Sunday 3 November 2013

The Podenco Prince - Rico's Story



Solid, warm, reassuring but somehow vulnerable and relying on me to keep him safe. I feel him breathe against my side, his body full length against mine. After a full ten minutes I feel him relax and he falls asleep. The first time he has done this in five whole days. This is trust in its truest form and it brings a tear to my eye. 

On my other side, a tiny little imp. He has been with us for just a week. His slender body sprawled at an angle, his Bambi like legs in all directions, his head in my lap. He too is asleep. I rest my hand on his side and feel him breathe. For the moment he's out for the count and I'm grateful to begin the day so peacefully. Yesterday morning, 6am was play time. 

Somewhere down by my feet, the matriarch lies sleeping, her presence this morning is enough to relax both my boys. She's the princess, my princess, and she knows it. We've been together a long time.

Three very different dogs. Three very different stories. And me. We are becoming a team, a quartet, a family. 

Rico is my podenco prince. Handsome in an understated way. Indeed nobody could really berate a casual observer, if he should say that everything about Rico is understated. It's true he doesn't often push himself forward, he avoids confrontation wherever possible and he rarely gets excited, but there is so much more to Rico than that. His ability to love is absolute. His trust is unfaltering. His gratitude for this life he now lives is almost palpable. These things are not understated. At all. For the first five years of his life, he never knew a bed, a sofa, a place to call home. It's also apparent that for most of that time he never knew a kind word, love, respect, trust or fun. He doesn't play in the broadest sense of the word. He doesn't play tug of war with a rope toy, play 'bitey face' or run after a ball. He never really learned how, I guess. But Rico has a childlike quality that can make me laugh out loud. He has this charming little scamper which is combined with a little shake of his bottom. He doesn't run, he skips, and even from behind you can sense his happiness. It's a kind of happiness you'd have to call delight and I'd swear to God that anyone approaching from the front, would say he had a smile on his face. When he wakes up next to me in the mornings, he opens one eye to see if I'm awake and immediately rolls onto his back, legs straight in the air and demands a belly rub. He wriggles around, wagging his tail and playfully nibbles my fingers. This is what Rico would call fun.  Call it understated if you like, but you'd be wrong - we all see the world through different eyes and I know that my podenco prince is having fun when I see these things. I know he is happy. 

We none of us know what kind of a life he had before he was rescued. He bears a few scars on his face and some subhuman, probably his hunter owner, filed the points off his canine teeth but we can only guess, from what we know about how podencos are treated, what his life was really like. Chained up in a small inadequate place with no bed, or even a blanket, fed the bare minimum and given just enough water to survive. On hunting days he'd be let out and expected to hunt. Woe betide him if he disgraced his master. By some miracle he survived, and ended up first in a shelter and ultimately in the care of Beverley and Warren, Podenco Friends. That's where our paths not only crossed, but merged. Six months we've been together now. My life without him in it, is unimaginable. He's the kind of dog you wish more humans were like. There is no pretence in this boy, he wears his heart very much on his sleeve and his loyalty is unwavering. As is his trust. He probably has no reason to trust humans but approaches everyone he meets with an open hearted friendliness that makes him impossible to resist. Rico might not be the first dog you'd notice in a group but once he's won you over, and he will, you see the real Rico and there is no going back after that. He owns you and you find your loyalty mirroring his. For him, I am the sun, the moon and the stars, and he's a part of me, a part I will never let go. Come. What. May.

