Letters

Dear John

We wish to say a big "thank you" for being so accommodating and liaising with a fellow charity Fur & Feathers, to allow them to use your Home-check and for us to have "the boy" we wanted to have in our lives.

Last night we drove to Bromsgrove to see a little boy called Bob who was staying with a Foster family. He has no history and his age is questionable too but we knew he was the one as soon as we saw him and watched him play with our own working cocker, Rosie, lapping up the fuss & cuddles that we gave him. So hopefully next Saturday we will return to Bromsgrove to collect Bob and travel back to Leicester to start a new happy life in his "forever" home.

I'm saddened that we were unable to adopt a Cocker from your wonderful charity. However I have to say what a pleasant experience it has been being connected to Caessr. You are a fantastic charity and we wish you all the best for the future and securing forever homes for the poor, vulnerable Cockers that seek the love and care that they so rightly deserve in life.

Thank you

Kind regards

Rebecca (29-11-2013)

Dear Di,

Thank you for helping us to adopt Reuben,he is an absolute delight slotting into our family so well, we all adore him. He is loving his walks with our 12 year old Springer, even more so when our daughter's 1 year old Cocker joins us,walks then become wallowing in mud and swimming and chasing each other.

He loves to sit quietly by the fire in the evenings after a more subdued walk through fallen leaves which he seems to enjoy bouncing through.

His recall is excellent and he doesn't seem to chew the lead any more.

The vet says he is in very good health and perfect weight,this and his personality tells us that his previous owners loved him to bits and must have found it very difficult to let him go,please reassure them that we will give him a very happy life.

You do a wonderful job finding Spaniels good homes,keep it up I will continue to watch your web site.

Gill and Richard (28-11-2013)

Hi Di

Coco has settled in very very well and has bonded with Oli straight away with no trouble.

They are both enjoying their walks together but I do not think Coco likes early morning walks, she is socialising with other dogs very nicely and enjoys meeting new friends, both Oli and Coco like playing ball at every opportunity but Coco has not learnt yet that she needs to drop the ball on her return to keep playing even if you use two balls but its early days and she has been a fast learner at all other things in and around the home.

Coco is an excellent addition to our family and a joy to be with many thanks to you and John for all your help and advice whilst adopting Coco.

We will send regular updates.

Dave & Jacqueline (26-11-2013)

Hi Ian,

Just a few lines to let you all know that Bella the Cocker Spaniel has settled in with us and is incredibly well behaved and so so loving. I can only imagine how hard it must have been for her previous owner to give her up and I hope you can assure her that she is very happy and responding well to lots of company and all the cuddles she can handle.

I enclose a pic of her with her new mummy and will send you updates as and when.

Thank you all for bringing us together she has made us so happy and keep up the good work guys

Yours

Neil and Katrina (24-11-2013)

Hello,

Dingle is settling well into her new home.

The first weekend we took her for a haircut and this weekend introduced her to her new vet. The vet said she is in good health, clean ears and excellent teeth for an 8 year old. We are going to book her in for a complete MOT in the next few weeks just to be sure all is okay.

The first week out in the local parks I kept her on the lead but this week let her off. She was fine and came back to me except when chasing squirrels.

She loves her food and we have to watch her eat with Sam as she has tried to eat his food as well as her own. The vet mentioned the loose skin is a sign that she was once overweight so we are going to try to monitor her eating patterns and make sure she has plenty of exercise.

One odd quirk she has is she doesn’t like the mobile phone. We have tried several times to put the phone in front of her to take a picture and she runs and hides (hence the picture attached is while she was sleeping).

Overall, Dingle has settled in very well and Sam seems to be getting very used to having her around.

Attached is a photo of them resting on the sofa.

All the best.

