When I picked up William and Mary from the kennels I had to wait for a while in the farm courtyard for the kennel owner to be free.
William was trotting around like a puppy with a squeaky toy in his mouth and shadowing him was his " exercise mate" , a very elderly black Labrador . I was told the two dogs had " made friends" during William's stay.
The Labrador ambled over to lay his muzzle into the palm of my hand, and I could see that like William, he was a gentle old soul.
" He's been with us over a year" the kennel owner explained as she tried to catch Mary " His name is Frank"
I asked about Frank's story as he turned to William to lick his blind eye gently and it was a sad one.
Frank, was the apple of his owner's eye. She doted on him ever since he was a puppy and the two were apparently inseparable.
When the owner became seriously ill, her husband , through necessity , had Frank boarded for a while and when his wife died suddenly , he asked if the dog could stay a while longer.
Now grief is a strange affair for many people to deal with and the kennel owner explained that husband could not emotionally cope with the dog at home , a dog that was adored so deeply by his wife.
And so he was sent away like a child at boarding school.
" The owner is totally stuck" the kennel owner said sadly as Frank and William tottered around together " He's too riddled with guilt to rehome Frank and too brittle to have him home.....and so he stays here with us"
Frank smiled like only labradors can do
And I felt awful taking William home
What a sad story for Frank and for his owner. Frank needs a loving foster home
ReplyDeleteIt has been suggested I was told. The owner wouldn't entertain it
DeleteOh, my heart will be one of very many who go out to poor, dear Frank. Only wish I could do something and lived closer. Please ask about him when you next visit the kennels. Perhaps he'll have got the home he deserves, one where he can still make visits to his late owner's husband, if he wants. I do so very much hope things work out for him.
ReplyDeleteAs Kylie suggests, Frank needs a loving foster home and I believe the ideal place would be the corner cottage opposite Trelawnyd Church!
ReplyDeleteBy the way Mr Gray, have you seen this?
Deletehttp://ladymondegreenssecretgarden.blogspot.co.uk/2014/08/the-trelawnyd-flower-show-and-more.html
Yes thanks YP I commented on her entry when it was written...I still have that tank top
DeleteIt's very...errr...stylish!
DeleteYes! I was hoping this story would end with John saying Frank was coming home with him.
DeleteI wouldn't dare ! I've done it three times already with Constance, Mabel andwinnie.....I d be divorced if I did
DeleteYet Prof gifted you with Mary, a commitment of many future years. Maybe he has a secret corner of his heart that loves your dogs?
DeletePerhaps Frank will make friends with other canine holiday makers staying at his kennels. If it's a nice kennels which it seems to be he'll be ok and have other dogs for company. Better than him moving house for a third time at his age I would have thought.
ReplyDeleteYes, perhaps he actually enjoys the kennel lifestyle :)
DeleteAww poor baby 😣 I bet he's wondering what's going on 😣
ReplyDeleteThe poor baby...my main concern is my animals when I go. that they will be loved.
ReplyDeleteI have put all 3 of mine in my last will!
DeleteI say take him in.....its faith!
ReplyDeleteI second this!
DeleteThis makes me so sad. X
ReplyDeleteI think that Frank would help him through his terrible grief. How sad that he doesn't realise this.
ReplyDeleteOh poor Frank. I'll be thinking about him lots!! He needs to be in a proper home - if not back with his owner, he'd adjust to a new home even at his elderly age. I would foster him in a heartbeat - he would have a 5* home here!! East Midlands Labrador Rescue is near to me - sadly many labs pass through their doors from a variety of circumstances - but all go on to loving homes (which are vetted). How sad for the whole family though!!
ReplyDeleteThe kennel owner is a bit of a saint for keeping Frank. It is really sad he can't go home or even find a foster home. Frank's story is the definition of limbo.
ReplyDeleteAgree! Not all kennel owners would do this...
DeletePoor sweet baby. Grieving or not, that owner needs a kick in the rear for leaving him to languish at the kennel for a year. That's just not right.
ReplyDeleteI agree. The owner may still be grieving and feel he can't cope but he's denying Frank a loving home for his old age. I'm sure his wife would never have wanted that to happen. Kennel life just doesn't compare to a loving home, however kindly the kennel owners are. Sadly the man is being selfish in his grief.
DeleteBlack Lab's are simply the best. I would have several if possible.
