The reason for a lack of news in the past few days is that our blind Podenco has crossed the rainbow bridge to join the rest of our enormous pack of deceased hounds and his passing has left a huge hole in our lives because he was a particularly special dog.

Bo as he was known came to us in November 2021, rescued from a starved chained life in Lorca by Ibizan Hound Rescue. Blind Dog Rescue UK took on the task of finding him a forever home, which was us. He was special because he was blind, could only differentiate between shadow and black. He never ceased to amaze us how he confidently found his way around using his ears and nose. Walked outside of our enclosed garden, he was always on a Blind Dog harness. He learned to walk up a ramp into the back of the car because he was too heavy for us to lift. People always wanted to know about him and how he coped – he was a wonderful advertisement for adopting a blind dog.

At the beginning of February 2025 he was diagnosed with inoperable stomach cancer and the vet gave him a couple of months. Although he didn’t show signs of being in pain, I put him on a daily dose of CBD oil. The tumour grew till his body shape changed completely, but he continued to ask for and eat all his meals and skip around the garden when out for a pee.

I changed his bed from a rigid one to two pouffy ones which supported his body whilst enabling him to find a comfortable position to sleep.

4 months on, he began to show signs of slowing down and struggling to walk with the weight of the enormous tumour. Add to this losing his appetite and sleeping most of the time, we took the kindest decision for him. The vet came to our home and he was pts on his bed in his own home.

Because of his blindness, he was extra special of the dozens of dogs we have adopted and cared for all our 70+ lives.

If you consider adopting a dog, please consider a blind or partially sighted one. They will never cease to amaze you how they find their way around and you will have the satisfaction of knowing you have kept a vulnerable dog safe in a troubled and dangerous world.

With housemate Rosie

His scarred face and torn ears bear testament to a hard life.

Winning trophies for Best rescued at a couple of fun dog shows