Freckles - a wonderful companion - Carole Stiles

Freckles - Carole Stiles

I grew up on the 8th floor of an apartment block in a nice suburb outside of London.   I used to drive my mum mad begging for a dog or cat or any pet - she finally relented and I was allowed a hamster.   I used to travel by bus for 2 hours to go riding when I was 16.   Eventually I grew up and got married and had 2 children, we had a couple of cats and bred lop eared rabbits which the children loved and so did I.   My daughter started riding at 8 and I found myself longing for the countryside, space and more animals.   We got our first dog from a rescue place - we called him Freckles he was 4 months old but we found he was arthritic even though it didn't really stop his enthusiasm for life.   A border collie x and the most wonderful dog, I'm sure he knows what I'm thinking.   3 years later and we are boarding the plane, emigrating to rural New Zealand leaving the cats safely with my in-laws but with Freckles booked on a separate flight.   We all took to NZ life in an instant, we met Freckles at MAF and straight to the beach!   7 years later and he's riddled with Arthritis but his spirit is still strong.   He's now joined by Charlie a pointer with ADHD, Noah a blue heeler pup, 3 horses, 2 goats, 2 sheep and Carmen the tonkinese cat who keeps everyone in check!   Freckles can't go on every walk now but always comes to the beach.   Who knows if he'll still be with us next year but every one of the 10 years we've had him has brought us fun and adventure.