Denzel - Working Cocker Spaniel, Dog (5 Years)

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Denzel came into foster yesterday after his recent ordeal of being attacked by a dog and returned by his adopter after one night.

He is on antibiotics for his injuries and these are healing very well now. His eyes are fully open and the bump on his head is subsiding. He also had raging diarrhoea and his hair is matted badly in places.

Almost twenty four hours later and his poos are solid and he is a lot calmer.

He is a lovely boy. He loves human interaction and will stay close, although not hyperactively so. His tail wags constantly.

Denzel is definitely lacking in the basic manners department. He is snatching his food and is very food obsessed, and thinks nothing of snatching treats away from Phoebe. He walks backwards in front of you, making bites at your hand, so care is definitely needed around children while we sort this problem out. We are teaching him to take treats gently because he can catch your fingers quite painfully in his haste to snatch the food. He's a bit on the skinny side, so perhaps when he learns that food isn't in short supply and he doesn't have to scavenge, then he won't be so obsessed with grabbing what he can.

He is not very well trained on the lead and will pull if he sees something he wants to investigate. At present he barges past you at entrances and getting through a door or gate before him is currently impossible. Having a name that he does not respond to is a hindrance, so the first task is to reinforce his name whenever we speak to him.

He doesn't respond to the wait command at all, and can be a handful when you open the car door. He needs to be harnessed in the car until he has learnt to sit and wait. He travels extremely well in the car.

I am not sure whether he has a bit of kennel cough or has been treated badly on a choke collar, but he seems to be coughing at intervals and making some funny noises when he lies down in certain positions. Perhaps he was pulled away from the other dog very roughly, which has injured his windpipe. I will continue to monitor it. I will get it checked out next week when I take him for his second innoculation unless it gets any worse in the meantime.

His grooming is a work in progress, as his fur is very badly matted in places and a lot of knots have been cut away, so his hair is uneven. I am grooming him slowly, as it's not a pleasurable experience for him at the moment with so many knots. His hair is basically all over the place, with very long straggly bits and short cut away areas where the knots were probably too tight to tease out. It will be some time before he is looking his best. Once I have the knots out I will give him a shower, because he's not smelling too sweet either! The fur on his back legs has an amazing capacity to hide a lot of brambles and twigs!!

He is still very testosterone fuelled, given his age and his very recent castration. He is constantly trying it on with Phoebe, but she has no hesitation in putting him in his place and he backs off immediately without any nastiness. I am sure this will subside within a few days, as it has happened with nearly every dog I have fostered, females included.

He took a long time to actually settle down yesterday and sleep. He moves from one place to another trying to get comfortable. It was probaby ten or eleven o'clock before he lay down and closed his eyes. We crated him in the lounge last night at 1am and he howled and barked for at least 35 minutes, at which point I fell asleep, so it could have been longer. I came down at 8am and he hadn't soiled his bed. He was let out for his business and he did a wee straight away. He has a habit of licking the area where Phoebe has had a wee . Yesterday he was straining to poo every time he went out, and was suffering really bad diarrhoea and passing a fair bit of blood and mucus. Rather than medicate the problem, I have every confidence in the food I feed my dogs and sure enough, today he is solid (although I would have preferred him to go in the garden rather than my dining room ).

The tips are missing from a fair few of his teeth, so I think he has probably chewed a few stones in his time.

We will attempt to socialise Denzel with some male dogs this weekend and gauge his reaction. He met other dogs well on our walk yesterday, and there appears to be no aggression in him at this stage.

As I haven't walked Denzel, I read this to Dave, who was amazed, he didn't have any problems with him and I know I got a tag out of his ear with no problem while Dave had him. We sometimes trust people too much taking on board all they tell us without making up our own minds, I know I am very guilty of this. Thankfully now FDR have the chance of rehoming this challenging yet charming and handsome boy who will I am sure go on to be a positive member of a loving family, we all need time on occassions, this is Denzels time to heal and take stock, when he has FDR will really know how rewarding their jobs are and how much we all need you.

