‘OLD DOG OF THE WEEK’ FEATURES NEW PHOTOS AND A FRESH WRITE-UP FOR AN OVERLOOKED OLDIE THAT HAS BEEN ON OUR WEBSITE FOR A WHILE BUT IS STILL WAITING FOR A NEW HOME.
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Gorgeous girl Ruby is a 16-year-old Cocker Spaniel who came into the Oldies Club rescue as her owner could no longer look after her. She’s in a foster home in Cambridge, waiting to be offered a peaceful retirement home with one or two people to follow around.
Settled in gradually: Ruby took a little under two weeks to get used to her new surroundings and resident dog at her foster home. She did claim the other dog’s bed after only 3 days though! To start with, she was very shy but by about day 10 she was approaching her new people for fuss. She is deaf so it takes her a bit longer to assess situations.
Can be left when necessary: Ruby prefers to have human company a lot of the time. Her foster carers have left her for 2-3 hours, albeit with their Labrador, and she paced about and looked for them for a while. The pacing has reduced but she definitely wouldn’t want long absences to be a regular occurrence.
Could live with other dogs: Ruby has become best friends with the resident Lab in her foster home and seems to get on with most dogs. However, as well as being deaf, she has tunnel vision and needs to see other dogs coming or she can get alarmed. If they pop up behind her, they could get snapped at but if they approach from in front, she will observe the usual canine niceties. She should be OK to live with another compatible dog or as an only dog.
Could live with cats: Ruby has visited the home of a cat and they got along just fine. With careful introductions, she could live happily with a confident cat. She’s a very sweet natured lady.
Older children probably OK: Ruby doesn’t have experience of living with children and has only met babies since being in foster. It’s possible she could live with older, dog-savvy children from age 10. They would have to be considerate about her age, deafness and must not pick her up. She doesn’t hold with being lifted willy-nilly, as she likes to decide for herself where to be, thank-you-very-much!
Loves walks: Ruby is a joy to take out for walks as she’s excellent on the lead and such a cheerful companion. She will quite happily walk for over an hour, being a lot more lively than you might expect from a dog her age. Obviously, she cannot hear when she’s called. Her foster carers take her to an area where it’s safe for her to be off-lead but they don’t allow her to go too far away. With the help of treats (she is very food-oriented!) they have taught her a sign for “come here” which she does respond to, when she sees it. They’ve also taught her “sit” and a slightly hit-and-miss “lie down”. What a clever girl Ruby is!
With the previously mentioned caution about making sure she can see other dogs, she’s a sociable girl. She loves ball games too. She will gladly retrieve her yellow ball, as long as you throw it nearby so she can see. Her foster carer says that otherwise, you’re likely to be brought a yellow daffodil or similar instead of the ball!
Wonderful in the car: Ruby has a car ride every day currently and has been on journeys of over an hour. She settles down perfectly and enjoys the ride.
Favourite pastimes: Sleeping, eating and sun bathing in the garden.
Dislikes: Being picked up and surprise dogs around her rear end.
Ideal home: Ruby would do best with one or two grownups she can bonds strongly with and be their little shadow. She needs a garden and regular walks of a good length to get her full, Spanielly bouncing and snuffling quota. She would suit a settled household, with a routine and not too many comings and goings. She’s polite, clean and easy to live with. She doesn’t even try to get on human beds or the sofa, preferring her own bed or her doggy best friend’s.
Health information: Ruby is neutered, vaccinated, wormed and flea treated. Whilst in foster care she’s had 3 teeth out. She will soon be starting some arthritis medication to make sure she stays as active as she wants to be. Due to her age Ruby does need to go outside for a comfort break regularly, but she has learnt to let you know, with a little bark, that it is time to go.
Ruby’s foster carer: “I would describe Ruby as strong minded, independent, happy and contented. Ruby has been a very interesting foster dog to have as when she came, she was very underweight at 9.20kg and the vet felt she may not make it… but within 4 weeks she put on 2 kilos coming in at 11.30kg and although is still always ready for dinner, whatever the time of day, it is always with good manners. Ruby is very clumsy but just rolls with the tumbles and would put a much younger dog to shame with her agility!
“Ruby is a really lovely girl who needs a really special person who can give her the time and attention that she’s entitled to. Through no fault of own she has not had that for a while, consequently, her perfect person needs to give her time to accept them and allow her trust to develope. She has so much love to give! We have had a lot of older dogs in our family and Ruby is fitter than the majority of them with her playing and running. Remember, age is just a number.”
If you would like to offer Ruby a loving forever home, please read our Adoption Procedures for information about the adoption process. You can then contact an Oldies Club Rehoming Coordinator as follows:
Email: rehome@oldies.org.uk for an application form.
Or phone 0844 586 8656, leaving a message including your email address, and we’ll email an application form.
Ruby can be rehomed anywhere on the UK mainland – the closer to her foster home the better – subject to a satisfactory home visit. Note that you will be required to travel to the foster home to collect her.
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.
This replaces Ruby’s original page dated 18 April 2025.