Many thanks

Rachael and Stace (24-11-2013)

Morning John,

Trust all is well....Just a quick few lines to say a 'BIG' thankyou for giving me & Jenny the opportunity to bring Roxy (now Holly) into our home, though its only Day 3 she has been everything we could have hoped for (so far).........the ride home from the kennels was uneventful (fantastic) and despite a few barks and grizzles from our 15 and a half year old Springer Bracken, they have both settled in very well, although we still get the odd bark from Bracken when Holly wants to play and Brack wants to sleep.

Bracken being an old lady now sleeps indoors so I was quite apprehensive in placing Holly in the outdoor dogpen, but to my pleasant surprise she went straight in settled down on her warm bed and slept all night, even so I sat in the kitchen for nearly 2 hours waiting and listening for any upset........but NO all went well.

As yet I have not taken both dogs for a walk together as i wants to be off and 1 wants a very slow stroll.....so double the exercise for me !!!!!!!

Holly responds very well to a few voice commands and seems a quite an 'intelligent' girl, so I am sure we will both have a few good years together at home and in the countryside, especially when Holly will be having a 'young' friend in a few weeks in the shape of a new Springer pup.

Again, many thanks for the time, effort and hard work in placing me with Holly...........just what I requested and more......... Should you wish to pass this mail onto 'Roxys' previous owners I have no problems.......

Best Wishes for the continued success with CAESSR.

Alan (22-11-2013)

Hi.Di,

Just a few lines to tell you Hadleigh has settled remarkably quickly. He was extremely calm and well behaved on the four and a half hour journey back to Devon.

He is getting on very well with our other 10 year old Cocker Spaniel "Cookie" and has not been at all nervous or anxious when meeting our family and friends. What has surprised us the most is that after just 10 days with us he can be let off his lead in our local country park and will return to the sound of a whistle and a treat.

He is a lovely boy and we are sure he will give us a lot of joy.

Kind Regards

Alan & Laverne (19-11-2013)

Hi,

Sorry for the late email. I have been meaning to write to you to let you know how Hector is doing.

He is now known as Chip, he didn’t seem to respond to hector so we had to come up with something else to make training easier on ourselves.

He is doing really well with training. He has improved on the lead and his recall is excellent (when there is no pigeons about) otherwise he has a tendency to run to the horizon following pigeons.

Please see attached pictures of “Chip”.

He has taken a shining to the cat but unfortunately the cat doesn’t think the same about him. His chick and duck retrieval skills unfortunately have also improved. We have recently purchased some geese to help with this matter.

Hector AKA “Chip” says thanks!

Best Regards

Adrian (18-11-2013)

Dear Di

Florence has settled in really well with the two of us. She is such a busy, happy, affectionate little dog , and has given us so much in the three weeks that she has been with us.

One of her favourite places is in the orchards, chasing rabbits, squirrels, even leaves that float by, and the odd apple that we throw for her.

She seems to feel the cold so she goes out in either a green waterproof 'onesie', or a red 'hoodie'.

Thank you for Florence, she is very happy , as are we.

Regards

Margaret & Lou (16-11-2013)

Dear Di and Ian,

As agreed, herewith latest news of Lily and some photos.

What a joy and delight she is proving to be, David is besotted! We have all been on a steep learning curve but all is well. Chewing has not proved to be an issue, she appears to be thoroughly enjoying the park and her walks, tail high and wagging. We hope to try the beach this weekend.

She is such a sociable little cocker and greets one and all - we're working on not jumping up!

I am in the office (at home) at the moment and she is asleep under the desk, she has a bed in every room!

Thank you so much for placing her with us - I believe we are all very happy.

We went to the vets yesterday to register and have her stitches removed, the vet commentated on her excellent well being and teeth and health. A testament to previous owners and your good selves and of course Sarah.

Thank you again for our lovely, lively Lily.

Kindest regards

David and Sally (12-11-2013)

Ian,

Jon and I have had Star in our lives since February 2013, and she has gone through her second birthday in our care. She has recently become camera shy, or I would be sending you an up to date photo, but I wondered if you would let her previous owner know how happy and loved she is.

