Podenco Pepe - from streets of Valencia to the UK - appealing for a home

This is the heart-wrenching appeal I received this morning.

My name is Ciara. I am writing to enquire about the possibility of rehoming my Podenco, Pepe, through your website.

I carried out an internship in Valencia last year, and, long story short, returned to Scotland six months later having rescued a Podenco puppy from the streets, nursed him back to health and brought him home with me. Since then, we have been blissfully happy together, and he's like my baby. But the bad news is that my circumstances have recently changed. I'm about to graduate from university and have been offered a job in Belfast, which is full-time, and in that instance I will be unable to continue looking after him. It's not a situation in which to keep a young podenco.

THE FACTS:

Breed: Podenco
Name: Pepe
Age: 18 months (born approx. December 2012)
Weight: 16k (medium size podenco; around knee-height)
Medical Related: neutered, micro-chipped, fully vaccinated, up-to-date with worm and flea treatments and kennel cough, full blood tests done and tested negative for all blood diseases.
Pet Passport: Yes
Current Location: North Ayrshire, Scotland

History.

Rescued from the streets in Valencia around 8 weeks old, I nursed him back to health and transported him to Scotland at 6 months old. Has lived with a family and two other dogs since! We are unsure when exactly he was abandoned, or if he was mistreated, but other than his nervousness on occasion (e.g. with loud noises like fireworks) there are no signs of that.

PERSONALITY:

Pepe is lively, lovable and affectionate! He has bundles of energy and loves a good run at a quiet beach... where there are no scents or distractions to lure out his strong hunting instincts! He is wonderful with other dogs (has never lived without their company, in fact) however cats and small pets like rabbits present an opportunity for a chase (and we're not sure how that might end...!).

He is extremely loyal, and is always delighted to see you. As a podenco, he has an impressive ability to jump, and he occasionally tries to use that ability to give you a kiss on the lips when you're standing upright! That might come as a shock for some people (we are continuing to work on it!) but he could accidentally knock over very small children or elderly people if he's overly excited.

Pepe has all his basic training; he is toilet trained, and answers commands to sit, lie down, give his paw, come inside/go outside, go to bed, drop objects and stop what he's doing. He is very obedient, and extremely intelligent with puzzle toys such as Kongs; he also would have great potential for the likes of agility training. He can sometimes be vocal, though, so an apartment would not be a great forever home.

Pepe's ideal forever home would be somewhere with a lot of open space, or a large, enclosed garden. He would be delighted with the company of another dog, and without that of a cat! He needs an owner who can invest a lot of time and energy into looking after him, and reciprocating all the love and affection he has to give!

Please contact Ciara direct if you can offer Pepe a forever home.

Here you go, podenco passionatas - he's already in the UK and it will obviously be a great wrench for both Ciara and Pepe to part. Besides agility, he is young enough to train for cani-cross, for any of you who love running.