It isn't until you get a dog into a home environment that you see the dog away from the stress of the kennels and start to notice things that aren't picked up in kennels. The sad thing is that some adopters expect the perfect package straight away, and aren't willing to put the time in needed to let the dog settle. Some dogs do settle straight away, and some dogs take months before you see the real dog and the different behaviours. Also, until you have the dog in the home environment, you can't judge a lot of the interactions that are missing in kennel life. One thing that is always foremost in my mind is that the dog has been abandoned for a reason, and although we can 100% lay the blame on the humans for the thoughtless way they abandon their dogs, it isn't always because they can't afford to feed them or they've just got tired of them. Sometimes it is challenging behaviour that people can't cope with, and sometimes it is behaviour that is unacceptable. With every dog that we have fostered, we have not understood why the dog has been abandoned, because there has never been behaviour that we couldn't deal with. However, everybody has different tolerance levels, and what we would not give up on, others do. I still get so angry that people don't have the guts to be honest and open, and surrender a dog properly along with a full history. Having said that, even some people (not all) that do surrender their dogs will often lie about the real reason, citing excuses like, "I don't have the time to give the dog the attention it deserves." But then, I could get on my soapbox all day about the heartlessness of people who abandon their dogs.

As fosterers and dog walkers, all we can do is report the progress of the dog and monitor the improvement as we see it, with our own experience. Walking a dog on its own around a paddock on a short lead with a choker chain is very different from walking a dog through a town centre passing lots of people and other dogs, so there will be two different observations, and neither one is right or wrong. I remember the first time I took Baz with Phoebe, I was warned that he was not good with other dogs!!! Look at his thread and you'll understand how far from the truth that is. It the same with saying a dog is cat friendly. You can't say that until you know the individual interaction between the cat and the dog. Up until that point it is only an indication.
Denzel is lucky to be away from the stressful kennel environment with a couple of weeks of no pressure observation. I just wish I could recruit more fosterers because there are so many dogs in the kennels that would thrive with this one to one attention. I also wish I could recruit different types of fosterers with different home environments, because there are dogs in kennels that you know are never going to make good all rounders, but would live happily in a certain environment.

Denzel had a great day yesterday. We went for a fantastic walk in Mortimer Forest and did a 4.5 mile circuit that was 1.5 mile steeply uphill, but well worth it for the views of Clee Hill, the Malverns and Wales. We were all knackered, but the dogs really loved it. We let Denzel run on a long line, and he was very good, never straying at all. I kept stopping to pick blackberries, and Denzel would keep coming back to see what I was doing. He ate a lot of grass, which in the past I have associated with aiding digestion, but apparently that's cats. Dogs eat grass for the moisture, I understand. As usual, Phoebe was here, there and everywhere, and a couple of times we had to wait for her to come out of the undergrowth and rejoin us, but Denzel waited patiently, lying down by my feet. A family with a toddler and a child in a push chair went past, and Denzel was very gentle with them despite the high pitched screaming, "Doggy!! Doggy!!" in his ear.

He is a lot calmer in the house now, although sometimes he finds it hard to get comfortable. He will get up on the sofa next to you, and then spend the next ten minutes tossing and turning around before he gets down again. He is very clumsy getting up and down things, and I don't believe there is any way this dog could have jumped a fence. Most of his movements are quite slow and deliberate. He is definitely not comfortable going up and down stairs, so I doubt that he's had much experience of this in the past.

Feeding time continues to be a bit of a nightmare, and we have decided to feed Phoebe separately because it is not fair to subject her to Denzel's dreadful behaviour around food. He doesn't respect another dog's food and will just pile in and push her out of the way. Once we have him calmer around his food we will try to feed them at the same time again, but for the meantime he just cannot be trusted around another dog's food or treats. He is not aggressive, just plain greedy and completely out of control.

Walking him on the lead is a nightmare at the moment. He does not respond to any commands and most certainly doesn't listen. Phil keeps saying he thinks he's deaf, but like I say, he can hear a treat bag rustle at a hundred paces, so there's nothing wrong with his ears! I have switched him to a GenCon to stop his pulling and will also try a harness. His coughing is causing concern, and this morning he vomited what looked like a long thick sausage of compacted grass and hair. He has been coughing less, but it is still there. I do not want to use anything around his neck that will aggravate his throat.