Star spends most of her time in the week with Jon. We have a walnut tree in the garden and Star collects loads of walnuts, having trained Jon to give her a tiny treat every time she fetches one. He spends most of his time in our garden with her, taking her on daily walks too. Her reward with me is usually lots of affection and play. She and I take long cross country walks at the weekends, rain or shine! Five miles is about right most of the time. Then we end up fast asleep on the sofa!

Bonfire night came and went with fireworks and a small sprocker blissfully happy, hearing and seeing them from other gardens whilst she pottered about the house and garden. Not a single sign of nerves or discomfort.

When we are in Scotland Star and I are out walking most of the day, and she joins Jon and I in the dog friendly pub in the evening whilst the regulars make a huge fuss of her. Daytime Scotland walks mean watching cormorants, sheep and cows at close range, and seal nearby.

At the moment, because Jon is out, she is settled in her basket where she can see the door and keep an eye on me, waiting for him to come home. She'll settle completely when he is home.

She is a very happy dog. We are delighted to still have her in our lives, and really grateful to CAESSR for finding her for us. I think we are treating her as well as her previous owner hoped we would.

Best regards

Vikki and Jon (06-11-2013)

Just dropping you a line to let you know we have our ideal perfect pup !! Di rang on Thursday to say a 4 month old, liver and white, male springer had come to them the day before and would we be interested !! Needless to say we arranged to go up to the kennels to meet 'Jacob' (as his previous owners had called him) Saturday morning first thing and it was love at first sight...he is absolutely adorable !!

He has picked up training really quick and easily...he will sit when he's told, lie-down when he's told, stay when he's told, will 'wait' before diving straight in his food bowl and has become nearly 100% house-trained. He was scared to get in the car to start with...most likely with the thought that he was been taken away again...but after a trip to the rugby club Sunday and trips up Stafford Castle, today he quite happily jumped in the boot himself and loves to look out the back window.

Our boys are totally smitten with him and Ben has even gone into school today with some pictures to show Jakey off to everyone !! Jakey Arnold has definitely found his 'forever home' and we would just like to say a massive thank-you for helping us find him :-) Feel free to pop in and meet Jakey should you ever be passing...

Kind Regards and Best Wishes,

Clare, Anthony, Josh and Ben

Asha is settling in well with her new kennel mate Sally (a 14 year old collie).

She has slowly learnt not to jump all over the furniture (with the help of her other new friend 'sausages!'). She is now walking well on the lead and is only stealing food if it is really worth stealing... (Like the whole pork pie she fancied the other day).

She is loving her daily walk and swim in the local lake- she still hasn't managed to catch the duck, but she tries just as hard every time!

Asha is becoming more sociable as she goes for walks with numerous foster spaniels from CAESSR- she hasn't met one yet who can run faster or swim quicker!

All in all Asha is doing well- she has still got her lively spirit and is enjoying life!

Lots of love,

Asha, Sally the collie, Marg, James, Sarah (her walking companions) and Jim (who always has the best food to steal)

Hello John and Pat,

It is seven months since I brought Cassie home, she is a happy little dog everyone who meets her falls in love with her. Cassie still gets anxious in the car and I soon realized she didn’t like wearing a harness and being strapped in after she chewed through the seat belt.

After trial and error I bought a car gate Cassie now sits in the back of the car and wears a spray collar which keeps her calm and I can drive safely.

Cassie is happy in the car and gets excited when I put her spray collar on as she knows we are going to the local hill where she runs off lead and meets other dogs and their owners.

Cassie recently had a tumor removed from inside her mouth also her teeth cleaned She has recovered well so hope it does not return my vet was happy with her recovery.

Cassie came to Devon with us in June where she enjoyed long walks on the beach, we also go to Bridgnorth every few weeks to visit my daughter and grandchildren. Cassie also gets on well with their dog.

Have enclosed photos of Cassie in the field near my house waiting for a tennis ball which is her favourite game.

Hope you are both keeping well

Best wishes from

Molly & Cassie (01-1-2013)