Well after a very peacefull night Saturday came around, Nev was off shooting in the morning with Graham so i decided that i would wait untill he came back before i took Scruff and the girls down the beach, he had some more new experiences, people came to collect a dog with their daughter and all he wanted was a fuss of the little girl and to play with their springer .

Nev came back around lunchtime and we all spent a pleasant afternoon lazing around, before Nev and i went to the beach, don't think any words are needed here i will let the photos speak for themselves.!!

What can i say he really loved it, and was absolutely wacked, and crashed out on His Aunty Cyn's Footstool.

Well today we went for the second session of hydrotherapy and the lad was keen to get going,jumping up on the ramp before we even had chance to get his life jacket on.

Once in, the difference in his swimming style was amazing, he kept his head low and did a few laps round the pool.That all changed when the toy came out though and we both got a soaking again.(i think this is going to become a bit of a ritual with scruff )

Today he did 4 sessions of around 3-4 mins each with a rest in between sessions,then it was out for drying and a biscuit for being good.

As with last week,tina was really pleased with him and commented that she could see a bit of muscle definition already.

So then it was back home to get ready for his weekend away at "Aunty Cyn's" with a promise of a romp on the beach to look forward to.

So friday night i came home from work and we finshed getting packed up , put the dogs in the car and set off for the 2 hr trip it takes to get up to Cyn's Scruff coped really well with the journey (i think this is the furthest he's ever been in one journey)and when we got there he coped even better with all the dogs, again i don't think he's ever seen that many dogs in one place, he went in to the house and here is Cynthia's reaction to him in her own words!

"""""what can I say,,,I have been busy these past few weeks,,,and I have been very worried about all these poor dogs that have been passed onto NESSR,,,that need the vets,,
Liz and Nev and kids were coming up for the weekend,,as the lads were shooting,,,
So at long last I was to meet the lad,,,,,

Well all arrived,,,,,he ran into the sitting room,,,,,and all I could do was cry,,,,,,not because he was in a state,,,but because he came in here as if he had been here before,,,so happy ,,so lovely,,,and so very very friendly,,,,,,YES,,,he has got funny thin legs,,,and a strange shaped back end,,,,but you must look past that,,,,,,still the tears flowed,,,,and Nev quite rightly said,,,,he needs no pity,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,he is fine,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
Scruffy is the most lovely dog I have ever set eyes on,,and I will say now my heart hurts for him,,,,,but and its a big but,,,it does not bother him,,,,he is so good in the house,,,and to say this lad is so young,,,,,so please take another look at this great lad,,,,,and if you could offer him a home,,,,please speak to Liz and Nev,,,,,and go and see this grand lad,,that never asked to be born this way..................and for 2 pins I would have him in a heart beat............ """"

Friday night he was in the room with 6 other dogs and do you know he never put a foot wrong, everything i throw at him he just seems to take in his stride all i can say is what a dog!!!!.

So today scruffy went to see Tina at the pool near us that millie, one of our springers has been using for the past couple of years.

Millie went first and scruff seemed quite interested in what was going on,so once millie was finished it was on with his life jacket and long line and after a bit of coaxing from tina in he went.At first he did'nt really know what to do and gave us a good soaking by splashing about with his front legs,but he soon got into the swing of things and thought it was great fun splashing about chasing his toy around the pool.

Tina was really pleased with him and thought he had really good movement and has suggested a six week course for starters to get him some muscle tone built up.

It's early day's but the sessions should go a long way to improving his overall fitness which can only be a good thing. 

So the next session is booked for friday 26th (i must remember to take my waterproofs) : - )

Nev.

Scruffy came in to Nessr's care on the 22nd August (my birthday as it happens) i had taken a phonecall a week or so earlier from a lady who was desperate for help she had tried everywhere else and no one had the space for an 11 month old springer, he was her brothers dog, and he needed to re-home him as he has leukaemia and couldn't give him the time or attention that he needed as he was in and out of hospital.

Scruffy when he arrived

It was apparent from the start that Scruff had something not quite right with his back legs, but as the family were obviously upset i didn't mention it, to all other intents and purposes he was a normal, full of fun very well adjusted young springer, so home he came where he wasted no time in getting to know the girls, finding out where the toys were and generaly playing.

Intially after a couple of days here so we could assess him , he went out on foster to a lady near me who had very kindly offered to help Nessr out, with the proviso that he came back at the end of the week as she was going on hols and Scruffy needed the dreaded little boy op that all Nessr dogs get before rehoming, he was still wobbly on his back end, but moved pretty freely and didn't show any signs of any pain so we were hopefull that his leg problem was due to a lack of exercise in his former home.

On the Friday of the following week Scruffy was booked in to the vets to be castrated and i asked if they could have a look at his legs while they had him there, Unfortunately our hopes of his leg problem were dashed when i got a phone call from the vet mid morning to say that they thought he had Hip Dysplasia and would like to xray him while he was under, i had already discussed this with Cynthia so told them to go ahead.

When i returned to pick Scruffy up i was shown the Xrays, which confirmed that Scruffy had Severe Hip dysplasia, he basically has no sockets for the head of the femur to sit in, it was explained that we would need to build up some muscle and then it would be probable that he would need Surgery in order to keep him walking, this is all to cost NESSR an estimated £1000 per leg plus medication and hydrotherapy which has to be done prior to the op in order for the muscle to be built up enough to support the joint.

After more discussion with Cynthia operation Scruffy has been launched to try and raise the much needed funds so we can do everything possible to help this lad,who is the sweetest, funniest full of character Springer i have had through here for a while, but most importantly we are going to do everything in our power to find him that perfect home when the time is right, because he deserves it and he will make somone a great pet.

In the meantime we have started on his road to giving him a better life and he is booked in for a Hydrotherapy session.

Please click the front cover to download The second issue of NESSR News in PDF format.

Northern English Springer Spaniel Rescue
 Micro-chipping

At NESSR, we care deeply about pet security and safety which is why members of the re-homing and volunteer teams were trained to micro chip.

Our volunteers are qualified and insured to carry out this procedure and all of our charges are now micro-chipped before they are re-homed.

We are now offering this service to members of the public at our events e.g. Pets at Home and the NESSR Fun Weekend. Please visit the NESSR events section for details of those dates.