This afternoon I spent over an hour grooming him and he is looking a great deal better. I had a good check of him all over while I was grooming him. The puncture wounds on his head are healing nicely and the swelling has gone down. I still have to tackle the knots on his stomach, but I think he's had enough for one day. I will pop into the petshop tomorrow and ask the groomer what is the best way to deal with his hair. I actually think it might be best to bring it all to one short length, particularly his back legs, as he looks a bit ridiculous in places where the hair has been cut to the skin and reveals bald patches, and then there are six inch long whispy bits. Whoever adopts him needs to realise there is definitely a daily grooming commitment with him, because the knots around his ears seem to gather overnight.



His stomach is still causing him problems and he is straining a lot. He has had some diarrhoea again, and also some more solid poos, so his stomach is still not settled. However, he is also on antibiotics, so that could be causing problems too. I'll have a chat with the vet as he is due his jab this week, and I understand he also had some stomach issues in kennels when he first came in.



Last night he went into his cage to sleep a few times during the evening, but when it came to bedtime he decided he didn't want to be there, and howled and barked solidly for about 15 minutes. A few more nights and he'll realise he hasn't been abandoned and I'm sure it will stop altogether. All part of the settling in routine.



Denzel is proving to be an absolutely lovely boy, with a few minor issues that a bit of patience with training will easily sort out. He is quiet around the house, enjoys his tummy rubs and a cuddle and most definitely isn't a fussy eater. I think once he is fully well again he will make the most wonderful pet.

Lovely to hear that Denzil is becoming a little more settled, he has had a lot to put up with since coming into rescue, glad he gets on with Phoebe even though it sounds as if he is a bit too keen on the ladies, I'm sure she will straighten him out on that score!!!

hope your next report shows that this boy is feeling a whole lot more comfortable. I think all the volunteers & staff loved him in the kennels so it's great to hear that he is starting to enjoy life again

Poor Denzel, sounds like hes had a pretty rough time. It is such a shame for these dogs.The fact that some irisponsible human determins thier fate.I wish Denzel a speedy recovery.Sure Ria will give him loads of TLC. X

Denzel is settling well. On Tuesday we had a visitor for 30 hours in the shape of sweet Nelly. Phoebe and Nelly immediately engaged in play, and while they were playing face to face, Denzel thought he would take his opportunity with the rear end of Phoebe! As usual, Phoebe turned sharply and gave him what for, which usually makes Denzel turn and walk away, but whether he was more fired up than usual with the excitement, he decided to go back at her. Although it was what I class as a handbags at dawn moment, I think we were lucky that Phoebe backs right off, because had she been a more aggressive dog, I think it could have escalated.

In the afternoon I took both him and Nelly to the vet to have their second inoculations, and also to report my concerns to the vet about Denzel's toilet habits. Luckily, I managed to get a poo sample for analysis. He was checked over and the vet was very concerned that his weight loss in kennels was nearly 5kgs, which was indicative of something more that kennel stress. As his digestion has been cause for concern since he came in from the pound, and he had been isolated at the kennels, he felt that as we have not really had any consistent improvement, there may be something more sinister going on in his gut. The analysis will take a week, as they will test for everything. In the meantime he was prescribed drugs for collitis, to relieve the pain he is obviously in, and reduce the inflammation of his colon. I will contact the vet next Tuesday for an update and keep a poo diary in the meantime . His coughing was also a concern, but the vet felt that with the antibiotics he is on for the dog attack, we need to deal with one issue at a time, but I am to keep an eye on it.

That evening, Denzel was able to settle on his bed in the lounge, and slept solidly for 4 straight hours, something he hadn't done since he arrived. We decided that caging him overnight was unfair, even though it's an extra large cage that he can move around in, so we let him sleep on the bedroom floor on his bed. He slept really soundly.

The poo diary is showing some improvements, but with collitis you can think you're on the road to recovery and the next motion puts you back to square one. The most distressing thing is to see how much he strains. Yesterday he strained and strained and strained three separate times with no result, then managed to poo a few minutes later. The good thing is that we haven't seen the blood and mucus that we saw at the weekend.

