Have you ever wondered?...

... what your rescue dog's life was like before they were lucky enough to find you?

I often think about this with Joey. We don't have any history of where he came from except that he was a stray shipped over from Ireland. He is such a loving gorgeous dog (I know I'm biased ) that I really can't understand why he was in rescue. He already knew basic commands when he came to us and the only real issues we had with him were slight food aggression and Joey getting upset when people shout. I know we have been lucky and that many rescue dogs have problems which need a lot of work but I still struggle to understand why.

My theory is that maybe someone came across Joey thinking that he was a pure rottie but realised as he got older that he wasn't and so "got rid" of him.

Whatever happend to him I am so grateful that OH came across him when he did and brought him home to us. He is a fantastic dog and we love him to bits!

Anyone else want to share their story?

I wonder about that with Jobie, but I've got a limited record from his racing history. I know he was born and raced in Ireland until he was two, came second in his first race Then moved to South East England. We think his racing name got changed then too, from 'Marquis Emmay' to 'Black Jubilee'. His Sire (Spiral Nikita) also sired the highest ever money winning dog, and so presumably because of that he has 6776 half brothers and sisters!! At least one of his littermates made it into rescue and got rehomed and it's likely that another did too as they were owned by the same person, but the other three are unnaccounted for. His last race was May 2005 and he found his way to the RGT kennels we got him from in october 06. He stayed there until March, with nobody but us showing any interest in him! their loss At some point he's evidently been treated quite roughly, he used to run away if you moved suddenly but he's improved a lot

Wow that's a lot of information about Jobie!!! Bless him! Glad he found you and now has a forever home.

I feel for people who have no history at all.
I was lucky with Reah as with the RSPCA involved with her previous owner who only had her for a few weeks, and finding that she was bought from a rescue, we were able to trace her back to them, and a little further when we learnt that the RSPCA had been involved with her in Lincoln too as they raided the puppy farm and she was one of the adult bitches...we knew she has had pups.

But what befell her before that was only hearsay from the recsue who thought that they recognised her from another kennels before the puppy farm (a kennelmaid said she worked at the kennels before the rescue) I think she could be right as Reah has distinctive marking.

Luckily for Reah she has had almost 11 years with me so all thats well and truely behind her

Gosh sounds like Reah had a rough time before she found you Steph. I'm glad it's all behind her now and she's had lots of long happy years with you!

I don't think you can help wondering, though sometimes I think I'm glad I don't know exactly because it would make me even more angry/sad about it.

our first rescue's story was a bit like your Joey's. He was found wondering the streets as a stray. He was such a sweet dog that I honestly couldn't believe any would dump him.

Hoki we knew a little about. Her and a chocolate lab had been taken off their owners - both were extremely overweight (the dogs, I don't know about the owners!). Hoki hadn't been taught any manners and seemed to have had no discipline. of course, purely guesswork on my part, but I wonder whether part of the reason she was so fat was that the only way they could make her do anything was to bride her with food.

She was a stroppy madam when she came, but soon learned the rules and in fact proved herself to be very eager to please.

But Stumpy's is probably the past I wonder most about but would probably least like to know the truth. She had clearly never been in a house, was terrified of men and scared of just about everything else. She didn't know how to play with toys or even how to run.

of course I also wonder about her tail - was she born with it like that, was she deliberately docked as a pup for some reason or was it an accident or some action of cruelty.

Shady I know as I rescued her at 5 weeks old, the rest of the litter mates had already been homed . She was born on a scrap yard had her tail cut off with a pair of scissors and was being swung round by her legs by little kids and tomented terribly, we just had to get her out of there.
Kyiro I do know his racing history, he was born and started off in Ireland before coming to England to race.
I think he has had a bad time with children too as he only has to hear a child and he will panic. I'm hoping he will improve eventually.
He was quite nervous of people visiting the house too although now he will step forward for a quick sniff and let them stroke him happily. He doesn't like raised voices either as if my daughter and her boyfriend start larking about he will run into the dining room and lay in there. I do wish I knew more about his day to day life though and if there was something with children as he does have this irrational fear with them.

I'm fortunate with Missy to know that she lived with an infirm old lady from puppyhood until 6ish -she was put in to Battersea when the old dear died.
It makes perfect sense as to why she didn't like being handled and wasn't socialised with people or dogs and had no idea how to play.
The only things left to my imagination were why she was scared of scissors, sellotape, chunky watches and brushes. I don't dwell on the why, but have done my utmost to make them not scary
She's a good all round doggy now and I still love her to pieces

We don't know much about Robbie after he finished racing. His records are on the greyhound data site and there are videos of two of his races in the Puppy Derby. Don't know what happened to him afterwards but he can be very nervous around certain people, cowers if we shout to each other in the house and he has what looks like three little marks on his legs that look like cigarette burns. Since they both came to us last May, he is the one that has come out of himself more, he would never play with a furry toy but now he pounces on them and worries them. He even has his favourite bear that he carries round by the scuff of it's neck. He has become more and more affectionate as time as gone on and will now try and kiss us and nibble our chins when we are down at his level. He has always responded to me better instead of my OH and wonder if he had kennel maids looking after him in the racing kennels. In a way we don't want to know what he is been through incase it is too upsetting, but things can only get better for him now.

Lady was handed in at the rescue kennels by her trainer. There are now records of her races on the greyhound data site and the lady at the kennels thinks she was used on the flapping tracks instead of leigitimate races. Lady has a thing for my OH and adores him, climbs on him when he sat on the sofa but never does it to me so it looks like she has always been looked after by men. She was very hyper when they came but has calmed down a lot but can stil have her mad moments. She does have a few scars on her legs and belly but they look like normal racing scars, nothing like Robbie's.

when i got my first dog max, who is a complete heinz 57 dog i took him off the owners quick because they said if i didnt he was getting put down i was 12 at the time and didnt even think of what my mum was going to say. the couple had only had him a week told me he was two and got rid of him because he kept biting the puppy they had he wasnt two, more about 6, and he lives with my mum still and is going strong at 12, even though hes gone blind in one eye and deaf too.. but hes lovely