A Happy Story; Emma Arrives in Holland to a New Family !

We have published this very positive and heart warming letter from Anneloes Verheggen in Holland, as we felt you might enjoy the good feelings and delight that that a dog can bring into the lives of individuals and families. It is the happy end to the touching story of Emma the abandoned dog that was saved by the dedication of a first class team of devoted volunteers at F.A.M.A whose principle is Pat Coleman. We have not edited the grammer of this letter as its authenticity is part of its charm.

Dear Dog lovers,

Emma has been living with us since 28th August. We have picked her up in Belgium. Emma stayed really calm the whole trip from Belgium to Holland. I went to get her with my sister Petra and daughter Nina. Full of expectations we were waiting for her in Belgium with the family there in Lommel. We were all excited and had butterflies in our tummies. There she was…wagging her tail she walked in..very enthusiastic and lively. Ohh she is so beautiful and sweet. After we got acquainted she went back with us to Rosmalen…the entire journey she laid down on the rug we took with especially for her. She was so quite that we wondered if she even got into the car with us! My daughter was proudly sitting beside her on the backseat of our car.All went without any problems.

Back home she went enthusiastically into her new house where some of our family members were waiting for us…many of them let a tear.. Emma was completely relaxed and turned over on her back, what she still often does. Even Floris my sister’s bearded collie that lives next door came to say hi. They can visit each other through our garden gate. That night Emma slept with out waking up and without any signs of stress. She really got used very quick to us and the new situation. Currently she has already been living with us for 4 weeks and we can not think of life without her. Every day she goes for a big run (twice a day) in the forest close to our house together with Floris. In the evening we take her for a walk in the neighborhood. After that it´s nice and homy with the family on the sofa. Emma and Floris form a little pack….in the beginning it was a bit scary to let her of the leash but now we know better. She will return like a good girl evertime. She runs like a greyhound and we found out she is a bit of a hunter. She reminds us of a Whippet.

One day, after approx 2 weeks, she came home with a prey in her mouth. My sister had walked her that day and Emma showed up with this rooster in her mouth. We weren´t very happy with that, but later we understood from other dog lovers that this was her way of saying thank you..as a gift for the pack leaders..Nina and me. Some of our neighbors can sleep in again now as the rooster won´t wake them up anymore…he was a bit notorious in the neighborhood. So some of them were kinda happy this happened…
Emma and Floris make a great pair now, they defend each other, play and run together. Floris  has now become a real macho and is showing himself of. During they day you can find them together in the gardens/houses of me and my sister. Emma just loves being lazy on the sofa…which she has done from day one. She is very independent and loves to be in our company too.
She know the times she goes for a walk…every morning at 6.45 she has her first walk together with Floris, Ank and me. Emma is always ready to go. During the walks with her we can discover some behavior that shows she has been a stray for a while.
The other day she was chasing a man on horseback…until he turned and Emma was gone.
You can tell she is more at ease now in the forest as she is provoking other dogs to come and play.
At first she was a bit careful in this situation.

We are wondering if Emma was roaming a long time before she came at your place. You can tell she has been well educated and does not seem traumatized to us. We are very curious about her past. Do you know anything more about this big darling??
I have received an address for a dog whisperer …soon I will schedule an appointment with her. If I find out anything I will let you know.
At the moment haven´t we got any pictures to show but that will come later. We will show you some foto´s and movies of the forest and the surroundings, Floris and all the other pictures of her meeting other dogs, family members and us her new owners.
WE ARE VERY HAPPY WITH HER AND LOVE HER VERY MUCH!  We still have to work a bit on her behavior towards the cats and her hunting instinct need to be balanced a bit. we have got 2 cats where she is still getting used to. One of the cats sees Emma as her anomie. All of a sudden a big wolf i the house is very exciting for her. She has still not got the courage to show herself to Emma.
We are trying to get them closer but Emma still chased them every now and again. We hope that they will be friend by winter and can all share the same bed.

See you next time at this blog

Kind regards from Nina, Helma en a paw from Emma. Also are regards to the English ladies that helped her during the delivery.

 Anneloes

Anneloes Verheggen  anneloes@premiertravel.net

It is a joy to read.