12/06/2024
Ive had little Hawkey in my life for 10 years now. When I first met him at Dogtown South Africa, he fascinated me. Such gutspa! Even with a broken spine (actually broken in half) he still lives his life to the full. When he was younger, he would bite people when he could, take on any other dogs he didnt like, and given the chance, gap it out of the kennel and OFF like a bomb - trust me, I had to chase after him, much to the amusement of my co-workers!
I adopted him because I wanted to give him a better life than a kennel and I knew it would be a lot of work. I was willing to split him from my other males (he still tries to take them on, to this day!) and give him a soft, warm bed every night, inside, with extra treats (he really isnt much of fan unless its biltong or biccies now days).
He is really frail now, he cannot run like he used to and his assisted walks are just a few meters at a time. He still loves basking in the sunshine and still pulls his blankets over his head at night to sleep. He detests jerseys to this day.
He no longer battles with infections on his legs and the ground here is just better for him. He no longer bites people, but will still bark at any potential intruders and even threaten the hunting dogs (who actually just look at him like WHAT!) .
When the horses lived next door, they found him enchanting, especially when he was in his racing chair - which he can no longer use, but boy - did he used to! The horses would all come to watch this strange new version of a dog race around in his wheels.
I have enjoyed having this little boy - and although my life didnt turn out as I had planned and I got to spend less time with him than I wanted to, he has adapted well to his life with me and his crew. He spends his time with Shelley Bean - who also battles to live in a multi dog pile up and they love each other to bits.
He reminds me every day how powerful ones will can be.
It is HARD work having a disabled dog - daily blanket washing, cleaning, weekly outdoor kennel redos to add to the cleaning, and constant care - cant go away for more than a night or two, cant leave him out alone when its hot, raining or very cold. Have to bath him regularly to keep him clean and happy. But its worth it to see him staring out across the land at the sun setting on another day. I know they wont last for him (or me) forever, but he never fails to remind me of how amazingly wonderful life can be.