This morning Denzel was obviously feeling a lot better in himself and really moved it up a gear on our walk. At the moment I can't face the circular walk that we used to do, so we have changed the route to walk the perimeter of the golf course. Denzel was running around like we haven't seen so far. A real spring in his step and a smile on his face, loving every minute of diving into the undergrowth and snuffling around the hedges. He is 'working' the whole time, on the look out for critters in the undergrowth. He is pretty good on recall, although a rabbit warren did hold his attention enough to go all cloth eared.

The feeding continues to be a battle. I made the mistake of thinking that he was behaving well enough this morning to stay where he was while I put Phoebe's food down first. Wrong!!! He dashed for Phoebe's bowl, knocking her flying and growling and barking at her, then when we pulled him away and lifted her bowl, he just flew at her and chased her out of the kitchen. He absolutely has no idea that this is unacceptable behaviour. I dread to think what this poor lad's food experiences of the past have been like. We will continue to feed them completely separately, because he is turning Phoebe's calm food service into absolute mayhem, and it really isn't pleasant for her. He is much better at waiting to be told to eat, although it will still take time to perfect his patience.

He also has some peculiar habits around toys, which gives a little cause for concern, although we are not making too much of it at the moment, other than to remove the cause of the friction. Again, Phoebe is very good at backing right off, so there has been no problem. Nelly, on the other hand, is a puppy with no social etiquette and would just try to get the toy out of his mouth, with a few 'putting her in her place' consequences, but nothing serious. I will continue to observe his behaviour because it could just be a matter of him not having much social interaction with other dogs, and not knowing how to behave. Also, having a terrier like Phoebe, I am more than aware that a dog's bark can be worse than it's bite, so the volume of Denzel's 'confrontation' could just be hot air, like it is with Phoebe, and sound much worse than it really is.

So, fingers crossed everyone that Denzel's poo analysis gets to the bottom ( ) of his problems and we get a clear indication of what's going on. In the meantime, being out of kennels will give him the one to one attention that he needs.

This episode really highlights the need that the rescue has for additional help to be able to manage health issues, because, no matter how much time you try to give a dog in kennels, it's nothing compared to a home environment on a one to one basis. The kennels are under enough stress with managing healthy dogs, so if you think you could help with a dog that is suffering some health issues, please, please, please, consider short term fostering. It will help the rescue and the dog so much. It's bad enough for dogs to be in kennels when they're in good health, but when they're just not well, it's just plain tragic. A warm bed and a constant kind voice goes such a long way on the road to recovery. Please give it some thought and contact me if you would like to put your name on a list for emergency care.

Denzel is settling in really well. He is the most precious boy. A really good boy in the main. He is learning his mealtime manners really well, although he will still chase Phoebe away from her bowl. It's just a matter of timing to ensure that he isn't actually stealing her food. She's getting used to his ways now, and there's no aggression.


He is also much better with the wait command, and is not knocking me over to get through the door before me. I did a lot of work with him using the child gate at work, and he finally understood the instruction to go to his bed. It took all afternoon, but by the end of it, I just needed to point at his bed and he understood. You can teach an old dog new tricks, it just takes an amazing amount of patience and a determination not to give up.

He has now finished his antibiotics, and his wounds are healing nicely.

He has one day left of his tablets for his collitis. He is still straining really badly before every motion, and sometimes he will strain four or five times and nothing comes. I feel so sorry for the lad. I am hoping his test results will be available on Tuesday and we have an idea of what the problem is and we can start to treat the cause.

I sent Denzel's photos to the Field Spaniel Association and they believe he is actually a working cocker. I have looked at the photos on the internet and have discovered that they are completely different to show cockers, and he does actually look like a working cocker. I think the curly hair puts him out of the running as a field spaniel, as they have flat straight hair. Whatever he is, he's bloody gorgeous.

