March 2011. Sadly, Bentley has passed away. He had a wonderful year with his adoring new owners and our thoughts are with them.
2/4/2010 Bentley wasn’t waiting long – he’s gone home already!
—————–
No one has told Bentley that he’s small – like a typical terrier, he has a huge personality and thinks he has a body to match. He’s a 14 year old Maltese Terrier who has come into Oldies Club care through no fault of his own and he’s hoping to find someone to love and care for him for the rest of his life.
His sad story: Due to a change of circumstances, Bentley’s owner was unable to keep him and, not knowing what else to do, took him to her local vet to be put to sleep. Fortunately, the vet realised that Bentley was fit and healthy and could easily be rehomed so she phoned the Oldies Club. While we were making the arrangements for him, he enjoyed a few days hospitality at the vet’s home. He was then collected by his fosterers and taken home to meet his new temporary family.
Settling in: Bentley settled in immediately. He was not concerned that the resident dogs in his foster home were much, much bigger than him. Within a few minutes of arriving, he was playing with them and having a great time. On the first day, he ate well, explored the garden, slept all night and generally made himself at home.
Great with other animals: Big dogs, small dogs and in between dogs – Bentley loves them all so he’d very much like a new home where there were other canine companions. He’s taken a real liking to the resident Golden Retriever in his foster home. On his first day, he was, of course, fed separately from the other dogs but at the second meal, he decided he wanted to eat with his new friends and stood waiting for his bowl to be put down between them.
While he was staying at the vet’s house, he met cats and although he showed an interest, there was no chasing and he was easily distracted. On his walks, Bentley is always pleased to meet other dogs and is invariably polite and friendly towards them.
His personality: Bentley is highly intelligent and learns new things very quickly. He’s a great little dog, oozing charm and character. He mingles happily with the bigger dogs, greets visitors as if they were old friends and loves a cuddle, especially a tummy rub. He loves his walks and will spend ages getting immersed in a really good smell. After a walk, he likes to snuggle down on his bed and snooze the hours away until the next meal. Like most terriers, he does like to have his own way but he is quite amenable to being told that he can’t have it. He’s happy to be groomed and is even fine having his feet dried after a muddy outing.
Fine to be left: Bentley just settles down on his bed to sleep until his people come back. Whilst currently he has the other dogs for company, we think he would almost certainly be fine alone as long as he wasn’t left for too long. However, if you’d like to take him with you, he loves riding in the car. He settles down happily to sleep, occasionally waking and getting up to look out of the window.
Bentley’s health notes: Unfortunately, this little chap appears to have been a bit neglected and had to have his coat clipped to get rid of all the knots and tangles which were making him very uncomfortable. He was also in considerable pain from untreated arthritis in his back legs but this has now been sorted out and he’ ll need Metacam for the rest of his life to keep him comfortable. As you might expect from an older dog, Bentley also had a few decayed teeth but a dental and a few extractions soon put this right. Other than that, he is remarkably fit and healthy for his age.
Bentley has been microchipped, wormed and flea treated. Given his age and recent dental, the vet advised us not to neuter him unless it becomes medically necessary.
Dislikes: Bentley is no lap dog and although he loves fuss and cuddles, he likes them on the ground. He gets a bit grumpy if he is picked up – we think it is because he is remembering how painful it was for his poor arthritic back legs. His fosterers are working to reassure him about being lifted but fortunately he is so agile now he’s on Metacam he doesn’t really need lifting – he gallops up and down the stairs, copes easily with garden steps and can leap onto sofas or beds with surprising efficiency. He’s quite happy to get down again when told to though – he’s just trying out his new people to see how far he can go!
Bentley’s ideal home: He’d love a home where there were other dogs for company but if not, he’d be happy with someone who was at home for most of the day. His ideal owner would probably be a retired person or couple although he does like children and could live with older ones as long as they understood how to respect the needs of an older dog.
If you would like to find out more about Bentley, please refer to our Adoption Procedures for information about the adoption process. You can then contact an Oldies Club rehoming co-ordinator as follows:
Email: rehome@oldies.org.uk
Telephone: 0844 586 8656
Bentley can be rehomed anywhere in the UK, subject to a satisfactory home visit, but note that you will be required to travel to the foster home to meet him.
——————
If you would love to offer a home to an oldie but your circumstances aren’t suitable, perhaps you would be kind enough to sponsor one of the special oldies we are caring for that, due to health problems, are unlikely to be offered a permanent home