We are the Chant family and this is our story… On Saturday 2nd May we picked up the gorgeous, gentle and affectionate “Kimba” from De-Arne and have not looked back since! Let me tell you how it all began…
My name’s Gillian and ever since I had a rescued adult male Golden back in 1993 as a child I promised myself when “Ben” passed away that I’d have another when I married and settled. I hadn’t quite expected as a child that I would emigrate, settle and marry an Australian and move out here from England in January 2009! After a long courtship Andrew and I married in April 2009 and also bought and renovated out home in Silkstone, Ipswich simultaneously. Andrew and I had been looking out for a Golden Retriever puppy but when we happened to stumble upon Kimba’s plea for a loving home on the Golden Retriever Club of Qld’s website we called Dee immediately! There was a potential problem however. Due to our wedding and my Mum and brother flying out from England and our subsequent honeymoon we were unable to take on Kimba for at least 5 weeks. I must admit I was slightly pessimistic when I rang De-arne and asked after Kimba. When Dee mentioned that Kimba wouldn’t be ready to re-home for about 6 weeks we knew it was meant to be!
Over the next few weeks it would be fair to say that at certain points we were more excited about Kimba’s arrival than our own wedding! We were so happy to collect Kimba on the 2nd of May and we all haven’t looked back since. Kimba immediately adapted to us and has not once put a paw out of line. She charms everyone she meets with her amazingly friendly demeanour and of course, her good looks! In fact, I think Kimba is right up there on Andrew’s list of favourite ‘leggy blondes’. We feel so privileged to have been given the opportunity to provide Kimba with a loving home. Our dearest thanks must go to the Golden Retriever Club of Queensland and particularly to De-Arne Hargreaves for her rescue work and advice. Andrew and I are so pleased that Kimba has become part of our family and we hope that she feels exactly the same way!
The Thompson family are pleased to welcome Louie to our home. Here is how he came to stay with us....
We were a family of three, my husband Kelley, myself and our 7 year old son Kyle. We had always talked about getting a dog. My husband grew up with a miniature schnauzer who he loved dearly and as Kyle is an only child we wanted him to have a pet as a friend and companion. However being a working family we wanted to make sure the time was right and that the breed of dog we choose was right for us. What we were looking for was a dog with a gentle and affectionate temperament, good with children and who would “protect” (but not destroy) our yard. We thought a mature dog would suit us best.
What happened next was a set of circumstances that just fell into place. Unfortunately we were the subject of a break in at a time when were in our home and required the assailant/s to have entered our back yard. What we knew was this would never have happened if we had a dog! Kyle was now 7 and ready we felt for the responsibility of caring for a pet.
I work with Bev Thwaites and when I mentioned our current predicament to her, she let us know of a mature rescue dog the Golden Retriever Club of Queensland was caring for who needed a good home. After researching and discussing the breed we thought this might be the dog for us! We contacted De-arne Hargreaves who was caring for the dog named Louie, and had a long discussion about Louie and his sad circumstances.
Louie had been released by his previous owner and then deliberately run over in a terrible accident back in late 2008. He dislocated his hip and had injuries to his tongue, lower jaw and facial region. Louie was surrendered to the GRCQ as a rescue dog and after his surgery was cared for by De-arne and her family who nursed him lovingly back to health.
We went to meet Louie and instantly fell in love. From our first introduction he was gentle and affectionate towards us and had recovered well from his injuries. After spending a good hour with him we knew he would fit into our family well and we would be happy to provide him with a safe and caring environment.
We have now had Louie with us for two weeks and he is just perfect – a loving dog with a great personality! We thoroughly enjoy coming home to his very excited greetings and Kyle really enjoys sitting down to his morning Milo with Louie at his feet! It was obviously meant to be!
Our family would like to take this opportunity to thank all those involved with Louie’s rescue and recuperation, particularly De-arne and the GRCQ. A Big thank you to De-arne and Bev for their advice and support as we have welcomed and settled Louie into his new home!