ReplyDeleteGreat dogs. My grandad's dog, a black lab, used to walk a mile and then back for the daily paper, proudly back to grandad's house, paper folded in his mouth by the newsagent, completely undamaged.
DeleteOh how terribly sad ... instead of letting Frank have a loving home, he has to wait everyday for his person to come pick him up and take him home ? that is something to feel guilty about !
ReplyDeleteThe owner is being selfish ..
Heartbreaking, but so glad he's got good people to care for him. Maybe you'll convince the widower to let YOU take him home...
ReplyDeleteThis is how my grandparents ended up with an elderly basset; she was boarded at the vets and never collected. The owners just didn't want her. My aunt was working at the vets at the time and made the match. That dog was doted on by my grandparents for years.
ReplyDeleteHopefully, looking for a bright side, maybe Frank has enough working dog in him that he gets satisfaction from the routine and being exercise buddies for the other dogs.
I love your comment and I agree if the owner will not let him be fostered, at least he is somewhere being loved with many new gud dugs to play with.
Deletecheers, parsnip
I suspect the kennel owner has more or less adopted him, and I don't begrudge her getting paid for it
DeletePoor old Frank. But at least he's being well taken care of, that's something.
ReplyDeleteJohn, maybe you and some locals could sponsor old Frank with a standing order. Like people often do with zoo animals or endangered species.
ReplyDeleteHis owner is paying for him every week
DeleteIs there room for Frank at your cottage. I know you probably don't need another dog to take care of but I think it would be good for William and Frank. Old souls together. Your heart is big enough to squeeze one more in to love. Although I'm not sure the cottage is. Maybe you could find a family close by for Frank. That way William could visit.
ReplyDeleteSadly no. The Prof has put his foot down after I accepted Winnie ( our third elderly bulldog) to be fair he had no part on us having Winnie, Constance and Mabel .
DeleteHe'd divorce me if another dog " just turned up"
Labs are such a special breed, aren't they. The canine angels.
ReplyDeletePoor Frank! What a sad situation. Hopefully he's happy there at the kennel. He's fortunate that he had someplace to go -- a lot of pets in similar circumstances wind up utterly homeless!
ReplyDeleteHas the kennel owner taken Frank on or is he still a paying guest ?
ReplyDeleteFranks. Owner was paying
DeletePerhaps you can become acquainted with Frank's grieving owner, let him get to know you, William and that Frank has formed a bond, so the owner can see it's in the best interest for all concerned.
ReplyDeleteThe good thing is that Franks owner knew they could care for him so at least they made sure Frank was somewhere safe and where he would be cared for, that says a lot about someone doesn't it, to admit you cannot give the care needed or it is too painful for you to, but to still care enough to make sure that care is given. I hope that in time Frank can go home, but it is good that he is being looked after in the meantime.
ReplyDeleteI'm sure the owner's grief is all consuming but he is being selfish leaving Frank in limbo. That poor dog is grieving too.
ReplyDeleteOh you should have taken Frank with you too.
ReplyDeleteSadly that would not be an option although I would have done so if we had more room and if it it was only up to me. The kennel owner is a lovely lady and frank spends very long periods in her farmhouse
DeleteDepressing.
ReplyDeleteOh, poor Frank...what a gentle face he has. I so hope that he gets to go home, or to a loving home. At least he's in a safe place.
ReplyDeleteGuilty smile...that's a stock photo
DeleteI would think a year is long enough without a proper home. Maybe the owner has severe depression etc. He may need some guidance in the right direction to do what's right for the doggy.
ReplyDeleteI agree, the owner needs some help. A gentle re introduction to the dog, suggesting a walk each week, warm conversations about what the wife would have liked... Sadly there may be deeper issues, there often are.
DeleteThe husband isa workaholic too which I suspect is another reason frank is where he is. If I suddenly died the Prof could not look after even one of the dogs!
DeleteFar be it from jumping into the Prof's breach. However, people do surprise you when push comes to crunch. For all you know ... picture an idyll. The Prof, at your grave, cap in hand, tear in eye, with the charges you left behind, Winnie cooing, William and Mary trying to dig you up ...
DeleteI like Frank; Sinatra, who I detest, not withstanding. What stinks, and that's where I agree with some of the other commentators,that the owner won't give consent to having him fostered/adopted. Aren't there any children of the bereived who could assert some reason? As dog stories go, John, you have excelled yourself. It's a weepy. Still, the kennel owner seems kind. And what do you expect when you are a dog? A dog's life. That's what.
