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The story of Murphy.............

I was sitting on the beach at Geelong on a nice May afternoon when the mobile went off. My very excited husband had tracked down another "Pointer" that was being held at a pound in Melbourne and desperately needed a home.We had had 2 since being in Australia and had lost them both to cancer with the last being a week after xmas last. A home is not a home without a dog we all agreed but I hadn't quite gotten over the last one yet. However he was sure that we could take him for the night and see what we thought !!

So we went and inspected the 9 month old German Short Haired Pointer. He was a big boy like a small horse really, but very skinny. He was only about 25kgs. The next Monday we took him to our vet who said he wanted him to put on weight to be about 35-38kgs. But apart from that he was a very handsome dog and he could not think why anyone would want to do away with him. He had clearly belonged to a family with young children and had been neglected. We suspect he grew too fast and too big for them. He had obviously been given balls to chew, somewhat like a dummy, as he chews anything rubber to very tiny pieces. Now when we go for walks he is very helpful in finding pine cones for me.

It wasn't until he was outside our double glass doors one day and he was looking in at us that we realised that he was cross eyed! We were in front of him and he was looking to the side. Which explains when he goes for a walk on lead he walks around behind you. But of course he is well loved and has made himself and us many friends. We always meet at the park a family who had a new Pointer. They had never had a dog before and these two got on famously. So the two dads (to this day) meet at the park at 6am for their early morning walk. On the weekends the dads meet at the beach at the end of the day for walks and swims.Murphy had never been near the sea so it was all new to him. But he soon cottoned on and has now learnt to swim and now doesn't even hold on.("Look Dad,no hands"!)They love to swim out amongst the boats and he is no longer fearful of being swamped by the waves.

Whenever our friends are away or can't take their dog for walks, we take him and he has even had a few sleepovers. He usually ends up having about 3 good runs a day. Now he has reached a very healthy 38kgs thanks to Mama Rosies kitchen. He loves his Ox and sheeps heart with rice,eggs or a little pasta never gets refused. The vet is very pleased with him. We have to refrain ourselves from taking in another pointer as we know so many of them get put down. Its just unbelievable because they are such friendly, family dogs. Murphy never barks unless there is a footy ball being kicked around and then he jumps into action.He is no guard dog although the sight of him would hopefully put anyone off. He can run like the wind when chasing after a bird in the sky.

He has other friends; Missy Carla a Labrodor, Atticus a Munsterlander and Rowley a Jack Russell. We have made friends with all these owners just by owning Murphy. How lucky are we!

So as you can see we love our new family addition.He has certainly found his way into our hearts and others too. We think he is comfortable. He has found the couch and a great hot spot to lay in the garden. He gives the cat space and she thinks she is still in charge!!

His friends all thought him very Metrosexual and he was a great source of mirth when he had to have a bandaged paw one day after a vet had cut his
claws too short and made them bleed. They wrapped his paw in a pink bandage with red hearts on! He was a bit poncey at the beach that day!!

We would encourage anyone thinking of giving a home to an abandoned dog. They will give you so much affection, rewarding you many times over for taking them in. You will never be lonely with a dog in the house.

And to think that Murphy was literally only minutes away from being put down. This is the plight of over population of animals in this country. Dogs and cats get dumped by the thousands every single day nationwide. You can do something about this by never purchasing a pet from a pet store and always doing your research before buying a pet either from a shelter or a reputable registered breeder.