But Rico is changing. Seven short days ago, Leo, a little imp of a man joined our 'pack'. There is nobody in this world who would, or could, describe this little five and a half month old mini podenco, as understated. He burst upon the scene, shattering Rico's tranquillity with his effervescence, his joie de vivre and his mischievous sense of fun which only seemed to be stilled when he was asleep. The first 72 hours were uncomfortable for poor Rico, to say the very least. He kept his distance from me, from the sofa, from the bed. He didn't want to be anywhere near where the 'pocket rocket' was. When Leo went within a metre of him, he growled. Unfortunately, Leo's internal early warning system was constantly overridden by his desire to play and I had to push him away from Rico on several occasions, for his own safety. However, there is a beauty in knowing your own dog and I strongly suspected that this state of affairs was temporary. I only had to be calm and carry on as normal, and Rico would come round. The first breakthrough came out of the blue, whilst I was hoovering. The little guy was afraid and his instinct led him to seek protection from his own kind. He hopped up onto the rear of the dog bed where Rico and my princess were laying together. I carried on and observed out of the corner of my eye. Rico looked around at Leo and relaxed again. The little one had been given his first sign - it's ok kid, you can stay. This was of course a big step and I was quietly delighted. Three hours later, the step became a leap, as Rico allowed Leo to rest his head upon him, whilst he slept. A beautiful sight indeed and one which brought a lump to my throat and a tear to my eye. I was so proud of my podenco prince. We were winning. 

Two more days passed and I walked my boys together. It's wonderful to see two podenco noses disappear into the bushes and two podenco bottoms, side by side in the air, tails wagging furiously. My grin on these walks, was permanent. Almost all of us can relate to this feeling and I know many of you are nodding as you read. Passers by fell into two categories; those for whom no amount of explanation would elicit an understanding of this wondrous thing I was witnessing, and those who nodded a greeting of silent appreciation, dog lovers, no doubt about it.

Two separate occurrences this weekend have surpassed my even wildest expectations, swelling my heart with pride and love for my podenco prince. Yesterday afternoon, I had a visit from a friend and her small dog. Leo wanted to play and for a while the two of them ran around quite happily. Suddenly the mood changed and the other dog charged at Leo with a very different tone in his yappy little bark. I heard it but was too far away to grab either dog or get in between. It didn't matter. Someone else had heard it too. From nowhere, there he was, blocking the dog's path to little Leo. Ears up, body square, calm but very much in charge. Rico. To see one podenco protecting another smaller one in this way is a sight to behold. For a moment my friend and I were simply mesmerised by the sight before us. Neither of us spoke. I was so proud of how Rico reacted. He could have simply ignored it, but he didn't. He could have been aggressive but he wasn't. He was like a big brother in the school yard. The little one might well be a nuisance but he was damned if he was going to let him be picked on. The other dog slunk back to my friend and remained by her side. Job done. 

Today, something even more astounding. I was laying on my day bed, working. Rico was in his usual position by my side. He was awake but relaxed and laying on his back with his legs in the air. Leo was asleep by my feet. He stirred, stretched, stood up and walked the few steps to where Rico lay. He sniffed him all over and then licked his foot. 

Rico didn't move a muscle, completely content to lay in this exposed position and allow the little one to sniff him. I reached for my phone, not wanting to move too quickly and spoil this moment but not wanting to miss it. I managed to snap a couple of shots before Leo settled down to sleep again. Rico looked up at me and for a long moment our eyes locked. There's a new confidence in them and a calm contentedness I haven't seen there before. 

This is a dog with hidden depths, with so much more to give than first meets the eye. This is my podenco prince. 


This is Mister Rico and this is his story. So far. 

3 comments:

  1. Just fab Alex, words can't describe the wonder of watching these amazing hounds unpack their baggage and begin to relax!

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  2. Love the new blog. My husband and I read the second part today and adore it. We, with no hesitation took a eight/nine months old abandoned podenca off the streets three weeks ago and took her home. Jack was initially like Rico, not too thrilled at this and set in his ways. But little by little the bond between them has stengthen, she adores him, sees him as a big brother that needs protection and has his special needs. She is also teaching him how to play! He sees her now as a companion and a playmate, at first we were worried that he would not accept her but he did.
    We took a chance taking a stray dog straight off the streets but this one like any podenco dogs, is intelligent, manipulative and a tactile dog (unlike Jack). We love them both and would not swap them for anything else. Thank you for your account of Leo's integration into your pack. Sounds familiar.
    Dorothy

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  3. thank you, thank you for picturing so beautifully the Podenco magic...

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All comments are very welcome. Thank you so much for reading. Alex :)