U
If I wasn't here the Prof would live in an apartment with minimal furniture and no dogs believe me
DeleteVery sad. If the owner knew how William and Frank hit it off maybe he would agree for you to 'adopt' him?
ReplyDeleteI like mellow old dogs
ReplyDeleteLabs are the best!
ReplyDeleteDebbie
Grief takes so many forms.
ReplyDeletePlease........don't judge.
Love the name. Frank.
ReplyDeleteFrom the other side, would it not be possible perhaps to take William every so often for a play time if the owner of the kennel approved? We did that more than once with similar problems. We had "too many" not to our thinking but you know what I mean, I am sure otherwise we would have had to move if the two of us followed our wanting. So, I made a calendar with dates where I could take one or two of them to the Kennel for play time with the "lonely" there. Sent it to the owner of the kennel and she was 1000% happy with that. The owner was grateful, and the fur ones were happy too for a new playmate. But I confess that a bigger place and maybe 1 more than the 5 at home I would have been happier.
ReplyDeleteI think the old boy seems happy, and spends long periods in the kennel farmhouse
DeleteWhat about 'fostering' do you think he would consider that? Just for the winter? We are not that far away and the owner could come and visit whenever he wanted? We already have a black lab who could keep him company. Is it worth us contacting the kennels do you think? xx
ReplyDeleteI will message the kennel owner with your idea
DeleteBut what would happen at the end of the winter? Frank would then be shunted back to the kennels? The poor chap would have settled in with you and become loyal and loving only to be uprooted yet again, to feel abandoned again.
DeletePlease be assured we would not dream of abandoning him. We just think it might be easier for his owner to foster him in seasons but we would be his foster family for as many winters, springs, summers or autumns that he needed us! If he was to leave, it would be to go home.
ReplyDeleteWhat an absolutely wonderful answer, and solution to Frank's problem.
DeleteOh Lisa what a lovely person you are!
DeleteThese are the stories that make a heart heavy. Yet, by John's account, the kennel owner seems to have taken Frank under her wing, and that is a bit of sun in the whole picture.
ReplyDeleteYes that's what I was trying to share. He looks a happy old boy
DeleteIt seems like a very sad story, but let's think of it another way. Perhaps Frank enjoys seeing new dogs and making new friends all the time. Perhaps he feels useful as a "mentor dog" It sounds as though the Kennel owner is kind to him and the remaining original owner would not really be able to cope with him. It sounds as though Frank would be sad spending all of his time alone pining for his late mistress. I agree that a new foster home would be the best thing, but, given the circumstances, maybe it is not so bad.
ReplyDeleteGood kennel owners can be stars,a friends cat who from kitten hood daily had his eyes nose and bum! gently washed with warm cotton wool went to the kennels at 4 yrs old and without knowing or being told the kennel owner did the same because he obviously loved it :)
ReplyDeleteThis is such a sad thing to have had happen. And as you know I've taken dogs from this very type of scenario. A loss affects us all so differently, and I think the husband may find that Frank is a huge comfort as he goes through the emotions of his grief. Frank is a connection to his wife who they both loved. I'm grateful Frank has "advocates" and I hope they both find their way at this sad time.
ReplyDeleteThanks Kim, my reaction to what I heard is that the kennel owner has more or less unofficially adopted frank but the owner still pays for him which salves his guilt....
DeleteWhat a generous and kind thing to do!
ReplyDeleteI wish I lived closer, the cats would never forgive me but look at that face! He breaks my heart ❤️
If the owner won't entertain a loving foster home for Frank then he wants the poor dog to suffer as much as he is. What a selfish attitude, and he doesn't realise that having Frank by his side will bring him such comfort and companionship. Why doesn't he consider what his wife would think of his attitude.
ReplyDeleteBeing a widow myself I can say that I would never judge a person in such a situation..
DeleteVery sad . .
ReplyDeleteHope you and William can stop by to visit Frank.
My heart aches to think how sad Frank’s master must be.
I was anticipating another lost soul going to join John's Mob, but realistically, Frank must be happier in a farmhouse and with other dogs in the kennels, than being home alone while his owner works long hours to help assuage his grief.
ReplyDeleteThe feel I’ve had since I started visiting your blog I expected to read “...so Frank went home with us.” Nice that he and William enjoyed each other. Perhaps Frank is happier where he is with other dogs than in a more isolated existence with the grieving husband.
ReplyDelete