked adorable! So we got in touch with Southridge again, and started the process.
It was a bit trickier to get to know Goose, because we were now living hours away from Southridge, but the team were amazing, and kept us up to speed on his developments until he could come home with us. Goose since became Chase after the kids favorite character in Paw Patrol. You can walk Chase all day, and he'll still be full of beans! He's also very smart - he learns tricks really quickly and is an excellent guard dog - he'll bark if he hears a leaf drop outside, we joke that he's always got one eye open when he sleeps. The drawback of this is that he's very highly strung and has required a lot of training - and he's pretty reactive to other dogs and anything else he finds overwhelming/stressful. Despite that, we absolutely adore him, and he has the most special bond with our daughter Alice, who spent his first summer holidays with us carrying him around and playing with him all day. He'll be two this summer, and whilst his behaviour is starting to settle down a bit, we still have some really challenging days and he's very much a working progress!
We thought our pack was complete, and then in Autumn 2024 we found out that Chase's mum, Peach, was still at Southridge, after a long period of rehabilitation. She was a beautiful all black German Shepherd, with the softest looking eyes. We didn't need another dog - we had four to keep us busy already, two of them still young and boisterous - and we had a lot going on, with lots of work to do on our land and in the house, and also chickens and sheep to look after! But, knowing how loving Chase is and how he craves just being with us, we couldn't leave Peach at Southridge. So we reached out once again!
Once we found out more about Peach from the team, we knew she was going to be our biggest challenge so far. She'd lived all her life cooped up, probably just kept for breeding, and she'd had multiple litters. She'd had no socialisation before arriving at Southridge, and was scared of everything and everyone - even her own shadow. It was going to be a huge job to get her used to living in a home environment, as it would all be completely alien to her - and she was much older than Holly & Chase had been when they came home. Despite that, we felt we owed it to her to give it our best shot.
Despite the distance, we visited Peach a couple of times before she came home - this was particularly important because of how nervous she was. It was going to be a challenge for Chase too - he loves his pack, but he's quite reactive to other dogs and people when they come near the house, so we knew we'd have to really carefully manage that. We received daily photo and video updates from volunteer Bridgette, which was so lovely as it allowed us to get to know Peach a bit better, and see what she was like on walks with familiar people. During our visits, because she was nervous we weren't able to get too close, and we couldn't stroke her or play with her like we had with Holly.
Peach came home to us in January 25. Because of how she is, Southridge organised for staff members Kirstie and Claire to bring her up to us, so she could make the journey with familiar people. She did so well! The first couple of days were the hardest, but Kirstie and Claire were amazing in helping us to reassure Peach, and gave us lots of help in trying to make things less stressful on the rest of the pack too. We came up with a plan - we'd introduce them very slowly, first of all keeping them completely separate from Peach in the house, and then gradually doing walks in pairs and then small groups so they could get to know each other without the pressure of being in the house. Within 24 hours we went from Chase having to walk a long distance behind Peach or he'd react by barking and leaping around, to them being able to walk side by side without any reaction at all. It was amazing!
Despite that, progress hasn't been linear - there have been days where we think we'd cracked it, and then Chase and Peach exchange a funny look and things flare up. It took a good few weeks for him to accept Peach properly, and for her to feel comfortable around him. We're just over 7 weeks in now, and it feels like she's part of the pack. Of course there are still days where they don't all 100% get on, but we do what we can to avoid these situations
It really is remarkable that Peach has gone from strength to strength so quickly. We've gone from having a dog who had to be carried in, inside a crate with a blanket over it, and who would shake like a jelly every time we went near her, who didn't eat much at all for the first week or two and who was on medication to help calm her for the first month, to a dog who loves her walks and food, enjoys spending time with us and who has been spending lots of time outside in the garden in the sun. She's weaned off her medication entirely, and the crate is gone now because she much prefers the sofa. She's still very nervous but I am sure she'll keep gaining confidence day by day, and it's a joy to see her wiggle with excitement in the morning now when I walk into the living room for the first time, instead of hiding herself away, petrified. She's also really surprised us with how well she walks on lead, how quickly she's learnt to take treats from our hands as we walk, and how well she's taken to house training. We still have the odd accident, of course - she's about 4 years old, and has never lived in a house before coming here - but she has very few accidents.
Our pack is definitely complete now - we still have so much work to do with Chase and Peach and I suspect that's never going to change - but every day is rewarding, and even on the hardest of days, there are little glimmers of hope and joy when we crack something with one or both of them! We're hoping that by summer, once she's more settled, we'll be able to start taking Peach on trips out in the car, to the beach or the forest or mountains".
Animal rehoming centre, open to public by pre arranged appointments. We look forward to hearing from you. Registered Charity No. 219099
