A 19-year-old terrier – the oldest the RSPCA has ever taken in to rehome – has found his new home in Coventry.
Stormy was rescued by RSPCA inspector Herchy Boal earlier this month after he was spotted collapsed in a snowy garden in temperatures as low as minus three degrees.
The animal welfare charity received an anonymous call on March 2 and inspector Boal was extremely concerned for the terrier – who is 92 in dog years.
His owners signed him over into the RSPCA’s care and Stormy was taken to the charity’s Birmingham Animal Hospital for a check-up before going into kennels at nearby Newbrook Farm Animal Centre.
Elizabeth Sidgwick, from Coundon, had been thinking about getting another dog when her daughter spotted Stormy’s story in the local press.
She said: “I’d been looking for a dog for a while. I didn’t want a puppy, I wanted an older dog and I felt like I’d know when it was the right one for me.
“And he is the spitting image of my previous dog, Barney, who I had for 15 years.”
Stormy went home with Elizabeth on Sunday (March 25) and the charity say he is settling in well.
Elizabeth continued: “He is lovely – especially considering what he’s been through. He just wants to be loved.
“He can be a cheeky boy though. When you’re eating he thinks he should have some so he sits, stares at you and barks.
“He is just great. Everyone loves him.”
Despite a minor heart murmur and cataracts in both eyes – which have left him with poor sight – the resilient terrier is relatively healthy.
Elizabeth added: “He has cataracts so has had a few problems walking into doors and objects but I’m helping him learn his way around the house.
“But that doesn’t seem to stop him sitting on his bed and watching the TV.
“Whether he has just a few months left or a few years, he is going to be happy and that’s the main thing.
Elizabeth said Stormy has changed her life too: “I was widowed three years ago and he has just brought something back to my life. “He is something for me to focus on and someone for me to talk to.
“He follows me around the house and keeps me company. I think we have filled the gap in each other’s lives.”