We have booked Denzel in for a pooch pampering next Saturday as a special treat. The groomer says he will really feel much better once he's had his hair taken right back. I have tried to cut out the knots on his tummy, but he is too wriggly, so I think the clipper approach by the groomer will actually be the best solution. I will photograph him once he has been groomed professionally.
There is no doubt that he suffers from separation anxiety at the moment. We left him for the first time on Thursday to do the weekly shopping, and I left him and Phoebe in the kitchen with the video camera rolling. He cried and howled for an hour and three quarters. He also finds it hard to settle if I go out and leave him with Phil. He will definitely be best suited to a family where he will not be left alone for hours on end (or one without close neighbours!). We are going to start leaving him in the kitchen for short periods to get accustomed to the fact that he hasn't been abandoned. He just likes to have you in his sights. He's not clingy, just a bit insecure at the moment.
We had a fantastic walk in Mortimer Forest this afternoon, and he is very good at staying close. We let him run on a long line, and he was absolutely fine. His stamina is definitely improving, and he had a really good run at times. He is very happy in himself. We just need to get his guts sorted, and he will be ready to rehome.

Campylobacter. Not the best outcome, but at least we know what we're up against.

I spoke with the vet yesterday and he said that Denzel would have to go on a course of antibiotics, but unfortunately they would have to order them in because they didn't have any stock! Once being treated with the antibiotics, I was told it could take two weeks, or two months to clear. Whichever, Denzel is not going anywhere until he's fighting fit. So yesterday I was reading up on the illness, and upping the hygiene around his toileting and our own scrupulous handwashing. I was discussing it with Phil, and said that I felt he was probably close to the end of the illness, as he hadn't actually had diarrhoea for over a week. Spoke too soon!! At 1am this morning, the floodgates opened, and overnight and today he has had rampant diahorroea. I telephoned the vet, only to be told the medication had still not arrived, but to bring him to the surgery to check he wasn't dehydrated as he might have to be admitted and put on a drip. I saw another vet, and he was prescribed a different course of antibiotics, for 10 days. Fortunately, he isn't dehydrated, so he can be treated at home. He is now on chicken and rice, small amounts every 2-3 hours. The vet hopes the 'clinical signs', i.e. the squits, should clear within 5 days, and then he will need to be tested again for the bacteria a couple of weeks after the clinical signs have ceased. I was given very clear indications of what I need to look out for in our own health, as he said campylobacter in humans is very painful and nasty too. I now go out with a bucket of water and a strong antiseptic spray (thanks Kim) to put down after him. We obviously need to keep a very close eye on Phoebe too.

So, not a great thing to sort out, but at least the poor fella is comfortable, as this would be horrendous if he was in kennels. In himself he's pretty chilled, and wondering what he's done to deserve lovely chicken! His tail is still wagging, and he's like my shadow, never more than 6 feet away. Let's hope we get him sorted. This lad really needs a break.

The vet was obviously concerned about whether he could prescribe the antibiotics for Denzel, so he said, "How old is he?" "Your guess is as good as mine," I replied, "Sadly the gits who chucked him out didn't put an age or name card around his neck." So, the vet gets down on his knees and attempts to look at Denzel's teeth. After quite a struggle, as Denzel is a real wriggle pants (you should have seen him trying to take his temperature!!! ), the vet gets up and goes, "mmmm". "Well, how old do you think?" I asked. "Oh, definitely adult," he replies. You don't say!!

ALL THAT HAIR IS JUST WEIGHING ME DOWN!!






HOW GORGEOUS DO I LOOK NOW?







I CAN LAUGH ABOUT IT NOW, BUT IT WAS NO LAUGHING MATTER HIDING A BRAMBLE BUSH IN MY BACK LEGS!!





I'M SUCH A HAPPY CHAPPIE NOW - JUST NEED TO SORT ME GUTS OUT!!

WOW whos a HANSOME BOY.What a lovely outcome if this lovely boy gets a FOREVER HOME.Will be watching this space.GOOD LUCK DENZEL.Hope your tummy can be sorted too.Big lick from BAZ.

Wow he looks fantastic, years younger & what a happy smile, he is going to have the most fantastic shiny coat with the proper grooming .....If he gets a forever home wonderful & how kind to be able to put a bin in the shop, a Successful day all round!!!
Way to go Denzil

.... than just the campylobacter. I spoke at length to the vet yesterday as there haven't been the great strides we'd hoped for in Denzel's recovery, although I have to say that bar his digestive problems, he is top of the world in other aspects. I questioned again whether the other tests had all come back negative, and after some confusion at the vet's end, it was discovered that all the test results had not been scanned correctly and some pages were missing from the original report from the lab . We discovered that Denzel also had a very high infestation of toxocara eggs in his faecal sample, despite him being wormed at the kennels, so I had to go up to the vet and collect a three day course of worm treatment. I was told to keep going with his final three days of antibiotics at the same time as the worm treatment, then keep an eye on his movements for a further three days and call the vet with the outcome early next week.

