Happy Tails
Elvis
Elvis's story
February 2018 a scared, skinny hound was found in a Cyprus kill shelter by SPDC. He was taken into their care & named Elvis. Although safe, Elvis didn’t do well in a cage he was extremely stressed & spent his time running on two legs along the bars.
I was a U.K. volunteer for SPDC & went to Cyprus to help in April 2018. I fell in love with him but he was literally fading away. He had given up on life & it broke my heart, so in June 2018 after all his paperwork was in order Elvis travelled to the U.K. to start his new life with our family. He was petrified and throughout the whole journey, he couldn’t walk and had to be carried. Even when he arrived at my home I had to carry him inside and slept with him on the floor till his trembling subsided.
The next day he met our menagerie and gradually realized he was safe. He was extremely underweight at 19kg. Over the coming months with love & patience, Elvis blossomed into a stunning 27kg dog.
It wasn’t always an easy journey because Elvis needed much reassurance he wasn’t going to be abandoned again but it became clear to us how much Elvis loved people and how much people loved him. He always brought smiles wherever he went and being an unusual breed, a Bluetick Coonhound, people would stop & ask about him. In November 2019 Elvis passed his assessment with Therapy Dogs Nationwide to became a therapy dog. He visits care homes and brings much happiness to many people.
In January 2020 he joined the Canine Crew therapy dogs who volunteer at Southampton Airport helping to calm stressed travellers.
Elvis is proof that a rescue dog thrown away like rubbish in Cyprus can go on to live a wonderful, worthwhile life. Anyone wondering if adopting a rescue dog was the right thing to do, our family can tell you without hesitation that it definitely is.
Elvis has his own Instagram if you would like to follow his adventures: @houndog_elvis
Thank you for reading!