DAY 3 TOMORROW:
mum on November 19, 2016. For the rst month she did struggle, like djusting to having central heating – he’d never had a regular source of eat. I had to introduce our noises bit y bit, things like my hairdryer, the TV r vacuum cleaner.
Every weekend, we would meet om. Sometimes he would take her for walk, sometimes we’d go together. One day, after about two months, he refused to go for a walk with Tom. was as simple and as awful as that. t’s time for me to say goodbye, isn’t ?” said Tom, tears running down his ace. “I can’t give her the life you can. I want her to have a warm, soft bed, I want her to always know where her next meal is coming from.”
Tom gave her a kiss and one final pat before waving sadly and walking away, leaving behind the one creature that he had loved above all others.
I felt responsible for breaking his heart. But I knew Poppy was the most important one in all of this.
Poppy was officially part of the family, but I always thought of Tom. In my mind,
I kept a window open. If he came back in the next three months, six months, year, we could go back. I was living on thin hope – he never got in touch.
Poppy was a delight. She’d been given the world, but she had given me so much as well. I felt protected, she made me laugh and she was a constant reminder of the streets and why I needed to keep doing the work I loved. Extracted from Poppy The Street Dog by Michelle Clark published by Seven Dials on September 17, £7.99 in paperback. Also available in ebook and audio.