We gave the first treatment to Denzel last night, and he had a bit of a restless night. This morning he poo'd for England. I have never seen such a mass in one go. At lunchtime he had another big poo. Things are definitely on the move! Please, please, please let this be the start of the improvement.

He is so much more alert now, and is becoming very playful, especially with Phoebe. The pair of them have me in stitches with their silly antics of chasing each other. His stamina has really improved, and he was running all over the golf course this morning.

He is so much better on the lead now, although we still use a harness so as not to put any pressure on his neck. His coughing has ceased altogether, thankfully.

Food is not the obsession it was, and he is much calmer when being fed. He immediately lies down when I am dishing his food up, and although he bolts it down, I can stand between him and Phoebe and he won't chase her away from her bowl. I can also now give Phoebe a bone or treat without Denzel jumping up and snatching it away.

Wherever we go, Denzel gets admiring glances and lots of cuddles. We took him to see Kim at the kennels last night after the visit to the vet, and she was amazed at how fantastic he looked and how chilled he was. I think she thought he only did high stress and sickness! She agreed that his haircut was the making of him. He is so incredibly silky soft and it now takes next to no time to groom him. If he was my dog, I would definitely keep his hair that short. It is much more comfortable for him, and we don't have the awful wet dog smell that we had when it rains.

I am keeping my fingers and toes crossed that we can now start to see a recovery, and there's nothing more sinister underlying. I think the main thing I would like to see improve is a reduction in the straining that he does, because it really is heartbreaking to watch him. Fingers crossed everybody!

The only other thing that still concerns me is his separation anxiety. He is particularly attached to me, and if I leave him with Phil he doesn't settle until I'm back. Even if I nip out to the Post Office at work, he will sit and cry until I return. I feel that he will definitely need to be homed with an adopter who has good separation from their neighbours and where he won't be left alone for very long. It's still early days, and as we will obviously have him with us at least another three weeks or so, we can concentrate on trying to reduce his anxiety levels.

Oh Ria, apart from his internal workings which I am sure must be a great worry, he really does sound as if he is enjoying life Chez Baxter...I am sure that being clean & easy to groom must just feel so good.....as for his manners who said you can't teach an old dog new tricks....just takes time & patience & look how your going in the right direction...I'm sure that if & when Denzel is restored to full health someone is going to be a very lucky owner especially if you supply earplugs!!!!!

Denzel is on a roll now. Third day and we have pretty good motions!! Just another 11 days clear of diarrhoea and we can get another poo analysis done. He's also putting on weight, which is encouraging. The only thing that isn't improving at the moment is the straining, but given the mess his guts have been in, that'll probably improve given time.

We've also seen a few changes in his personality too - I always say that the rescue dogs' real personalities emerge at around the three week mark when their paws are well and truly under the table. We've had a few chewing issues, but nothing serious. One of my walking socks was a victim, and if I was any good at darning socks, I could probably have saved it. He also likes to demolish anything with tassles, like the kong tuggy. However, when you see him about to tuck into a toy, you can raise your voice and say "No!" and he stops immediately. He will also seize his opportunity if you leave anything on the coffee table, although you can pull anything out of his mouth and there is no aggression whatsoever.

He also has some very amusing ways of playing with Phoebe. He will stock pile all the toys on his bed, then wait for her to go for one and ambush her. He has started to goof around with her a lot more, especially in the morning while we're getting ready to take them for a walk. Phoebe is fast and agile and able to change direction very quickly. Denzel is awkward and lollopy and incredibly heavy footed, so when the pair of them are racing around the bedroom with Phoebe flying over the bed and Denzel woofing in his deep throaty way as he fails to catch her, it certainly wakes you up!

