No dog’s dinners
Our Debbie Hairy got a happy ending
Arriving at the airport in Paris, I spotted a ball of golden fluff in the dog crate. ‘Nice to meet you, Debbie,’ I smiled, and she flashed me a toothy grin.
It was May 2023, and on a work trip with the charity NoToDogMeat, I was greeting two fresh rescues from China.
I’d worked with the charity doing their PR for three years.
Such a rewarding job. Along with her doggy companion, Delphi, Debbie had been rescued from China’s cruel dog meat industry.
Now, instead of being someone’s dinner, they were headed to the UK for happy lives with new families. Only…
‘Bad news,’ said Julia, CEO of NoToDogMeat.
Debbie’s adoptive family had pulled out last minute.
Looking at her sweet eyes, my heart ached.
‘She’s been through so much,’ I sighed, then… ‘Maybe I could take her!’ I already had two dogs at home, Lemmy, the terrier, and Evelyn, a chihuahuadachshund cross rescue from Romania.
What’s one more pup in the pack?
Debbie stayed at the centre while I returned to England with one person to convince… my husband Peter, then 53. ‘I’m not sure,’ he said. But hearing Debbie’s tragic tale, he warmed to the idea.
That June, at Julia’s house in London, I waited for Debbie to arrive.
But before I took her home, we had to stop at the GB News studios in Paddington!
Debbie had found stardom as one of the first rescue dogs to arrive from China after the pandemic.
I worried she’d be scared of the cameras, but she was a natural.
Even got a scratch behind the ears from Eamonn Holmes!
‘What a spoilt pup,’ I grinned.
Then I took
Debbie to her fur-ever home, where Peter was waiting with Lemmy and Evelyn.
We introduced Debbie to her new siblings on the field near our house, their tails wagging. ‘Friends already,’ I smiled. But even though she got along with Lemmy and Evelyn, Debbie was nervous with Peter.
In her early life, men had treated her badly. We worked on it though, and two weeks later, when Peter arrived home from work, Debbie bounded over and licked him on the leg. We were thrilled, and soon, Debbie’s personality shone.
She loved playing in the grass, nibbling on cheese, cuddling in front of the TV. Wagging her tail, she watched Blondie’s Glasto festival performance on screen that summer. ‘Our very own Debbie Hairy!’ I joked.
Now, Debbie’s thriving. She’s been to the groomers, and a DNA test found she’s part chihuahua, part Tibetan mastiff. The Chinese government is cracking down on the dog meat trade, but there are still many dogs desperate for loving homes. We currently have 750 dogs in NoToDogMeat shelters in China. Pups like Debbie deserve a chance, not to be sold as food.
Now, she can look forward to a life of love, woodland walks and tummy tickles like any dog deserves.
She’d been rescued from China’s cruel dog meat industry
HELPING PAW Find out about adopting or make a donation at notodogmeat.com.