Raff the Wobbly Wanderer! (Oldies Club, fostered Wiltshire)

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7/7/18 – Wobbly Raff has gone to his new home!
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Adorable Raff is a sweet 16 year old Springer Spaniel boy who sadly found himself in the pound before coming into the care of the Oldies Club dog rescue. He is in a foster home in Salisbury, Wiltshire, waiting for someone to offer him a lovely permanent home for the rest of his days.

A delightful old chap: Raff is a wobbly old boy who has ataxia, a neurological condition, but this doesn’t stop him loving life and wanting to live it to the full. He had a lot of changes before arriving at his current foster home, but he took it all in his slightly unsteady stride. His current foster carer said that it took him a few days to settle there, but prior to that he had settled into new environments quickly. He’s obviously a wise and stoical old chap.

Here’s a short video of Raff exploring the garden of one of his temporary foster homes:

Doesn’t like to be left: Raff will cope with being left for a very short time, as long as he has free range of the downstairs (and with doggy company at his current foster home), but he wouldn’t be suitable for working owners. He likes to be close to a human if one is around and he would cry if he was shut away behind a door.

Fine with other dogs: Raff enjoys the company of other dogs but doesn’t particularly interact with them – however, as if often the case with spaniels, he would probably interact well with other spaniels. He is happily sharing his foster home with the resident dog, but probably wouldn’t want to live with very young, bouncy dogs.

Fine with friendly cats: Raff stayed briefly in a home with two cats and he was fine. He didn’t even seem to notice them!

Fine with gentle, sensible children: Raff seems to enjoy the company of kind, gentle children – aged about 8+ years – on a cuddle and stroke basis. He’s too frail to be played with roughly though and children would need to be supervised and well trained.

Loves wobbly walkies: Raff loved going out for walks in his previous foster home and he enjoys a good potter around the garden too. Walks need to be on flat, fairly firm surfaces as walking on even a slight incline will make him very wobbly. He loves a change of scenery though and enjoys being off lead doing plenty of spaniel-style sniffing. He will take himself for a potter down any path that takes his fancy, so you do need to keep a careful eye on the adventurous old devil! Raff will need a couple of 20 minute strolls each day to maintain his mobility and muscle tone and to keep him as healthy as possible.

Loves the car: Raff is brilliant in the car and he loves a journey out. He will try his hardest to get into any car he comes across that has a door open! He needs supervision to get into the car as he isn’t great at judging the height and distance.

Raff’s favourite pastimes: Gentle walkies, pottering in garden, snoozing in his bed, and being groomed and fussed. He also loves eating!

Raff’s ideal home: Dear old Raff needs a very caring home with someone around a lot of the time. He’s a gentle chap who deserves a calm environment where he will be able to go out a couple of times a day for a gentle off lead walk and change of scenery.

Here’s a short video of Raff demonstrating his on-lead walking:

Health notes: Raff is neutered and microchipped and has been wormed and flea treated. On the advice of the vet he hasn’t been vaccinated but he has just had a dental and came through the operation well. Raff has poor sight and hearing and he has ataxia which is a neurological condition that affects his co-ordination and balance. He has been found to have an enlarged spleen. He is having Metacam for arthritis and also Gabapentin. He struggled in the recent hot weather but is generally a happy old boy. He obviously doesn’t have oodles of years ahead of him, but he’s determined to live life to the full and make the most of the time he does have.

Raff’s foster carer told us: Raff is sweet, gentle, peaceable, delightful, wandering and courageous.

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If you would like to offer Raff a permanent home, please read 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

Raff can be rehomed anywhere on the UK mainland, subject to a satisfactory home visit, but note that you will be required to travel to the foster home to meet him.

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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.
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