We took him to the fun dog show at the kennels at the weekend, and he was pretty chilled out most of the time. There were two exceptions. Ice started to bark at him, and he was none too pleased, and barked so much we had to walk away, and there was another dog that he definitely didn't like, although we couldn't understand why. He has definitely found his voice (and not just for howling when I leave the room!), and is using it more when he's chasing Phoebe round the lounge. That coupled with his clumping feet on the wooden floor and my laughing like a drain when neither him nor Phoebe can quite get their footing when they're running round the lounge, and seem to run on the spot like a Tom and Jerry cartoon, leaves Phil a very short tempered man when we all drown out the sound of the telly!

He's getting slightly better when I do leave the room, although it's hard to get up without him getting up too. At work, when I'm basically up and down like a yo-yo, it does get a little irritating when he jumps up out of his bed every time. The other problem he has is that he's constantly right behind you in the kitchen, or if you're standing up anywhere, and takes to lying down two inches from your feet, so you're forever tripping up over him. He will also try to overtake you on the stairs whether you're going up or down, so I've had a few near misses when he's barged past me and sent me flying.
He's walking really well on the harness now, although sometimes he will unexpectedly walk across the front of you or fail to anticipate a change of direction and trip you up. The other thing about having a harness is that you have no control over his head, and he can sometimes stick his head up into somebody's crotch as they're walking past you, which can be a little bit embarrassing!!

The other strange thing about him is that he just cannot settle if he gets onto the sofa or the bed for a cuddle. He loves a tummy rub, but he can't just lie still. He will thrash his head around constantly and will get down very quickly. Yet when he is on his bed, he will sleep in one position for hours on end.

So, all in all, he is continuing to thrive and will make the most wonderful pet when he is rehomed. I will certainly miss him. He has been the calmest and most chilled of all our foster dogs.

Denzel has had a really good week, guts wise. I should be able to get him back to the vet early next week to start his inoculations again (the vet wouldn't do the second one as Denzel was so ill at the time, so we're back to square one). I will also get his poo sample sorted for analysis to ensure that he is finally free of the campylobacter and toxocara infestation. The straining is still there, but the vet said that was to be expected and should settle in time.

Lisa, the lady who is very interested in adopting him, has a very chilled cat, and also lives on a farm, so we were interested to see how Denzel reacted to farm life. He was introduced to various farm animals and horses, and was not at all interested in them. He was, however, very interested in rolling in the excrement of any farm animal that he could find, so he needed a bath when he returned from his trip to the farm. Thank goodness his hair isn't long and matted any more! Lisa's cat, however, did fill him with a great deal of curiosity, although it wasn't the out and out kill mode, but it was enough to put him in a state of very high excitement!! It does need some work, and Lisa is confident that it can be overcome with careful supervised introductions. As he is not yet ready for rehoming, we can keep trying him with the cat to make absolutely sure.

I have also had interest from a couple of people over Wolverhampton way, but I really think Denzel would be better suited to a rural life than an urban life, particularly given the volume of his howling when we go out! As his advert went into the paper without a photo, one of the enquirers thought he was a small spaniel, and was shocked when I said he was actually similar to a labrador in size. It's also handy that Lisa is a vet nurse, given his medical history. I'm sure she qualifies for staff discount! He does have a few medical issues that are going to need attention. His teeth are not great and he has a sizeable fatty lump on his chest.

We have also started to wonder about Denzel's eyesight and hearing, as we think he might be a bit short sighted and deaf. Of course, it could also be selective hearing and sight, because he is definitely starting to push the envelope, particularly on our walks. His recall has gone from brilliant to crap, and I am now not prepared to let him off lead in open spaces. When he is close by he comes to heel, and is very good waiting to be put back on the lead, but if he runs off to investigate the undergrowth, he can suddenly be so absorbed in his actions that he completely ignores you and before you know it, he's shifted quite a distance. Typical dog, really! He is better off lead in 'confined' areas like the forest, or in fields where his boundaries are limited. At home, however, he won't even go into the garden unless I go out as well, and we have half an acre of land that he could easily run around in. Having said that, he doesn't mind being out there if there's the odd rabbit or two in the bushes.

