28/9/19 – We are so pleased to hear that Willow has found a new home!
Willow is a beautifully coloured Labrador-sized mongrel. She is just over 10 years old but is still energetic and has a zest for life. Willow has been at the Battersea Brands Hatch site in Kent since October 2018, which is a real shame as she will make quite a low maintenance pet in the right home.
Willow is a very loving dog who finds life in kennels quite stressful so she spends a lot of time in the offices at Brands Hatch. She can be very helpful, but sometimes she just falls asleep on the job! Willow settles very well in the offices on a comfy bed and likes listening to the radio. She also spent a long time in a foster home and proved to be a wonderful house guest who could be left alone in the house for a working day, with a break, with no issues.
Willow absolutely adores tennis balls and would have you throwing a ball for her all day if she had the choice. She is a little bit like a collie in that she will bring the ball back, drop it, and then back up and wait for you to throw it again. You have to be quick though as she does get excited and will bark to remind you to throw it!
As long as her owners have direct access to an enclosed, medium to large garden and can spend time each day playing ball with her, and provide her with games in the house, Willow won’t necessarily need regular walks. This may sound odd, but it is because she can find the outside world quite overwhelming, so doesn’t get much enjoyment from walks and doesn’t find them relaxing. She would be ideal for an older person or someone less able to get out and about but who craves the companionship and love of a dog. Equally, she could fit into the lifestyle of someone who works full time and doesn’t always have time to walk a dog, but who can spend time in the evenings with her, and break up her day with a pet sitter or by popping home to see her in their lunch break.
If you did wish to walk Willow, you would need to do so in rural, quiet locations and be able to manage her on a long line, as she is quite strong at times. Willow does not particularly appreciate other dogs and prefers to stay away from them, so she will not relax in areas that are busy with dog walkers. She appreciates the quieter life. Her ideal home would be with a mature household in a rural location. She needs to be the only pet in her new home and does enjoy a little den area in the house that she can take herself to when she needs time alone.
Willow is such a lovely lady and is sadly overlooked in kennels, maybe because she feels stressed, or perhaps because her younger kennel mates are picked instead. She is patiently waiting for someone to see this loving and affectionate dog waiting for her retirement home. She really will make an easy pet in a home that embraces her quirks.
Could you offer Willow a game of fetch in the garden each day and a quiet lifestyle?
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Contact Battersea Brands Hatch as follows:
Tel: 01474 875 106
Email: bbh.rehomers@battersea.org.uk
Please mention that you saw Willow on the Oldies Club website.
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