A long-legged Lurcher who lacked in confidence due to an unsettled early life has found lasting love for Christmas with owners who “can’t imagine life without her.
Tillie and her siblings were born at Dogs Trust Darlington in August 2020, with all puppies soon finding homes. However, Tillie was sadly returned to the charity’s care twice after previous owners could no longer care for her.
In January this year, three-year-old Tillie found herself back in the charity’s care with the upheavals in her young life leading to her being a nervous and worried girl. She especially struggled with being left alone. The dedicated training team at Dogs Trust Darlington spent lots of time with Tillie, slowly helping build her confidence. They found that she was such a loving girl whose only wish was to be by the side of her human friends, so the search began for patient and kind adopters who would give Tillie the time, love and attention she craved.
During the summer Tillie’s luck changed for the better when she was spotted on the Dogs Trust website by Eve Canning and her partner Niamh Flynn. They “fell in love” with how adorable and friendly she looked and once they heard more about Tillie’s past, they thought she was the girl for them.
Speaking about their much-loved dog, Eve and Niamh from Gateshead said: “We know we have made one of the best decisions ever adopting Tillie. Tillie has such a lovely personality, she is affectionate, playful and very goofy. While she is still anxious outside of the home and in new situations, she is a completely different dog in the home. We are so happy to see how well she has settled in and how much confidence she has gained since being with us.
Eve said: “I have cystic fibrosis, so exercise is really important for me, and I used to struggle to find the motivation to go out, but having Tillie has given me a reason to go out on walks. So, although Niamh and I know we are helping her, she is also helping us massively.
Eve and Niamh added: “We are excited to give Tillie a special first Christmas with us. We have already bought her lots of presents; in fact, she has more presents that anyone else. Decorating the tree was lovely as Tillie inspected all the boxes to see if there was anything in them, she could eat. Tillie is also an Instagram star as family and friends kept asking for photos and so we set up the account to share funny pictures of her. Her personality comes out more and more every day, we call her the Queen of the side eye which is one of her favourite looks. Tillie is such a huge part of our lives now. We can’t imagine life without her now.”
Alex Hennessey, Manager at Dogs Trust Darlington said: “When Tillie came back into our care, she was a worried girl, so staff spent a lot of time with her to slowly help build her confidence and we witnessed her change in front of our eyes. It is what our job is all about, helping every dog in our care find the right home for them and we can’t imagine a better match for Tillie. We are thrilled she has well and truly landed on her paws, is content and loved in her happy place this Christmas. All of our dogs deserve a happy place – for Christmas, and for life.”
There’s no place happier than a warm, comfortable home, surrounded by your loved ones.
Sadly, not every dog will be in such a happy place this Christmas. But Dogs Trust is here to help dogs who already have a loving family stay with them, and to help dogs looking for a forever home to find one.
To see all the dogs currently waiting to be adopted at Dogs Trust Darlington visit www.dogstrust.org.uk/darlington
To buy a Christmas gift for a rescue dog at the centre you can view the Amazon wish list:
