Podenca Beatrize – from Valencia to Devon, UK – settling in well.

At the beginning of July, I posted the story of Beatriz, a podenca rescued from Spain and now enjoying a new life in Devon. 6 weeks on, her Mom has written an update on her progress.

‘Having rescued beautiful podenca Beatriz from a little private rescue in Ontinyent, Spain, two months ago to a small farm in Devon, UK, she is now almost unrecognisable, temperament wise. She is still a little timid, especially with male strangers, but like all things, this will take time.

As you can see from the photo, she is off the lead now in the garden, and her recall is coming along brilliantly – unless a rabbit who is evidently tired of life, ventures into your garden! There is no question of letting her off the lead on walks, but she is now walking out confidently and really enjoying her two walks a day with the rest of the gang. She has 10 mins ‘school’ every day and then gets to tear round the gardens with the other dogs, which is just great to see. She has become very playful and loves her squeaky toys (particularly green monkey!). She also plays for hours with my little terrier and they sleep with her tucked under Bea’s chin!

She has met the chickens, and apart from a puzzled sniff to my favourite chuck Sweet Pea’s behind, totally ignores them. But beware, thats Bea! Yours may not be so accommodating.

Favourite siesta spot is outside the patio doors in the sun, where she will lie for hours.

She is still on two feeds a day and slowly putting on weight, and has had several short trips in the back of the car, which she loved.

So what do I think of our new arrival, apart from the fact that everyone comments on how stunning she is?!

As a newbie Podenco owner, what comes over very strongly is that this is a serious hunting hound. Her instinct to hunt is very powerful, so I cannot stress enough the need for an enclosed garden and even then, I do not leave her unattended for a minute.

She is also super fast, having seen her after a rabbit in the top garden (it got away :-). But you don’t want this to be a neighbour’s cat etc. She gives my lurcher a serious run for his money and he is no slouch! If you live in a very rural area I would be extremely mindful of sheep, wildlife etc and just take sensible precautions.

Pyschologically she was a mess when she arrived, and we still have a long way to go, so you need to be prepared to put ALOT of time in with your rescue dog, gently training through persuasion and giving them lots of love. This is a sensitive, clever, loving dog who picks things up very quickly, but she is also very stubborn.

Luckily Beatriz is extremely responsive to my voice and she desperately wants to please, so its just a question of taking things nice and slow and showing her the way, without overwhelming her. They are also powerful, sporty dogs, and although love to snooze in the sun, are very active, so you need to be someone who is also very active and love walking, the outdoors etc.

I was very lucky in that she had already been rescued by a Spanish rescue and the owner of the rescue is a friend of mine, and so they knew her character and I trust them implicity. I would NEVER get a dog straight from a Spanish pound. They are not like our Battersea Dogs Home, RSPCA, NCDL type UK rescue centres at all, and are a hot bed of disease etc. They are just killing centres really. I know its heartbreaking, but if you have set your heart on owning one of these dogs, please go through people who know what they are doing both here and in Spain.

It’s also very important that you do your research into this breed and give careful thought as to whether this is the dog for you. Its also incredibly important that you check all veterinary process and make sure all med’ canine diseases are checked out. . This all takes time and money. To research exactly what is required to bring a dog into the UK from Spain please refer to the DEFRA site.

If you get your dog through a specific podenco rescue here in the UK, and there are several, they will help you with all this, or it will all be done for you.This is not a dog for the faint hearted, you have to have really done your homework, and decided this is the dog for you.

I have come to love Beatriz to bits, but she is alot of work -which I happen to think is worth it – but please think carefully before you rehome one of these beautiful dogs. They have been through so much already in their short lives, you need to be certain that your home is their last and forever home and they will be loved and cherished.’

I will re-iterate that if you want to adopt a podenco, apply to a recognised podenco rescue association, you will find a list on Podenco Post. There are currently some podencos which have been taken out of Spanish killing stations and transported to the UK for adoption which have not gone through an association. Problems have arisen because of the lack of experience these people have of the podenco breed which these – probably well intentioned – have caused. Some of these hounds are podenco x, which can behave quite differently from a pure bred podenco. Make sure you adopt through a recognised association.