Dear GSPCA, I always meant to write, to give you an update on Zippy, but somehow never did until now...

We got Zip from yourselves at GSPCA Heathlawn in June 2008. He's a good looking little chap, about 3 years old, a brown and white smooth haired Jack Russell with legs somewhat longer than normal. He's lucky enough to live in a kind of doggy paradise: our house sits about 150 meters back from a quiet little back road, right in the centre of a 10 acre field of trees. So the long legs come in real handy for mad dashes through the undergrowth: exploring new smells, chasing strange noises, and indulging his specialty... running around underneath trees inanely barking at magpies.

He can come and go when he likes by using the cat flap in the back door. Oops... hope he didn't hear... maybe that should be "dog flap" ? This saves us a lot of time in having to continually go to open the door whenever he feels like going out or coming back in again. So, apart from (unsuccessfully) harassing the local wildlife, his favourite pastimes are chasing us and being chased, digging for rats, mock rough and tumble with plenty of gentle play-biting, and long walks off the lead in new smelly places. Another Zippy specialty, beloved of myself and daughter Niamh (but, ah, not by my partner !) is to sneak into a bedroom, surprise us with a leap onto the nice warm bed, then quickly burrow right down under the duvet like a slippery little eel before anyone realises what's happened !

Looking back, I'd say that it must have taken nearly a year before Zip had fully bonded with us and was completely adapted and integrated into his new routine and local environment. He has turned out to be quite a smart dog, he does what he is told and obeys commands... most of the time. Although, like most terriers, he suffers from "selective hearing" when it suits him. Using the "ultimate training treat" helps: little bits of cold cooked sausage. Irresistible ! Of course we absolutely adore him, and spoil him rotten. He manages to cadge a bit of sausage from the fridge from each member of the family in turn in the morning. And he can always find a lap, or a warm chair to lie on instead of his rightful place: the dog bed in the corner of the kitchen. He recently developed the trick of jumping up onto our chairs at mealtimes, poking the Zippy-eel-like snout under an unsuspecting elbow, and peering out cutely and imploringly with limpid brown eyes at all that lovely smelling edible stuff on the table... Ah, how we love him... definitely the fourth member of the family!

Justin Evens , Ardrahan