We had quite a bad altercation with a young golden retriever last Thursday in town. Most embarrassing, as Denzel couples his loud barking with agonizing howling for good measure, and will not be quietened! Fortunately, we knew the owner very well, but we were quite shocked by the sudden lunging and snapping, particularly as the retriever is such a young, docile and friendly dog. When I mentioned it to Lisa the next day (I always feel that a prospect should be informed of everything, warts and all), she was not at all surprised, and said that it was common for dogs to go for retrievers as they give off mixed messages. She also confirmed that retrievers and labradors have the worst bite record of all dogs, and said she would rather have a bite from a Rottweiler than a lab or retriever (and I guess she has seen the evidence at the vet practice where she works). We met up with the retriever's owner at the weekend, and apologised for Denzel's behaviour and interestingly he said, "Oh, that's okay. All dogs attack my dog. It's golden retrievers! Other dogs just don't like them!" He even said he'd Googled it, because it was happening every time he took his dog out for a walk. That started us thinking about a couple of dogs that none of my foster dogs have liked (even Gino, who was the biggest scaredy cat going), and bugger me, if they're not both golden retrievers. One is owned by a friend who lives on our morning walk route (and who we have to avoid as we're walking past now), and the other is the groundsman's dog at Cadmore Lodge. Both of them are lovely, gentle dogs, but both were targets of various levels of lunging, snarling and barking by Gino, Vik, Ferdie and Denzel. Even Phoebe isn't keen on them. You live and learn!

With FDR's blessing, Denzel went off for a weekend on the farm and I picked him up this morning. All went reasonably well, although little was seen of the resident cat. However, Lisa, the prospective adopter, is confident that he will soon learn the error of his ways when it comes to chasing other four legged creatures. The farm animals were also a challenge, but regular introductions over the weekend reduced his interest.

Lisa used a DAP (Dog Appeasing Pheromone) spray on his bedding and after the first night he didn't howl at all. Wonder if I can get 'staff discount' for the kennels,

Denzel went to work with Lisa yesterday at the vet surgery in Ludlow. He was well behaved and enjoyed the attention. Lisa says he is the most loyal dog (what? he didn't even miss me a teeny, tiny bit? Traitor!!!).
So now we start the official adoption process - proper home check, deep probing questions, to make sure that this will be the best adopter for him. With other prospects in the frame, at least we have some fall back if I am at all unsure, but all the initial signs are good.

The new charity bin was put in the shop on Saturday evening, so I will take a peek in there in a few days. Fingers crossed on all fronts.

That is fantastic news Ria, I hope that all continues to go well for him. He is such a sweet boy and deserves a good home. xxx

.. because of staff benefits. He was given a thorough inspection by Lisa's vet and it appears that he has a level 2 heart murmur, which although isn't anything to get too excited about, it is good to know he will be in good hands, health wise.

If all goes well with the home check, Denzel will be on his way early next week.

that's really good news Ria..fingers xed for a happy ending for Denzil a dog who has turned around in Foster Care...I hope the good news has eased your poor throat a little..& good luck to Denzil who I am sure will miss you(for about 5 mins lol) fickle boy!!

I think Denzel's health is obviously brimming at the moment. This morning on our cross country walk, he was getting very frisky on his extender lead with the country smells and was running about, and pulling me around. In the end I got fed up, and said to Phil, "You can have him for a while, I'll take the easy option (Phoebe)", so Phil took his lead and I took Phoebe's, and we carried on. Within two minutes, we'd gone through a gate, and as I had my back turned to close the gate behind us, I heard a shout from Phil, turned round, and there was Denzel despatching a pheasant that you wouldn't have known was there in the hedgerow. I just hate that! Fortunately, one shake and the pheasant was dead (my screams of, "oh, Phil, get it off him!" were a little misguided. It was over in a nano second). No point in shouting at Denzel - he is, after all, a working Cocker Spaniel and to him it's all in a day's work. We were just so shocked that he's no more Mr Nice Guy! We didn't think he had it in him (the speed, at least!). One to warn Lisa about this afternoon when I do the final home check (although being country folk, I'm sure she would have picked it up, plucked it, put it in the pot and thanked the Lord she didn't have to worry about leadshot breaking her fillings!!).